Playing a make-up game from two months ago, the Cerritos College softball team dropped a 4-1 non-conference decision against Santiago Canyon College at Nancy Kelly Field on Monday. The Falcons (27-10), who are in a tie for first place in the South Coast Conference, resume action on Tuesday when they travel to face ECC Compton Center in a 3:00 p.m. game.

The Hawks (29-5) started the game with a run and then added three more in the fourth inning to take a 4-0 lead. Sophomore pitcher Jamie Ramirez (El Rancho HS) surrendered three hits in the first stanza, but was helped along by a strikeout and ground out to get out of trouble. A pair of outfield errors in the fourth inning helped Santiago Canyon advance their runners, however, they strung together four straight hits to propel them to their lead.

Six different players had hits on the day for the Hawks, including McCrae Cayton, Jordan Diaz and Desiree Rascon, who each finished with two hits and drove in a run. Stephanie Pelletier limited the Falcons to just four hits to improve to 11-2 on the year.

Cerritos got their leadoff batter on base in five of the seven innings, but could not string multiple hits together. A double play ended the first inning, while the first two batters reached base in the fifth inning. Sophomore outfielder Arianna Hernandez (Santa Fe HS) led off with a walk before sophomore shortstop Stephanie Olivas (Warren HS) followed with a base hit. But freshman catcher Haley Petruccelli (Torrance HS) then hit into a double play and the Falcons were unable to get on the board.

They scored their lone run in the sixth inning when freshman outfielder Joanna Perruccio (Long Beach Wilson HS) walked to lead off the stanza and with two outs advanced to third base on a wild pitch. Sophomore first baseman Haley Whitney (Warren HS) then had her ground ball go through the legs of shortstop Krista Carranza, allowing the run to score.

Photos by Daryl Peterson