HAYWARD, Calif., -- The Cal State East Bay women's basketball team will hit the road for Southern California for road games against Cal State LA and Cal State Dominguez Hills.
 
East Bay has a record of 9-12 on the season with a 6-9 mark in California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) play. The Pioneers are 4-5 in road games and 4-7 in games played at home.
 
WEEK IN REVIEW
The Cal State East Bay women's basketball team turned in an outstanding defensive effort on Thursday, pulling away for a 56-40 win over visiting Cal State San Bernardino at Pioneer Gym.
 
This marks the sixth game this season (and the second straight) in which the Pioneers have held their opponents under 50 points. Neither squad shot the ball particularly well on this night, as East Bay hit 27 percent from the field and San Bernardino finished just under 30 percent. But the difference in the game was on the glass, where the Pioneers were dominant.
 
CSUEB out-rebounded the Coyotes 50-31 as a team, their largest rebounding advantage in a game this season. 19 of those boards came on the offensive end, resulting in 19 second-chance points for the home team.
 
The Pioneers trailed 23-22 after a tight, low-scoring first half. But they came out of the break and found some offensive rhythm, quickly grabbing a lead. Savannah McGill keyed the rally, scoring 11 of her game-high 17 points in the second half and getting herself to the free throw line effectively.
 
East Bay took an eight-point advantage into the fourth quarter and stretched it to 13 midway through the period. Their defense stymied any hopes CSUSB had at a comeback, limiting the visitors to just eight points in the final quarter.
 
McGill entered the contest as the second-leading rebounder in the CCAA and pulled in 11 boards to notch her 10th double-double of the season. Fellow senior Elayshia Woolridge also reached double figures in scoring with 14 points, going 2-for-3 from long distance.
 
Junior Regina Sankey added nine points and paced the Pioneers with 11 rebounds and five steals. In the backcourt, Ruobing Bai contributed six points off the bench, while Madison Schiller and Delia Moore finished with four apiece.
 
The Cal State East Bay women's basketball team came up just short in its bid to pull off an upset Saturday afternoon, falling to Cal Poly Pomona by a final score of 76-70 at Pioneer Gymnasium.
 
East Bay took Pomona down to the final possession and ultimately lost by two points when the two teams meet three weeks ago, and today's contest followed a similar script. The Broncos were in control early and led by seven after the first quarter, but the Pioneers came storming back in the last few minutes before halftime. Still trailing by seven with 4:20 left in the second, East Bay found its offensive groove and scored on seven of its final either possessions to finish the half with a 37-35 lead.
 
The teams shot a nearly identical 41 percent from the field, committed the same number turnovers, and the rebounding battle was almost even at 41-40. But the Broncos got to the foul line for 33 free throws, and the Pioneers attempted just 12.
 
Sankey led the way with 17 points and four assists, going 7-for-14 from the floor. Elayshia Woolridge scored 14 and grabbed six rebounds. Fellow senior Courtenay Brown had one of her best games as a Pioneer with 15 points of 4-for-6 shooting.
 
Savannah McGill pulled in a team-high nine rebounds, and Faith Turner finished with eight points and eight boards.
 
PIONEER POINTS
Savannah McGill leads the Pioneers in minutes, points, rebounding, assists, and blocks for the season, and she's one of just six CCAA players currently averaging more than 10 rebounds per game. McGill is second in the conference and tied for 10th in the nation with 11.7 rebounds per game and ninth in the CCAA with 20 blocks. She has nine double doubles on the season including six double doubles in league play and has grabbed 13 or more rebounds in eight of the last nine games.
 
Elayshia Woolridge has come on strong over the last two months. Woolridge leads the Pioneers with 11.3 points in CCAA action including double figures scoring in 11 of the last 14 games. She is second on the team with 2.4 assists through 30.4 minutes per outing.
 
Junior transfer Regina Sankey has played well of late for Cal State East Bay. Sankey has notched double figures in five of the last six contests. She is averaging 13.0 points and 6.3 rebounds on 40.0 percent shooting through 25.7 minutes per game across those six contests.
 
Pioneers ranks as the top defensive team in the CCAA. They're first in the league in scoring defense (59.7 ppg) and third in opponent field goal percentage (.363). They have also been effective defending the three-point arc, holding teams to 29.1 percent. East Bay has performed impressively on the glass, ranking first among the 13 CCAA schools in rebounding defense (35.7) and second in the league in total rebounds with 860.
 
SCOUTING CAL STATE LA
The Cal State LA Golden Eagles enter the matchup with the Pioneers with a 7-12 record on the season with a 4-11 mark in conference action after defeating San Francisco State before falling to Sonoma State to wrap up the weekend. Chiderah Uzowuru is leading Cal State L.A. with 14.8 points and 7.7 rebounds per outing. Rachel DiRegolo is adding 10.3 points and 7.2 rebounds on 51.7 percent shooting from the field for the Golden Eagles.
 
 
SCOUTING DOMINGUEZ HILLS
The Cal State Dominguez Hills Toros come into the weekend against East Bay with a 11-9 overall mark on the season with a 7-7 CCAA record in conference play after back-to-back wins over Sonoma State and SF State. Nautica Morrow is putting in 15.2 points and 3.0 steals per contest for the Toros. Ahlisha Henderson is chipping in 11.5 points and 8.3 rebounds fro Dominguez Hills.