In their opening game of the Southern California Regional Playoffs against College of the Canyons, the Cerritos College softball team committed five errors in a 12-4, 6-inning loss. The errors led to five unearned runs for the #8-seeded Cougars (27-14), who take a 1-0 best-of-three series lead over the #9-seeded Falcons (22-17), with Game 2 set for noon in Valencia on Saturday.
Cerritos did take short 2-0 and 3-1 leads in the game, with College of the Canyons responding with runs of their own in the bottom of each stanza. The Cougars scored 11 of the final 12 runs of the game, including six in the bottom of the sixth inning, which ended the game due to the eight-run mercy rule.
In the top of the second inning, both freshman first baseman Keira Bolinas (Torrance HS) and freshman third baseman Kayla Hernandez (Santa Fe HS) drew walks to start the stanza. With runners still on first and second base with two outs, freshman designated player Nicoal Magdaleno (La Habra HS) doubled in both runs. It was a 3-1 lead after the Falcons scored in the fourth inning, thanks to a wild pitch. Hernandez led off with a double, with freshman Melissa Corona (Gahr HS) coming in to pinch-run. She advanced to third on a base hit by sophomore second baseman Rain Vega (La Mirada HS) and then scored on a wild pitch.
Although the Cougars were successful off freshman pitchers Sierra Gerdts (Montebello HS) and Allisyn Udell (Whittier Christian HS), the Falcons had their chances to score, as well. In the fifth inning, freshman outfielder Kayla Aros (Torrance HS) drew her third walk of the game and moved to second base on a single by freshman outfielder Brianna Spoolstra (Mayfair HS). However, they were both stranded.
Then, in the sixth inning, with the Falcons down only 6-4, freshman shortstop Deja Sendejas (El Rancho HS), playing in place of injured Tena Spoolstra (Mayfair HS), singled and moved to second base on a single by Vega. Magdaleno then walked to load the bases, where sophomore outfielder Emma Wolff (Mayfair HS) drove in a run with a sacrifice fly. They loaded the bases again with two outs, but Brianna Spoolstra struck out.