HAYWARD, Calif. — Despite three players reaching double-digit kills, the Cal State East Bay volleyball team fell in four sets to visiting Chico State on Saturday night (25-16, 16-25, 25-18, 25-18). The loss snaps a five-match winning streak for the Pioneers (5-5, 1-1 CCAA) and marks their first home defeat of the season. The Wildcats (6-4, 3-0 CCAA) are still unbeaten in three conference matches.

Statistically, the match was quite a bit closer than the point totals indicate. Chico edged out the Pioneers in total kills (53 to 51) and assists (51 to 49) and trailed slightly in digs (63-62). The difference came at the net, as the Wildcats racked up nine total blocks to the Pioneers' two. East Bay also committed 24 attack errors, while Chico made just 15.

"Our block was terrible, and our toughness on the court resembled our misadventure in Oregon," said head coach Jim Spagle after the match. "Chico played very tough tonight, which took our athletes out of their systems of play. We have a lot of work to d for next week."

Junior Amber Hall led the Pioneers with 15 kills, hit .317, and notched 15 digs in the match. Senior Kitona Offord posted 11 kills and a .364 attack percentage in the middle. Junior Katie Allen also reached double digits in kills with 11.

Junior Veronica Sanchez racked up an impressive 31 digs in the four sets to improve her conference-leading average. Fellow junior Ashia Joseph totaled 45 assists, three total blocks, and a pair of kills as the team's primary setter. Senior Suzy Ni Xu tallied seven kills and six digs, and junior Samantha Bruno added five kills.

The match started out about as badly as it could have for East Bay, as the visitors won the first five points of the first set and quickly jumped out to an 8-1 lead. The Pioneers mounted a comeback, as Xu served them to a 5-0 run, drawing the team within three points, but they were never able to get closer than two.  Chico out-hit CSUEB .220 to .053 in the opening set and pulled away for the victory.

The Pioneers came storming back in the second set and looked to reclaim the momentum in front of their home crowd. They hit .300 even in the second set, and this time, they got off to a much better start. East Bay won five straight points and took an early 7-4 lead after Xu's third kill of the frame. The Wildcats drew within one, but the Pioneers countered with a three-point run that put them up 15-10. The team was able to hang on from there, winning six of the final seven points and closing the set on a kill by Offord.

With the match even, East Bay was not able to muster the same attack efficiency in the crucial third set. Once again, the beginning of the set dictated the momentum, as the Pioneers quickly found themselves in an 11-3 hole. They clawed back to within four points and even finished the set by winning eight of the final 13 points, but it wasn't enough. Chico didn't allow CSUEB to get closer than four points. They hit .469 as a team and took the 2-1 advantage in the match with a 25-18 victory.

Unfortunately for East Bay, that would be identical to the fourth set score. The Pioneers managed just a .100 hitting percentage in what would be the final frame. The home team jumped out to a quick 6-3 lead, but they fell into a rut of attack errors as the Wildcats roared back to go on a 10-2 run. The teams traded points as East Bay tried to mount a comeback, but they simply couldn't win enough consecutive points to get closer than four.  A pair of kills by Hannah Wilkins sealed the seven-point set victory for Chico State, and they escaped Hayward with a four-set win.

In the midst of a stretch of nine straight home matches, CSUEB is back in action next weekend with two more contests at Pioneer Gym. They team will take on Cal Poly Pomona on Friday night and Humboldt State on Saturday night, with both matches set for 7 p.m.