HAYWARD, Calif. -- For the second straight Tuesday, the Cal State East Bay volleyball team went to five sets at Pioneer Gymnasium, and for the second straight Tuesday, they came out victorious. CSUEB fended off match point multiple times against visiting Chico State, ultimately rallying back to claim the final two frames.

It's the fourth straight win in CCAA play for the Pioneers (9-8, 5-4 CCAA), and it completes the season sweep over the Wildcats. East Bay is now tied with Stanislaus and Cal State Monterey Bay atop a tightly-contested North Division heading into this weekend's contests.

Tuesday's match was a back-and-forth affair in the truest respect. The Pioneers looked dominant in the opening set, jumping out to a 22-13 lead and holding Chico to a negative hitting percentage. But the visitors returned the favor in game two, as East Bay stumbled offensively and hit -.098 in an easy win for Chico.

It was more of the same early in the fourth set as the Wildcats grabbed an 11-6 advantage, but the Pioneers were finally able to right the ship. They rallied back to make the score close, but weren't quite able to pull off the comeback as Chico squeaked out a three-point win.

Game four was even tighter, with neither team leading by more than three points at any time. The Pioneers briefly grabbed the lead at 22-21, but then Chico won three of the next four to set up match point. The Wildcats had three chances to end the match, but a kill by Kathy McKiernan and two by Lindsey Ray kept the Pioneers alive. Finally they snatched the momentum away, forcing two straight attack errors to win the set and extend the evening.

That momentum stayed on the home bench in the final frame, as East Bay jumped out to a 10-2 lead and finished off the victory behind impressive efforts from Ray and Kiki Leuteneker on the attack.

Both squads turned in relatively inefficient hitting performances, with Chico topping CSUEB .141 to .135 overall. As a result, both teams nearly reached 100 total digs.

Ray finished with 15 kills and just three attack errors to go along with 23 digs. Setter Katie Ireland edged her for the team lead with 24 scoops, adding 49 assists and three block assists.

Leuteneker racked up 16 kills and tallied six total blocks. McKiernan notched six as well, and had a solid offensive night with 12 kills and a .333 hitting percentage. Fellow middle blocker Julie May added six kills and hit .308 in her second career start.

In the back row, Natahlee Wilson tallied 19 digs and Cassidy Caton finished with 11. Caton also had five service aces, giving the senior 11 in her last two matches, and moving her up to second place in the CCAA with a total of 29 this season.

Next up, the Pioneers remain in Hayward for two more home contests this weekend against North foes. They welcome in Sonoma State on Friday night, followed by Humboldt State on Saturday.