Box Score Hayward, Calif. – The Cal State East Bay volleyball team lost its third straight road match to open conference play on Friday, falling to Cal State LA in four sets (25-19, 22-25, 25-18, 25-15). The loss evens up the Pioneers' overall record at 5-5, and they drop to 0-3 in CCAA play. Despite several impressive individual performances, East Bay was unable to slow down the Golden Eagle attackers. As a team, they were out-hit .295 to .128 for the match.

Junior Suzy Ni Xu was the focal point of the Pioneer offense and turned in one of her best performances of the season. Xu led all players with 15 kills, 40 attempts, and six total blocks, while posting an impressive .300 attack percentage. Junior Hannah Bell had nine kills and four blocks for the Pioneers, senior Nicole Boyle added seven kills to go with six digs, and senior Jade Sanford had six kills on 12 attempts.

Sophomore Veronica Sanchez, starting at libero, tallied 15 digs to lead the team. Junior setter Samantha Siebert had one of her best matches as a Pioneer, filling up the score sheet with 26 assists, 13 digs, and three kills. Middle blockers Brittany Dominguez and Samantha Bruno posted five and three blocks, respectively.

The Pioneers, however, were unable to overcome 26 attack errors, eight service errors, and seven receiving errors. Cal State LA (4-6, 2-1 CCAA) bested them in team kills, digs, and assists, while out-hitting East Bay in each of their three set victories. Reigning CCAA Player of the Week Marquis Mora led the Golden Eagles with 13 kills, four blocks, and a shiny .476 attack percentage. Kymberly Silveyra and Loreal Carter added 12 kills apiece, and setter Alexandra Bura racked up 43 assists.

The first set was close at the start, but with the score tied 8-8, Cal State LA went on a 10-2 run to take an insurmountable lead. It was a bit of a sloppy start for the Pioneers, as they scored just eight kills in the set. The team bounced back strong in the second set. Behind Xu's solid hitting, Cal State East Bay prevailed in a tight, back-and-forth set to even up the match at 1-1.

This would turn out to be the high point of the night for the Pioneers, as Cal State LA was able to defend it home turf and take the final two sets. The match turned late in the third set, with the Golden Eagles leading 17-16. They went on a 7-1 run behind Silveyra's serving to put the set away. The fourth set unfolded in similar fashion, as Cal State LA used a 7-0 run to turn a 11-10 score into 18-10. The Golden Eagles never looked back, clinching the four-set victory.

Cal State East Bay is back in action tomorrow night as the team attempts to end its mini-losing streak and notch its first conference win. The southern California road trip continues Saturday at Cal State Dominguez Hills, with the match set for 7 p.m.