HAYWARD, Calif. -- The Cal State East Bay women's volleyball team opened the 2016 season on Friday by hosting day one of the fifth annual Route 92 Showdown at Pioneer Gym. Unfortunately opening day was unkind to CSUEB, as the Pioneers fell to Barry University in four sets during the afternoon before dropping a five-set heartbreaker to Academy of Art to close out the evening.

The first contest was evenly-matched through the first two sets as East Bay and Barry each won a game. The Pioneer attack struggled in the final two frames, however, and the home team finished with just an .055 hitting percentage for the match. Sophomores Kiki Leuteneker (12 kills, 13 digs) and Deja Thompson (10 kills, 17 digs) both tallied double-doubles in the loss.

Back in action just a few hours later, the Pioneers played an incredibly tight match with Academy of Art punctuated by numerous long rallies. The teams traded off winning sets, with each frame coming down to the final points. The Urban Knights ultimately escaped with the victory after closing the fifth set strong with five of the final eight points. 

Four CSUEB players tallied double-digit kills in the nightcap, led by Julie Navarro with 16. Thompson racked up 13 kills and 21 digs, while newcomer Cassidy Caton notched 10 kills. Kathy McKiernan also finished with 10 to go along with a team-best .375 attack percentage and seven total blocks.

The Pioneers return to the court Saturday for the final day of the Route 92 Showdown. East Bay takes on local rivals Holy Names at 1:30 p.m., followed by Dominican at 7 p.m.

Full recap to follow.