Hayward, Calif. – The Cal State East Bay volleyball team will continue its homestand this week with two crucial CCAA matches. The Pioneers will look to continue momentum from Saturday's thrilling, five-set victory over San Francisco State when they welcome two Southern California foes into Pioneer Gym. With eyes on gaining some ground in the CCAA standings, the team will host Cal State Los Angeles on Thursday and Cal State Dominguez Hills on Friday, with both matches set to begin at 7 p.m.

Thursday's match will feature the Pioneer Pride Halloween Costume Contest between the second and third sets. Fans are encouraged to dress in costume or CSUEB spirit gear. Gift card prizes will be awarded to the best Halloween costume and the best Pioneer spirit costume. Friday night is the “Dig Pink” match in support of Breast Cancer Awareness. Pioneer Athletics will be raffling off three pink game-day volleyballs signed by the entire Cal State East Bay team, as well as a limited-edition Pink Ribbon t-shirt.

WEEKEND RECAP

The Pioneers are coming off their second straight 1-1 weekend, having shown real signs of improvement lately. After losing a few keys players to injuries early in the season, the team seems to have gotten into a better rhythm the last two weeks as players' roles have solidified. After this week, the Pioneers hit the road for four straight matches, so taking care of business at home will be critical.

Junior Suzy Ni Xu led the way offensively for Cal State East Bay last weekend, posting 25 kills in the two matches. She was a force on Friday against Sonoma State, hitting .406. For the season, Xu leads the Pioneers in kill average (2.81) and attack percentage (.223). Senior Nicole Boyle struggled a bit last week, totaling just 17 kills despite leading the team in attack attempts. She was instrumental in other ways, though, particular on the back line. Boyle notched 39 digs and added four service aces, and for the season she ranks second on the team in kills and digs. Hannah Bell, the only other Pioneer to average better than two kills and two scoops per set, put up 13 kills and 23 digs in the two matches. Senior Nikki Long added 15 kills as the team's third-leading attacker.

The starting middle blockers had an impressive pair of matches for East Bay. Sophomore Samantha Bruno totaled 12 kills and six blocks, while committing just one error. Bruno leads the Pioneers and ranks top-10 in the conference in blocking for the season. Senior Jade Sanford continued to show signs of dominance with regular playing time. She slammed home 16 kills over the weekend and led the team with eight total blocks.

SETTING IT UP

Good offensive volleyball often relies on solid play from the setter. Therefore, it's likely not a coincidence that the Pioneers have played two of their best matches of the season the last two weeks now that they have established a consistent rotation with the setters. Indeed, both senior Danielle Stewart and junior Samantha Siebert have improved their played over the course of the season, and the pair now splits playing time almost evenly. In nine sets over two matches last weekend, Stewart tallied 41 assists and 14 digs, while Siebert posted 45 assists and 13 digs. Stewart also added eight kills, picking some favorable times to go over the net on two. For the season, the two setters have combined to average nearly 11 assists per set.

CAN YOU DIG IT?

Sophomore libero Veronica Sanchez played arguably the best match of her career in the win over SF State, racking up 39 digs and extending a number of long rallies for the Pioneers. For the weekend, she averaged a remarkable 6.44 digs per set. Currently, Sanchez leads the CCAA in total digs (243) and dig average (4.84) for the 13 conference matches.

GETTING TO KNOW THE GOLDEN EAGLES

Cal State LA rolls into Hayward having lost its last two matches at home to UC San Diego and Cal State San Bernardino. The Golden Eagles sit in the middle of the pack with a conference record of 7-6. They're led by two-time CCAA Player of the Week Marquis Mora, who averages 3.08 kills per set and leads the conference in hitting percentage (.357), service aces (32), and total blocks (1.43 per set). Kymberly Silveyra is second on the team with 2.51 kills per set, while setter Alexandra Bura ranks in the top-10 in the conference in assists. As a team, Cal State LA leads the CCAA in blocking. The Golden Eagles defeated the Pioneers in Los Angeles earlier this year 3-1.

TRACKING THE TOROS

Cal State Dominguez Hills also lost both its matches last weekend, and the Toros also come in with a record of 7-6. A solid defensive team, they rank second in the CCAA in dig average. Elizabeth Krieger, Whitney Lee, and Abbey Prusa each average better than two kills per set, and Krieger adds 3.24 digs. Setter Dana Brown is fifth in the conference in assist average at 9.43. The Toros beat Cal State East Bay in five sets back in September, so revenge will be on the Pioneers' minds.