The Pioneer women’s basketball team currently stands with a 2-2 record as they anticipate their first look at a couple of teams in the conference this weekend.

On Dec. 2 the Pioneers are set to host Sonoma State in their first conference match-up of the young season.
The following day, the Pioneers welcome in Humboldt State on Dec. 3 to close out the home stand against the undefeated Humboldt Lumberjacks.

Both Humboldt and Sonoma State saw action over the weekend as both teams faced off against each other with Humboldt State duking out Sonoma by a final score of 57-54.

Both teams, along with CSU East Bay and the rest of the nine teams in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA), will be fighting it out for the eight post-season spots over the next couple of months and a chance at the championships, which will be held at UC San Diego on Mar. 2 and 3.

The Pioneers’ last time out was on Nov.18 and 19 as they traveled up to Washington.

CSUEB began the road series with a loss against Seattle Pacific University, 57-70.

Despite leading midway through the second half, and a strong performance by freshman Lauren Lucchesi who scored 16 points, the Pioneers could not find a way to finish the game on top.

“We are very young and with youth comes inconsistency,” said Head Coach Suzy Barcomb. “At times we have played very well but it hasn’t been at a high enough level to allow us to achieve the early success we would like.”

The next day showed a better outcome as the Pioneers defeated Central Washington University 69-62.

The Pioneers had three players in double digits for the second straight game, and held a lead for the majority of the match-up.
Sophomore Sarah Finlay led all players with 16 points and went 5-for-9 shooting from the floor.

Junior Marlene MacMillan added 12 points and led the Pioneer rebounding efforts with seven boards.

Freshman Micah Walker joined Finlay and MacMillan in double digits, scoring a season-high 15 points while adding four steals, four rebounds and three assists on the night, while also going 3-for-5 from three-point range in the win.

The Pioneers began their season back in early November to a fast start, winning their first game of the season at home against the Academy of Art, and since then have posted a 2-2 record before their first chance at conference play this weekend.

CSUEB entered the season with six new players on the roster joining the seven returning player from a season ago, in a young lineup that features seven underclassmen.

Of the new players includes Micah Walker, who is already showing her offensive explosiveness and is second only to Sarah Finlay in scoring on the team.

The freshmen from Reno, Nevada is expected to be an impact player all season long for the Pioneers this season.

“We have improved overall as a basketball program from last year to this year,” said Barcomb.

“We are working towards becoming better and better throughout the season.  We have seven games in the month of December, six of them are at home.  We need to take advantage of having home court and get some wins under our belt.”