HAYWARD, Calif. -- The Cal State East men's basketball team came up short on Friday night in front of a crowd of over 800 in attendance for Homecoming Week. The Pioneers were bested by visiting Sonoma State by a final score of 78-55.

CSUEB (4-17, 2-13 CCAA) actually turned in one of its more efficient team shooting performances of the season, hitting at 47 percent from the field and 39 percent from three-point range. However, the Pioneers struggled at the free throw line, going 4-for-11, and they committed 13 turnovers, compared to just four for SSU.

The Seawolves stormed out to a 25-7 lead and controlled the game for most of the first half. The Pioneers managed to rally back behind guards Cody Kale and Marcus Norman, who scored 15 of the team's 20 points in the opening frame. East Bay out-scored SSU 13-11 over the final eight minutes of the half, but Sonoma still took a comfortable 36-20 lead into the break.

The Pioneers came out firing after halftime and opened the second half on a 12-0 run, igniting the Homecoming crowd and cutting their deficit to just four. But Sonoma answered right back with seven straight to build their lead back to double digits. 

The visitors were able to hold off East Bay's attempts to make a comeback and padded their lead in the final minutes at the free throw line.The Pioneers came up short despite shooting 58 percent in the second half.

"All the credit tonight goes to Sonoma State," said head coach Gusc Argenal. "They were ready to play, and their start to the game put us on our heels. We responded in the second half to cut the deficit, but the Seawolves answered our run. I was really impressed with the play of senior Cody Kale -- he allowed us to make a run right before and after halftime."

Kale led all scorers with 16 points on 7-for-15 shooting. He also notched five rebounds and three assists in a team-high 38 minutes. 

Fellow senior Jacari Whitfield was the only other player to reach double figures for the injury-plagued Pioneers. He scored 10 points on 4-for-7 from the floor and dished out four assists to lead the squad.

Junior Marcus Norman posted all eight of his points in the first half, knocking down his first three shots from the floor. Sophomore Paramvir Singh made his first start of the season and finished with seven points and five boards.

Freshman Patrick Marr led East Bay with seven rebounds, while going 1-for-2 from long range. Sophomore Kyle Frakes added six points and four rebounds on 3-for-6 shooting.

Darrick McIntosh grabbed four boards off the bench, and fellow senior Nick Grieves notched three point and three rebounds.

"The game came down to our turnovers and missed free throw opportunites, and Sonoma's offensive rebounding," Argenal added. "We have to bounce back tomrrow against a good SF State team."

The Pioneers are indeed back in action to cap off Homecoming Week on Saturday night to against San Francisco State. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m. following the women's game with live video available at PioneerWebTV.com.