HAYWARD, Calif., -- The Cal State East Bay women's basketball program will open their 2018-19 campaign as hosts of the Veteran's Day Classic November 9-10 at Pioneer Gymnasium.
 
The Pioneers will open the season with a match against Western Oregon on Friday afternoon, November 9 at 2:00 p.m. before wrapping up the weekend tournament with a contest against Concordia University (Ore.) on Saturday, November 10 at 2:00 p.m.
 
East Bay was picked to finish third in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Preseason Coaches Poll.
 
Under the guidance of third-year head coach Shanele Stires, CSUEB carries high expectations coming off a 16-13 season with 12-10 mark in conference action that included another CCAA tournament berth. But success is no guarantee, and the Pioneers will have a much different look this season.
 
The Pioneers will bring an extremely talented roster to the court in 2018-19 led by nation's second-leading rebounder from a year ago, Morgan Greene (Phoenix, Ariz.). The double-double machine recorded 21 games with at least 10 points and 10 rebounds a season ago while also leading the Pioneers in scoring en route to All-CCAA First Team honors.
 
Senior point guard Elayshia Woolridge (Oakland, Calif.) will be charged with running the Pioneer's offense after leading East Bay in assists and is the leading returning 3-point shooter. Woolridge finished second on the team in points, minutes and steals.
 
East Bay also returns a host of veteran guards and front court players in Kincso Kelemen (Sfantu Gheorghe, Romania), Kayley Hsiung (Bakersfield, Calif.), Savannah McGill (Lacey, Wash.) and Faith Turner (Auburn, Wash.). Jojuan Carrington (Oakland, Calif.) and Madison Schiller (Ridgecrest, Calif.) will also look to impact East Bay after red-shirting last season.
 
Newcomers Courtenay Brown (Oakland, Calif.), Delia Moore (Merced, Calif.), Celeste Almendarez (Stockton, Calif.), Ruobing Bai (Beijing, China), Aryel Moreland (Fairfield, Calif.) and Regina Sankey (San Jose, Calif.) will all look to add contribution on and off the court this season.
 
PIONEER POINTS
The Cal State East Bay women's basketball team saw its first action of the 2018-19 season on Thursday night, falling on the road to UC Davis by a final score of 94-41 in an exhibition game.
 
The Pioneers struggled to get shots to fall, shooting 27.1% from the field (13-for-48) in the team's only competitive tune-up before opening the regular season next weekend
 
UC Davis was hot from long distance, finishing at 53.8% from beyond the arc. However, East Bay did manage to outperform the Aggies at the charity stripe going 13-for-24 (54.2%) for the night, to just 8-for-17 (47.1%) from Davis.
 
Senior newcomer Courtenay Brown (Oakland, Calif.) finished as East Bay's leader scorer with nine points. Brown added one rebound while going a perfect 4-for-4 from the foul line through 21 minutes of action.
 
Junior Jojuan Carrington (Oakland, Calif.) tallied eight points and an assist on 3-for-5 shooting from the field while also going 2-for-2 from the free throw line in only 13 minutes.
 
Junior Morgan Greene (Phoenix, Ariz.) compiled a game-high 11 rebounds to go with five points, two assists and a block on 24 minutes on the floor. Returners Kincso Kelemen (Sfantu Gheorghe, Romania) and Faith Turner (Auburn, Wash.) both notched five points apiece.
 
Ruobing Bai (Beijing, China) scored four points with two rebounds and an assist while Savannah McGill (Lacey, Wash.) scored three points and grabbed three rebounds. Delia Moore (Merced, Calif.) led East Bay with two steals while scoring two points and corralling three boards.
 
SCOUTING WESTERN OREGON
The Western Oregon Wolves were tabbed for a 10th place finish in the GNAC Preseason Women's Coaches Poll. The Wolves finished the 2017-18 season with 11-15 mark and a 7-13 conference record. Western Oregon will return five players from last season's team that played in at 18 of 26 games last season. Keyonna Jones averaged 6.9 points while making 10 starts for the Wolves a year ago.
 
SCOUTING CONCORDIA UNIVERSITY
The Concordia University Cavaliers was picked to place 6th in the GNAC Preseason Women's Coaches Poll. The Cavaliers completed the 2017-18 season with a 14-14 record with an 8-12 posting in conference play. Returners Bailey Cartwright and Kizzah Maltezo averaged 13.8 and 11.9 points per game last season. Cartwright was also named to the 2018-19 GNAC Women's Preseason All-Conference Team.