Box Score HAYWARD, Calif. -- The Cal State East Bay volleyball team dropped a five-set heartbreaker to visiting Cal State Monterey Bay on Tuesday night (22-25, 25-19, 25-23, 20-25, 7-15). The squad fell to 6-6 this year at Pioneer Gymnasium.

It was a monster night for freshman Kiani Rayford, who notched career highs with 14 kills and a .464 hitting percentage. She had four digs and two blocks and made just one attack error. Amber Hall was East Bay's leading scorer with 15 kills and two aces to go along with nine digs. 

The Pioneers (7-14, 4-12 CCAA) had a solid night on the attack, hitting .245 as a team. The Otters bested them with a .288 mark however, thanks in large part to a big discrepency in the fifth set. The teams combined for 124 kills in the match, but each squad recorded just five blocks.

CSUMB came storming out of the gate and posted a .387 attack percentage in winning the first set. The Pioneers rallied back in game two to even up the match, out-hitting the Otters, .325 to .188. Mideway through the frame, Hall served the team to a five-point run that gave them a 20-14 lead. The Pioneers then closed out the victory by winning four straight points.

The home team held onto the momentum after intermission and into the third set. The squads traded scoring runs until Monterey Bay held a 21-18 advantage, but the Pioneers went on a 7-2 run to pull off the comeback and capture the often-crucial third game.

Unfortunately, it wasn't East Bay's night. The Otters didn't relent and countered by going on a huge scoring run midway though the fourth set to grab a 21-13 advantage. The Pioneers came back to win six straight, but the late rally fell short. After extending the match, the Otters won eight of the first nine points in game five and ended up out-hitting East Bay .333 to .062 in the set to secure the road victory.

"I thought it was Kiani's best match of the year," said head coach Jim Spagle. "But overall I was disappointed with our readiness tonight. We left way too many points on the court to beat a solid team like Monterey." 

Samantha Bruno posted 12 kills for the Pioneers. In the middle, Micah Hammond finished with five kills and three total blocks, while Jovan Turner added six kills and two blocks.

Angie Maina tallied 22 digs and five assists as the starting libero. Veronica Sanchez also reached double figures in scoops with 10.

Ashia Joseph racked up 36 assists, four digs, three aces, six kills, and .500 hitting percentage. Fellow setter Veronica Fabiano played two sets and registered seven assists and a kill. 

CSUEB's homestand continues this weekend with two more tough CCAA matches. The Pioneers take on Cal State L.A. on Friday night and Cal State Dominguez Hills on Saturday night, with both slated for 7 p.m.