HAYWARD, Calif. -- Following an impressive regular season performance, the Cal State East Bay water polo team heads to La Jolla this weekend for the 2018 Western Water Polo Association (WWPA) Championships in search of the program's first conference title. 

The Pioneers were red hot to close the season, winning nine of their last 10 games to secure the No. 2 seed at the annual postseason tournament for the second straight year. They will take on No. 7 seed Gannon in the first round, scheduled for 2:30 p.m. Friday afternoon at UC San Diego's Canyonview Aquatic Center.

The winner of Friday's contest advances to the semifinal round to battle either No. 3 seed Mercyhurst or No. 6 seed Cal State Monterey Bay on Saturday afternoon for a spot in the championship game, which takes place Sunday at 1:00 p.m.

Capturing East Bay's first WWPA title would likely require the team to defeat the top-seeded and five-time defending champion Tritons, who enter the postseason ranked No. 12 in the nation and have been just as hot as the Pioneers, winning 12 of their last 14. Three of UCSD's five championships came via wins over CSUEB, which reached the title game three straight years from 2014-16 until the streak was broken last year with a 7-6 semifinal loss to Sonoma State.

Tickets for the WWPA Championships cost $10 per day for general admission and $5 for students and children 12 and under. Visit the Championship Page for more information on parking and directions, as well as the full tournament schedule and a link to the bracket.

The 2018 Pioneers posted the program's highest regular season winning percentage (.667) during the 16-year tenure of head coach Lisa Cooper and spent the entire season either just inside or just outside the top-25 in the national coaches poll. They posted a 6-1 record in games against WWPA opponents, notching two victories each over Fresno Pacific, Sonoma State, and CSUMB. Their only loss came to UCSD back on Feb. 9 in just the fourth match of the season. Since returning home from the Triton Invitational on Feb. 12, the Pioneers have a 13-3 record.

History was already made this week as the annual WWPA postseason awards were announced on Tuesday. The league's eight head coaches voted sophomore Auriel Bill as the first WWPA Player of the Year in school history. The Saskatchewan native and reigning 2017 WWPA Newcomer of the Year finished the 2018 regular season as the leading scorer in the conference, tallying 45 goals and 47 assists to go along with 37 steals.

Bill was selected to the All-WPAA First Team along with freshman and fellow Canadian Adrien Van Dyke, who was the only rookie in the conference to make the First Team after leading all WWPA players with 49 goals. The Pioneers also placed two players on the honorable mention list, as sophomore Briana Ruiz (24 goals, 28 steals) and junior Makenna Nation (third among WWPA goalkeepers with 148 saves) both earned their first career All-WWPA nod.

The winner of this weekend's tournament receives the WWPA's automatic bid to the NCAA Women's Water Polo Championships.