ARCATA, Calif. -- The Cal State East Bay volleyball team notched its ninth sweep victory of the season on Thursday evening, defeating Humboldt State on the road in straight sets.

The Pioneers improve to 14-11 for the season with a 10-7 mark in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA), moving them within a half-game of Cal State Monterey Bay for first place in the North Division. The Jacks remain winless in conference play with an 0-16 record. 

It was a solid overall effort for CSUEB, which out-hit the home team .268 to .176 for the night. They won both the first and third sets without much drama. Game two was extremely tight, however, as the Pioneers posted just a .143 hitting percentage and needed extra points to seal the win.

It was a big night for senior Kiki Leuteneker, who led all players with 14 kills to creep closer to the program's all-time career kills record. She tallied five in the opening frame as the Pioneers grabbed an early leads and held off HSU's comeback attempts to notch a six-point victory.

The second set was tight the whole way until three straight East Bay points gave the visitors a late 22-19 lead. This time the Jacks did pull off a late rally to even the score, but the Pioneers were able to prevail in extra points, 29-27, on kills by Lindsey Ray and Kathy McKiernan. 

That narrow victory seemed to break Humboldt's will a bit, as the Pioneers raced out a 13-2 advantage in game three and never looked back. 

Deja Thompson was a force down the stretch, finishing with 10 kills and matching Leuteneker with a team-high three total blocks. The senior will enter Saturday's regular season finale needing just three kills to become the fourth Pioneer ever to reach 1,000 for her career.

Lindsey Ray tallied eight kills and 11 digs, Kathy McKiernan hit .417 with five kills, and Tayler Templeman added four kills in the win.

Setter Katie Ireland racked up 32 assists and six scoops, with libero Natahlee Wilson posted a team-high 21 digs -- her highest total of the season in a three-set match.

Depending on how CSUMB does on Friday at No. 1 Cal State San Bernardino, the Pioneers might head into Rohnert Park on Saturday with a chance to claim the North Division title. They'll look to pull off a season sweep of the Seawolves at 7 p.m. in the Wolves Den.