HAYWARD, Calif. -- The 2016 Cal State East Bay Pioneers look to pick-up where they left off at the end of a 2015 baseball season that saw the team win 14 of its last 17 games to finish 18-22 in CCAA play and 21-26 overall.

With the addition of Cal State San Marcos this season, the CCAA has split the 12 teams into two divisions. The north division includes the Pioneers, Sonoma State, San Francisco State, Chico State, Stanislaus State, and Cal State Monterey Bay. The south division is represented by Cal Poly Pomona, UC San Diego, Cal State Los Angeles, Cal State San Marcos, Cal State Dominguez Hills, and Cal State San Bernardino.

Cal State East Bay has been picked to finish in fifth place in the north in the CCAA Preseason Coaches' Poll. The conference has expanded the postseason tournament to include six teams, the top three from each division.

"We have to play good fundamental baseball each weekend to give us a chance to finish in the top three in the northern division," said Cal State East Bay head coach Bob Ralston. The Pioneers will look to earn their first-ever bid to the CCAA Baseball Tournament, which begins May 12 in Stockton.

The squad that will aim to prove the prognosticators wrong carries a good mix of veterans and newcomers. Senior outfielder Rudy Navarro hopes to follow up on a 2015 campaign that saw him hit .311 with four home runs, 29 RBI, and 11 doubles, earning Second Team All-CCAA honors.

Senior Marcus Williams returns after batting .291 with eight doubles and seven stolen bases. Marcus Wise comes back for his junior year after leading the team with 17 stolen bases each of his first two seasons. Senior catcher Chris Porter projects to be a starter for the fourth year in a row and hit a team-high five home runs in 2015.

On the other side of the ball, Sophomore Alex Vesia had a stellar freshman year in 2015 with a team-leading 2.18 ERA in 74.1 innings pitched. Vesia recorded five wins, including three complete games. He allowed just six extra base hits all season and was subsequently named CCAA Freshman of the Year.

Fellow sophomores Jacob Call and Donavon Ramirez also figure to play prominent roles in 2016 after solid freshmen campaigns. Call was third on the Pioneers in innings pitched (59.2) as a rookie, and Ramirez posted a 3.00 ERA in seven bullpen appearances. 

Leading the newcomers are a slew of junior college transfers, including infielders Michael Thomas and Troy Resch and outfielders Kris Bartlett and Raymond Jones. The Pioneers hope to have increased depth in their pitching staff, with right-handers Joshua Kubiske and Derek Oetken among the names to keep an eye on.

Cal State East Bay opens the 2016 season with a three-game non-conference series against Academy of Art. The Urban Knights went 8-38 a year ago, finishing in last place in the PacWest Conference. The opener is taking place at Laney College in Oakland this Friday at 6:00 P.M. The following day, the teams head down to Hayward for a doubleheader at Pioneer Field, starting at 11 a.m.