HAYWARD, Calif. -- The Cal State East Bay volleyball returns to the friendly confines of Pioneer Gymnasium this weekend to play the first of five straight home matches as the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) schedule heads into November.
The Pioneers (5-13, 2-11 CCAA) host Cal State Stanislaus at 7 p.m. on Friday night to open the weekend. On Saturday night, CSUEB welcomes in Chico State for "Blackout Night," during which fans will have a chance to win glow-in-the-dark Pioneer Athletics t-shirt. Saturday's match will feature live streaming video at
PioneerWebTV.com.
WEEKLY RECAPCal State East Bay has now lost eight in a row following a pair of tough road defeats last weekend. Last Thursday, they drove all the way up to Arcata only to witness Humboldt State put on one of the most impressive offensive performances of year. The Jacks hit .406 as a team, racking up 49 kills with 48 assists and just eight attack errors in a three-set victory.
Two nights later, the Pioneers were back in southern California after some extensive travel to take on the No. 14 ranked team in the nation, Cal State San Bernardino. East Bay came up short in four sets, but they played perhaps their most inspired match of the losing streak against perhaps the most talented squad they've faced. Seniors
Amber Hall and
Samantha Bruno notched back-to-back kills to close out a 25-23 win is the second set, the first set the team had claimed since Sept. 26. The Pioneers then hit .341 in game three and held a 24-23 lead with a chance to take control of the match, but the Coyotes rallied an edged out the Pioneers, 28-26.
PIONEER POINTSHall finished with 15 kills against CSUSB, and Bruno matched a career high with 16. The top two scorers on the Pioneers are both in the top-20 in the CCAA, with Hall ranked fifth at 3.37 kills/set and Bruno checking in at 20th with 2.67 kills/set.
East Bay had a season high (for a four-set match) with 76 digs against the Coyotes, led by
Angie Maina. The junior notched a career high 26 scoops to go along with a pair of service aces. Maina ranks third in the team with 147 digs this season, and she's already soared past her previous career high of 114 digs in 2013.
Ashia Joseph ranks in the top-10 in the CCAA in both assists (8.02 per set) and service aces (0.32 per set). She's also second on the Pioneers with 151 digs this season.
Cal State East Bay enters the weekend ranking ninth in the conference in both hitting percentage (.186) and kills per set (11.98).Current CCAA StandingsCCAA Statistical LeadersFRESH FACESCal State East Bay has several freshman playing prominent roles this season, and head coach
Jim Spagle has gotten some strong performances from his rookie class.
Brandi Brucato has played in 60 out of 64 sets and leads the team with 2.85 digs per set.
Kiani Rayford tallied 16 kills last week and ranks third on the squad averaging 1.75 kills per set.
Micah Hammond (.249 pct., 0.64 blocks/set) and
Jovan Turner (.242 pct., 0.57 blocks/set) have started in the middle all season and anchored the front line for the Pioneers.
Veronica Fabiano has seen fairly consistant playing time at the second setter, posting 4.55 assists per set and a .435 hitting percentage.
HISTORY WATCHBruno is Cal State East Bay's all-time leader in total blocks with 251 for her career. The senior
also leads all active Pioneers with 639 career kills, which places her just outside the program's top-10 all-time.After tallying 45 assists last week, Joseph now has 1,543 career assists, which ranks seventh in program history. She needs 256 more this season to move into sixth place.
Senior
Veronica Sanchez recorded 10 digs in last week's matches, surpassing the 1,200 mark for her East Bay career. She now has 1,203 digs, which ranks second all-time.
SCOUTING STANISLAUSThe Pioneers and Warriors are currently tied in the standings, and Cal State Stanislaus is 1-8 since beating East Bay in Turlock on Sept. 20. The Warriors are last in the conference in points per set and 11th with a .157 hitting percentage. Opponents are hitting .246 against them for the season. Offensively, Stanislaus is led by Blair Ehrlich (2.60 kills/set) and Paige Walker (2.14 kills/set, .230 pct.). Cal State East Bay is 4-5 against them since joining the CCAA, with the Pioneers winning 3-0 in Hayward last season.
CATCHING UP WITH CHICOThe Wildcats have lost four of their last five, but they picked up an impressive home win over UC San Diego last weekend. They're sixth in the CCAA with a .206 attack percentage. They also rank
fourth in service aces and second in digs per set, led by senior libero Emily Duran (4.65 digs/set). Offensively, middle blocker Lindsay Quigley (3.32 kills/set, .396 pct.) and outside hitter Shannon Boling (3.25 kills/set) are two of the top attackers in the conference. The Pioneers are 3-6 against Chico State since 2010 with two straight losses at home.
