SAN FRANCISCO -- The Cal State East Bay volleyball team recorded an impressive road victory on Saturday, defeating SF State in straight sets in an important California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) match.

It's the third straight win for the Pioneers, who even up their record at 8-8 overall and 4-4 in conference play and remain in the thick of an extremely tight North Division race. It's also their second straight Saturday road sweep, as the team notched a three-set win at Chico State just seven days ago.

Although the Gators did not win a set, the contest was much tighter than the final score would suggest, as the first and third frames required extra points to decide a winner.

The opening game saw the lead change hands multiple times and ended with a stunned crowd at "The Swamp" after the Pioneers pulled off an epic rally. SF State took a lead and slowly extended it late in the set. They held a 24-19 advantage, needing just one more point for a win, but the Pioneers wouldn't let them have it. Cassidy Caton served the visitors to seven straight points, as East Bay came all the way back to tie the score, take the lead, and steal a victory with a sequence that was highlighted by two blocks from Kiki Leuteneker.

The Pioneers out-hit the Gators .273 to .182 for the match, although that discrepancy was largely on the strength of game two, in which East Bay made just one attack error and posted a .423 hitting percentage. That set was not particularly close, as the Pioneers snatched the lead with an early run and did not relinquish it, hanging on for a 25-16 victory.

The third frame mirrored the first as a back-and-forth battle, and this time neither squad was able to gain separation. Nearing the end, the score was tied 23-23, then SFSU's Drew Morris recorded a kill to set up game point for the Gators. But a service error evened the score again, then the Pioneers took a one-point lead on a Gator attack error and notched the game-winning point on an ace by Leuteneker to finish the sweep.

It was a tremendous offensive night for Leuteneker, who led the team with 14 kills and hit .387 on a team-high 31 attempts. She also had two of East Bay's nine service aces.

Remarkably, six of those aces came from Cassidy Caton, which is a new career high for the senior. She also tied for the team lead with 13 digs on the night. Fellow senior Lindsey Ray tallied 13 scoops as well, and she joined Leuteneker in double figures in kills with 10. 

Kathy McKiernan had an efficient performance with seven kills and a .400 hitting percentage in the middle. Tiana Weeks and Julie May paced the squad with three total blocks each. Setter Katie Ireland tallied 31 assists, putting the senior just shy of 2,500 for her career.

The Pioneers will look to keep their hot streak going when the team returns to Hayward next week to play four straight home matches. The first of those is a re-match with Chico State scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 2 at 7 p.m.