HAYWARD, Calif. -- Seattle University has announced the hiring of former Cal State East Bay head women's basketball coach Suzy Barcomb to the same position. Barcomb leaves for the Division I ranks after accumulating 95 victories in six seasons with the Pioneers and capturing the University's first conference championship as members of the California Collegiate Athletic Association. 

"It is with a heavy heart that I step away as the head coach at Cal State East Bay," said Barcomb. "I have developed amazing relationships over my six-year tenure in the Bay, and I am thankful for the opportunity to coach some tremendous young women."

Barcomb posted four straight winning seasons at CSUEB and qualified for the CCAA postseason five years in a row. Her teams improved their win total every season since she came to East Bay in 2010, culminating in the greatest season in the history of the program in 2015-16.

"Suzy will be missed tremendously at Cal State East Bay -- for both her impact on the court and the relationships she built with her student-athletes and members of the Pioneer community," said CSUEB Director of Athletics Joan McDermott. "Suzy brought unprecedented levels of success to our women's basketball program. She is extremely deserving of this opportunity at the Division I level, and I'm confident that she will excel in her new role."

Barcomb's 2014-15 squad was the first in school history to reach 20 wins at the Division II level, winning two postseason games to advance to the championship game of the CCAA Tournament. 

This past season, the Pioneers finished 27-5 to set program records for victories and winning percentage. Led by four All-CCAA honorees and the No. 2 ranked scoring defense in the nation (53.8 ppg allowed), Barcomb's 2015-16 team captured Cal State East Bay's first CCAA championship in any sport. The squad posted an 18-2 record in conference play to finish the regular season in first place and defeated UC San Diego and Cal State Dominguez Hills on back-to-back nights at Stockton Arena to claim the CCAA Tournament title. The team qualified for the NCAA Division II West Regional for the first time in 28 years.

"What we have accomplished here at East Bay is very gratifying," Barcomb added. "I've had a great deal of help and support along the way, and as I've said before, the championship we won this season also belongs to all those former student-athletes who gave so much to the program. This move allows me to return to a place I call home and continue to challenge myself to grow personally and professionally."

Barcomb's roots in the Pacific Northwest are extensive. An alumna of the University of Washington, she had an incredibly successful stint as the head coach at the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Wash. before coming to Cal State East Bay.

After serving as an assistant coach for three years, Barcomb took over as the head coach at Puget Sound in 1998 and posted a record of 237-87 in 12 seasons at the Division III level. She now heads back to the state of Washington with 332 coaching victories for her career. 

Seattle University competes in the Western Athletic Conference, which is comprised of eight schools representing eight different states. The Redhawk women's basketball program is coming off a 9-21 season in 2015-16, finishing last in the WAC with a 3-11 conference record.

Barcomb's replacement at CSUEB will have some big shoes to fill. Women's basketball has been Cal State East Bay's most successful program since the University re-gained membership in NCAA Division II in 2009-10. Barcomb's teams posted a .658 winning percentage (79-41) over her final four seasons in the Hayward hills.