HAYWARD, Calif., -- The Cal State East Bay women's volleyball team will host a pair of North Division opponents this weekend with a match against Chico State on Friday night and a contest against Stanislaus State on Saturday evening. Both games will begin at 7:00 pm inside Pioneer Gymnasium.
 
We stopped by the Volleyball offices to sit and talk with Head Coach Kimberly Lambert
 
Just ten matches into the 2019 season and the Cal State East Bay volleyball programs finds themselves in a bit of a peculiar situation. The Pioneers are 1-9 with a 0-2 mark in California Collegiate Athletic Association.
 
This is the worst start for the East Bay since entering the CCAA era in 2009 but Head Coach Kimberly Lambert believes the record is not indicative of her team effort and performance.
 
"In both of our non-conference tournament we faced really tough opponents with a lot of experience," said Lambert. "It really gave our young team and our freshman a great opportunity to get their first college experience under their belts to prepare them for the conference play and the type of competition they will face every weekend."
 
The Pioneers boast one of the youngest teams in the West Region. Not just is terms of age with five freshmen on the roster, but also in terms of experience with only one returning starter from 2018's squad.
 
Although Coach Lambert refuses to make any excuses, this transition has caused a few returners to be thrust into new positions and roles on this year's team. Tiana Weeks has shown true composure on her adjustment to being a six-rotation outside hitter. Sarah Stevelinck is in her first season as a libero and is doing a great job of learning through game experience. Steena Hubbard has moved over to playing middle blocked and has really matured and displayed poise while learning a new position.
 
"We are still working as a unit to see which lineups work best for certain situations, remarked Lambert. "We know our players will rise to the occasion while continuing to grow and build chemistry with one another."
 
Kim Lambert has continued to encourage her team as they prepare to enter the thick of their conference schedule. The Pioneers only have one senior on this year's team and it is Natahlee Wilson. Wilson has personified leadership this season as she has helped maintain positive outlook for everyone as the team continues to grow and develop.
 
"My motto has remained the same all season long," explained Lambert. "The message is, be better than the day before. Getting better than the day before means a lot of different things. It means becoming mentally tough, physically buying into our systems and challenging your teammates to buy into our systems."
 
It's a daily challenge that the Pioneers continue to face with great adversity. This is an incredibly fun spirited and exciting team to watch. And with each game these Pioneers will continue to get better and produce better results.
 
PIONEER POINTS
 

• The Pioneers are 7-3 in home matches since the start of last season.
• East Bay has racked up more blocks than opponents 57-49.5 on the season.
• Freshman Kara Green leads the Pioneers with 83 kills and 88 total points this season.
• Kara Green's 83 kills rank 8th in the CCAA.
• Freshman Eliza Cannon is tops on the Pioneers with 223 assists.
• Eliza Cannon's 223 assists are 7th best in the conference.
• Sophomore Sarah Stevelinck leads the Pioneers with 139 digs which is 7th in the CCAA.
• Steena Hubbard is tops on the squad with 25 blocks and that ranks 8th best in the league.