Leading 10-9 after three quarters against rival Long Beach City College on Wednesday, the Cerritos College men's water polo team seemed to be in good shape. However, a disastrous fourth quarter saw the Vikings score eight times, while the Falcons were left off the scoreboard. The end result was a 17-10 South Coast Conference loss. This weekend, Cerritos (14-8) will compete in the Golden West Tournament and open with a 7:00 a.m. match on Friday against the host Rustlers, who are ranked #1 in the state.

Cerritos opened up a 4-1 lead in the second quarter, with sophomore Salvador Orozco (Montebello HS) scoring twice and maintained a 7-4 advantage at halftime. It was a three-goal lead with 5:45 remaining in the third quarter after a goal from freshman Arturo Ortuno (Universidad La Salle, Mexico). From that point forward, the Vikings took over and continued to score, while the Falcons struggled with their shot selection. They also turned the ball over 14 times on the day.

Ortuno led the team with three goals and three assists, with the duo of Orozco and sophomore Raul Muniz (Colbach HS, Mexico) each scoring twice. Sophomore Mark Arroyo (Schurr HS) recorded three steals, with sophomore goalkeeper Matthew Contreras (Montebello HS) finishing with 12 saves and two steals.