Box Score: CSUEB 12, FPU 2 - F
Box Score: SJSU 17, CSUEB 4 - F

SAN JOSE, Calif. – Cal State East Bay made a victorious season debut on Friday at the LouStrong Memorial Tournament at San Jose State with a 12-2 victory over Fresno Pacific. The Pioneers fell to the host and No. 7 nationally ranked Spartans 17-4 to close out their opening day to the 2015 season.

Website: LouStrong Memorial Tournament

"It was a great team effort today and we had a lot of different people scoring," praised East Bay Head Coach Lisa Cooper. "Our communication was excellent and our goalies were on fire. Our team defense really stepped up. "

Casey Rushforth scored on East Bay's opening possession and sparked a streak of five unanswered goals against Fresno Pacific. Taylor Cross, Sabrina Hatzer, Tori Dettloff, and Ka'iliponi McGee all scored during that stretch.

Cross, Hatzer, and Alyssa Hess each finished with two goals apiece in the first half in helping build a 9-2 halftime advantage. Hess would finish with a game-high three goals in her Pioneer debut.

Both of FPU's goals came courtesy of 6-on-5 opportunities. Emily Knowles ended EB's five unanswered first quarter goals and teammate Hannah Holly did the same after the Pioneers scored three in a row. However the Sunbirds cashed in on just 2-of-13 player advantage chances while the Pioneers converted 2-of-8 into scores.

Olivia Mackell provided half of the East Bay opportunities leading the squad with four drawn exclusions. She was also one of four Pioneers with multiple assists in the contest led by three from Rushforth.

East Bay goalkeeper Marrina Nation made seven stops and did not allow a goal when the team was at full strength. She added two assists and a steal in the winning effort. Miranda Diehm closed out the final four-plus minutes and made her first career save in the match.

San Jose State (2-0) made its official season debut with a 15-5 win over Western Water Polo Association member Sonoma State. The Pioneers suffered a similar fate to that of their conference rival as the No. 7 Spartans jumped out to an early lead.

Rushforth put East Bay on the scoreboard with two minutes left before halftime ending a stretch of seven unanswered goals by SJSU. A strong offensive third quarter for the Pioneers included 6-on-5 goals from McGee and Hess, and a counterattack score by Cross.

In total Cal State East Bay earned 15 exclusions to only seven for San Jose State. The host Spartans went 2-for-6 on power plays and converted a 5-meter penalty shot while the Pioneers connected on only 2-of-15 for the match.

SJSU's Victoria Smith led all players with five goals. She was one of four different Spartans to score multiple times including another four scores by Rae Leckness.

CSUEB's Nation led all goalkeepers with eight saves. SJSU starter Katelyn Thompson made three first half saves and Taylor Peters stopped six second half shots.

The LouStrong Memorial Tournament is named in honor of former San Jose State Head Coach Lou Tully, who passed away on Dec. 17, 2013. He was named the Spartans' Head Coach in 1996, coached through the 2013 campaign, and won 250 contests.

Cal State East Bay (1-1) will host the Brazilian National Team in an exhibition match on Monday, Jan. 19, at 1 p.m.