HAYWARD, Calif. – Cal State East Bay picked up its first league win of the season following a 74-57 win over UC San Diego on Saturday night inside Pioneer Gymnasium. The Pioneers turned a 17-point deficit into a 17-point lead after outscoring the Tritons 59-25 over the final 25 minutes of regulation.

"UC San Diego absolutely owned us for the better part of the first half. (UCSD) was quicker to the ball, out-rebounded us, and drove past us as though we were standing in mud. I thought we are either going to dig our way out, or fold," said East Bay Head Coach Suzy Barcomb after the team fell behind 32-15 with six minutes left in the first half.

At that point, many of the Pioneer faithful were likely attempting to answer that same question. The home crowd would watch the answer in the form of a comeback that started late in the first half and cut the halftime deficit to only six points.

"We all started to hit our shots. We had a great conversation with each other (at halftime) and our momentum carried over into the second half," said East Bay newcomer Mo Fegan of the team's 15-4 scoring run heading into halftime. "I never believe we are out of a game. We were hyped in the locker room at halftime and it was a fantastic atmosphere."

All 10 players who saw first half floor time contributed to the scoring column. Meanwhile UC San Diego (3-4, 1-1 CCAA) took advantage at the free throw line and scored from close range.

McKennan Bertsch, Haley Anderson, and Miranda Seto combined to score 28 of their team's 36 first half points, and Farrah Shokoor cleaned up on the glass with 10 first half rebounds. The second half was a much different story as the Pioneer defense held the aforementioned scoring trio to just seven points combined.

Shokoor finished with a game-high 18 rebounds and Bertsch did the same with 18 points. However the Pioneers outrebounded the Tritons 51-43 overall and held them to only 21 points in the second half.

"Tonight was a total team effort. We received big contributions from all 10 who played tonight," stated Barcomb. "We had a huge momentum shift when Mo hit a three and you could see an energy swing in our favor."

Fegan was one cast in a crew of Pioneers who shined on Saturday finishing with 12 points including three triples. She was one of four East Bay team members to score in double figures.

Joining that group is Stephanie Lopez who finished with a 12 points and 11 rebounds double-double. Micah Walker continues to contribute solid minutes finishing one point shy of a double-double, and Shannon Bland finished with 10 points and six rebounds.

"Steph's double-double, Micah's rebounding and free throws, and Shannon's hustle and defense were all critical for us tonight," praised Barcomb.

Cal State East Bay (5-2, 1-1 CCAA) defended home court for the first time against UC San Diego since joining the California Collegiate Athletic Association for the 2009-10 campaign. The Pioneers will host game five of a 6-game homestand on Saturday, Dec. 13, against Cal State Monterey Bay (2-4, 0-2 CCAA).