Needing to snap one streak, the Cerritos College baseball team started another, as they swept past EC-Compton Center to extend their winning streak to three games. The Falcons (11-21, 6-11) will take a week off from South Coast Conference action and travel to Santa Maria to play three games at the Allan Hancock Tournament. They open with a 7:00 p.m. affair against Fresno City College at Elks Field.
In their 8-4 win over the Tartars on Saturday afternoon, Cerritos put runs on the board in each of the first four innings to take an 8-1 lead. Freshman starting pitcher Gilbert Romero (Alhambra HS) struggled in the top of the first inning, allowing one run and three walks before settling down. He picked up his third win of the season by pitching seven innings and allowed four runs on five hits with five strikeouts. Romero walked just one batter after the first inning.
Offensively, the Falcons responded with a pair of runs in the bottom of the first inning. With one out, freshman shortstop Ramon Bramasco (Cathedral HS) singled and stole second base, with freshman third baseman Jorge Rodriguez (Bellflower HS) getting hit by a pitch. The bases were loaded when Tartars first baseman Allen Pacecho dropped the throw on a ground ball by sophomore second baseman Derrick Edwards (Mary Star of the Sea HS), which loaded the bases.
Freshman first baseman Jesus Mercado (St. John Bosco HS) singled home the first run, while a fielder's choice by freshman outfielder Rolando Nichols (Serra HS) accounted for the second run. Freshman designated hitter Christopher Gomez (South Torrance HS) drew a walk to lead off the second inning and after he was moved around on a sacrifice and infield groundout, came home on a wild pitch.
Mercado was hit by a pitch with one out in the third inning and scored on a triple down the right field line by Nichols, who scored on a wild pitch. Mercado would go on to get hit by four pitches on the day, setting a new school record.
As a team, the Falcons stole seven bases, with Bramasco leading the way with three against EC-Compton Center. After freshman outfielder Nick Penzetta (Kamehameha, HI HS) singled and stole second base, he moved to third on a single by Bramasco. Rodriguez drove in Penzetta with a sacrifice fly and Bramasco was driven in on a base hit from Edwards.
The only drawback on the day was freshman catcher Adam Rubio (Montebello HS), who was injured while trying to run down first base on a Compton ground out. He went down a couple steps into his attempt to follow the runner down the line and back up the throw to first base. Gomez filled in behind the plate the remainder of the game.
Nichols finished the day 2-for-3 with three RBI, while Bramasco was 3-for-4 at the plate with a walk and two runs scored.