Sophomore first baseman Haley Whitney (Warren HS) cleared the bases with a double to lead the Cerritos College softball team to a 4-2 non-conference win over Ventura on Wednesday at Nancy Kelly Field. The win improved the Falcons record to 5-4 overall, while the Pirates fell to 5-6-1. The team will resume South Coast Conference play tomorrow at 3:00 p.m. at East Los Angeles College.

Trailing 2-0 heading into the bottom of the fifth inning, freshman catcher Haley Petruccelli (Torrance HS) singled and was safe at second base when Ventura shortstop Ashley Cerda dropped the toss on a ground ball to second baseman Emily Heath. Freshman outfielder Joanna Perruccio (Long Beach Wilson HS) drew a walk to load the bases. Sophomore shortstop Stephanie Olivas (Warren HS) followed that with a single up the middle to drive in the first run of the inning before Whitney doubled to left-center field off pitcher Alex Thorpe to clear the bases and give the Falcons a 4-2 lead.

Sophomore pitcher Kat Flores (El Rancho HS) earned her first win of the season by pitching a complete game. She allowed a unearned run in the first inning and another run in the third for a 2-0 deficit. Flores (1-1) pitched out of trouble in the fourth inning, as the Pirates left runners on first and second base, while a one-out double by Heath was followed by a ground out and a fly out to end the threat.

Whitney also made a spectacular play in the top of the seventh inning, as she went down into the splits to secure the second out on a ground ball to sophomore third baseman Ariana Mejia (Gahr HS). The ninth ground out by Flores (1-1) resulted in the final out of the game.

Photos by Daryl Peterson