HAYWARD, Calif. -- The Cal State East Bay water polo team opens the 2017 season this Saturday on the road when they visit Fresno Pacific for a 1 p.m. tilt at Sunnyside Aquatic Center.

Fans can follow live scoring via the FOSH. The matchup between the Pioneers and Sunbirds will be a preview of future conference showdowns, as FPU recently announced it would join CSUEB, Cal State Monterey Bay, Sonoma State, UC San Diego, Mercyhurst, and Gannon in the Western Water Polo Association (WWPA) next year in 2018. 

2016 REVIEW
CSUEB is coming off a 2016 season in which it finished 16-11 overall and reached the championship game of the WWPA tournament for the third straight season. The Pioneers appeared in the national top-25 rankings in early February for the first time since 2013. The season featured a seven-game winning streak throughout March, crescendoed with a thrilling overtime win over Sonoma State in the WWPA semifinal game, and ended with a narrow 9-5 loss to the No. 12 ranked Tritons in the title match.

Overall, the program posted at least a .500 record for the 13th time in 14 seasons under head coach Lisa Cooper. The team graduated a talented and experienced senior class, led by Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches (ACWPC) All-Americans Taylor Cross and Sabrina Hatzer.

SEASON  PREVIEW
Despite losing five starters from 2016, this year's squad carries high expectations, as they return a veteran group that includes seven seniors. A clear position of strength is goalkeeper, where Nikki Vaughan returns as a Second Team All-WWPA selection and First Team All-WWPA Tournament pick last season. She will be backed up by sophomore Makenna Nation, who made the WWPA All-Freshman team in 2016.

The Pioneers have an experienced group in the field, as four-year starter Olivia Mackell (11 goals, 18 steals, 53 drawn exclusions in 2016), fellow senior Brandi Carroll (18 goals, 15 assists), and junior Rocio Fesembeck (18 goals, 20 steals) competed in every game last season. Seniors Amy Chinn, Katelyn Clark, and Nicole Williams also saw regular playing time as juniors.

Williams has several familiar faces among the class of newcomers. The transfer from Fullerton College is joined this year by four other Fullerton alums in Gabriella Garcia, Leilani Vazquez, Alicia Tully, and Erika McFeggan. 

Sophomores Brooke Hodgkinson and Cheyenne Pena figure to play a larger role this season, and freshmen Vanessa Pinedo and Gina Sorensen are active after redshirting last year as rookies. They'll be joined by true freshmen Auriel Bill (Estevan, Canada) and Briana Ruiz (Riverside, Calif.). Coach Cooper also brought in a pair of junior college standouts in Savannah Rose (Sierra College) and Beverly Ayers (Diablo Valley College).

The Pioneers were picked to finish in second place in the WWPA once again according to the preseason coaches poll, which was released yesterday. They are also receiving a vote in the initial national top-25 rankings. 

SCOUTING THE SUNBIRDS
Fresno Pacific is coming off a 9-17 record in 2016 competing in the Gold Coast Conference. They were 2-6 in eight home games and posted a 3-4 record against WWPA teams. Junior Julia Ponce led the team in goals (34) and steals (26) last season, while senior Kaitlin Groothuyzen paced the squad with 24 assists.

MATCHUP HISTORY
The Pioneers won both of their games against FPU last year, an 11-9 overtime victory in Fresno and a 16-5 rout in Hayward. Overall, Cal State East Bay has won 13 straight matchups with the Sunbirds over the last nine seasons.