HAYWARD, Calif. — After finishing the regular season strong with a second-place finish at the CCAA Invitational, the Pioneer water polo team will look to do some damage in postseason play. Cal State East Bay will compete in the Western Water Polo Association Championships this weekend, hosted by Santa Clara.

With a 2-5 conference record, the Pioneers enter the tournament at the No. 7 seed, and they open up against the No. 2 seed, 11th-ranked Loyola Marymount. This will be East Bay's 11th game of the season against a Division I opponent and their 11th game against a team ranked in the top-20 nationally.

WEEKLY RECAP
The Pioneers did not play last week after rattled off eight games in 11 days to finish the regular season. The previous week, they turned in an impressive showing at the first CCAA Invitational in Fresno, winning a pair of games before falling to No. 13 UC San Diego in the championship.

The Pioneers opened the tournament with their highest scoring output of the season, racking up 19 goals in an easily win over Cal State San Bernardino in the first round. Their second-round opponent was familiar foe Sonoma State, and East Bay turned in one perhaps its best defensive effort of the year. Marrina Nation allowed just one goal in the first half en route to an 8-3 victory. The Pioneers then gave the top-seeded Tritons an outstanding game with the tournament title on the line the following day, but ultimately came up just short in a 9-8 loss.

COLLECTING HARDWARE
This week, the All-WWPA teams were announced, and a trio of Pioneers were among the honorees. Junior Sara Hudyn was selected to the first team after leading the conference in scoring (and setting an new CSUEB record) with 107 goals.

Senior Claire Pierce earned an All-Conference nod for the fourth straight year. She was named to the second team. Pierce finished third in the WWPA in scoring (86 goals) and fifth in steals (54). The Pioneers' all-time leading scorer, she also led the team with 105 drawn ejections this season.

In addition, Jennifer Lightbody was picked for the All-Freshman team. She notched 10 goals, 9 assists, and 11 steals, while getting regular playing time in her first season at CSUEB.

TOPPING THE CHARTS
Against UCSD, Kate McAfee tallied her 99th career assist, moving her into third place on the all-time Pioneer rankings. McAfee is currently second in the conference with 55 assists this season. She's one of four Pioneers to rank in the top-20, joining Allison Zell (35), Pierce (30), and Julia Charlesworth (24). As a team, East Bay leads the WWPA with 7.74 assists per game. 

Goalkeeper Marrina Nation finished third in the conference with 232 saves, averaging just under 10 per game. The sophomore has been playing her best at the end of the season. The Pioneers will need that to continue heading into their tough first-round matchup.

WWPA STANDINGS
The teams below are ranked by conference record. The Pioneers actually have the third-best overall mark at 16-15, but a few close defeats left them with a 2-5 mark in WWPA play and the No. 7 position heading into the postseason.

TEAM	WWPA W-L	Overall W-L	Pct.
1. #13 UC San Diego	7-0	22-13	.629
2. #11 Loyola Marymount	6-1	18-12	.600
3. Santa Clara	5-2	14-16	.467
4. Colorado State	3-4	8-19	.296
5. Sonoma State	3-4	12-18	.400
6. Cal State Monterey Bay	2-5	10-21	.323
7. Cal State East Bay	2-5	16-15	.516
8. Cal State San Bernardino	0-7	6-26	.188

SCOUTING THE LIONS
LMU lost consecutive games to four of the top six teams in the nation before beating Occidental 11-1 at home last Saturday. First-team All-WWPA selection Alexandra Honny leads the Lions with 62 goals, and she leads the conference with 78 steals. Mackenzie Beck (37 goals, 26 assists) and Jessica Morales (49 goals, 29 steals) both earned second-team All-WWPA honors, as did goalkeeper Claire Wright. The Pioneers lost the Lions 16-5 when the teams met earlier this year in Los Angeles. East Bay has never defeated LMU in 11 tries.