WWPA Tournament Central

HAYWARD, Calif. – Fresh off the announcement that three players were named to the all-conference teams, the Cal State East Bay water polo team is set to open the 2012 WWPA Tournament against Santa Clara on Friday. The fourth-seeded Pioneers and fifth-seeded Broncos will meet for the fourth time this season when they face off in the first round at 1:30 p.m. at Canyonview Aquatic Center on the UC San Diego campus.

East Bay finished the regular season with a 17-11 overall record and a 10-6 mark against conference opponents. The Pioneers posted six wins over Division I teams this season, including a pair of victories over the Broncos. During the regular season, East Bay held opponents to eight or fewer goals 14 times this season, including five games in which the opposition mustered five goals or fewer. On the opposite end, the Pioneer offense is averaging almost 10 goals per game and are scoring on 33 percent of their shots. In addition, the team went undefeated at home (7-0) for the first time in program history, thanks in part to their 100 goals at Pioneer Pool this year.

The Pioneers are led by two-time All-American and back-to-back All-WWPA First Team selection Claire Pierce, who leads the conference with 83 goals on the year. Pierce finished the regular season strong, scoring 21 goals in the final weekend of the campaign to become Cal State East Bay's all-time leading goal scorer with 260 career goals, passing Liz Warren's previous standard of 241. An All-WWPA Honorable Mention honoree, senior Erica Crain has also been a force for the Pioneers offensively and defensively, scoring 54 goals and adding 44 assists to lead the team. Meanwhile, Crain has posted 60 steals to rank second on the team and is leading the team, scoring on 40 percent of her shot attempts. Sophie Armstrong is leading the Pioneers with 62 steals, while Sara Hudyn has seen no sophomore slump, scoring 46 goals and dishing out 29 assists to rank third in both categories.

In the cage, Jayme Pekarske earned her second straight All-WWPA honors and is one of the top goalies in the league in saves (279) and save percentage (.574). Pekarske has started every game in goal for the Pioneers and was named WWPA Player of the Week earlier this season. In addition, the Riverside native set a new career high with 23 saves in a sudden-death victory over Brown and has also posted 45 steals and 16 assists for East Bay.

Santa Clara enters Friday's matchup with an 8-25 overall record and a 7-8 mark against WWPA teams. The Broncos come into the tournament riding a three-game losing streak that included a loss to the Pioneers in their home tournament two weeks ago. Marina Allen leads the Broncos with 44 goals this season, while Ashleigh Bandimere was named WWPA Co-Newcomer of the Year earlier this week. In their three meetings with Santa Clara this season, East Bay has posted a pair of victories, including a 6-3 win over the Broncos at the tournament site during the Triton Invitational on Feb. 11. In SCU's only win over East Bay this year, the Broncos took an early lead and held on to claim a 10-7 win at home on Feb. 18. Last season, the two teams met in the third place game at the WWPA Championships, with the Broncos coming away with a 7-4 win.

All nine conference squads will compete in the annual tournament, with the winner earning the WWPA's automatic bid into the 2012 NCAA Championships to be held May 12-13 in San Diego. A victory over the Broncos would guarantee the Pioneers a top-four finish for the second straight season.

The winner of Friday's matchup will advance to play the winner of No. 1 Loyola Marymount and either No. 8 Colorado State and No. 9 Cal State San Bernardino, who open the tournament on Friday. The loser will move into the consolation bracket to take on the loser of that game. Complete tournament schedules, results and information is available here.