HAYWARD, Calif. -- After spending most of the 2019 season without a true home, the Cal State East Bay softball team will finally play at Pioneer Field this weekend as they welcome in No. 25 ranked Chico State for the final home series of the year.

The Pioneers will open the four-game set with a 1 p.m. doubleheader on Friday, then wrap it up with another twinbill Saturday at 11 a.m. against the Wildcats, who are currently in second place in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) standings.

Saturday's action will be preceded by the annual "Senior Day" ceremony to honor the six CSUEB seniors -- Meghan Araneta, Kassie Kochan, Taylor Lara, Courtney Leyba, Belle Placencia, and Rachel Tadlock.

The Pioneers will be looking to bounce back from a tough road trip last weekend to Cal State Dominguez Hills, during which they dropped three of four to the Toros. They led in both contests on Friday, but ultimately lost by one run both times. The following day, they powered their way to a 7-1 win in game one and grabbed an early lead in game two, but the Toros put together a huge inning in the fifth to win on the eight-run rule.

The Eats Bay offense tallied six home runs on their trip to Carson, led by Araneta and sophomore Maddie Ramirez with two apiece. The long ball has been a huge key for the team this year overall, particularly in the last few weeks. Last season the Pioneers totaled just eight home runs all year, which ranked last in the conference. This year they rank second in the CCAA heading into this weekend with 25 round-trippers.

Ramirez and Sarah Fukushima lead the way with five homers each. The latter continues to rank among the top hitters in the CCAA in several offensive categories, and she's moving her way up the Pioneer record books as well. Fukushima is currently in a tie for third place in program history with 22 career homers, and she needs just one more to grab a share of second place. Ramirez, meanwhile, was East Bay's hottest hitter in Carson, going 7-for-14 with five runs batted in. The sophomore leads the Pioneers with 22 RBI on the season.

Araneta and Emilie Portesi are close behind that pair with four homers each. The former has had a breakout senior season, ranking second on the team behind Fukushima with a .318 batting average and .383 on-base percentage. 

In the circle, Abby Burkholder's development over the latter part of her rookie season has been a bright spot. She earned a complete game victory in the team's only win at CSUDH. Over her last four starts, she has a 2.69 ERA, averaging more than six innings per appearance. 

Chico State enters Hayward with a 4-4 record in their last eight games, losing three out of four at Cal State Monterey Bay two weeks ago before bouncing back to take three of four from Stanislaus State last week. The Wildcats are led by their pitching staff, which tops the conference with a 1.80 team ERA. Brooke Larson leads the way with a 15-4 record, six shutouts, and a .167 opponent batting average. Chico swept the Pioneers in four games when they met in 2018, a season that ended with the Wildcats going 55-6 and reaching the DII College World Series.