W. Soccer: Shutout streak continues in 4-0 win

Natalie Garcia scored the first goal for the Falcons in their 4-0 win
Natalie Garcia scored the first goal for the Falcons in their 4-0 win

It's been over six weeks since the Cerritos College women's soccer team has allowed a goal, their only one of the season. On Tuesday, the nation's top-ranked Falcons (15-0-0) posted their 12th shutout in a row, and 14th of the season, after a 4-0 South Coast Conference crossover game against visiting East Los Angeles College. The team will now host Los Angeles Harbor College at 2:00 p.m. on Friday in a South Division game. Cerritos defeated the Seahawks, 7-0 in their first meeting.

Although it wasn't their best performance of the season, the Falcons did score three first half goals against the Huskies (5-6-3), but had to withstand a couple of scoring chances to preserve the shutout. Cerritos scored their three first half goals in the span of 15 minutes, while four different players scored in the game.

The first goal came when freshman Claudia Paz (Huntington Park HS) moved the ball along the outside and made the turn into the Huskies box, where she spotted freshman Natalie Garcia (Santa Ana HS). Working to get position, Garcia boxed out the East LA goalkeeper Adriana Huerta to receive the ball and once she gained possession, turned and scored into an open net. If it weren't for Huerta, who made 10 saves, the Falcons could have led by as many as six goals in the first half, while both Garcia and sophomore Sydney Carr (El Modena HS/UC Irvine) each hit the crossbar in the first half.

Not one of the starters, sophomore Serena Camacho (Los Osos HS/UC Irvine) made an immediate impact in the game and scored less than three minutes after stepping onto the field. Camacho, who came on with Carr in the 29th minute, got off a quick shot on the team's first possession and then found the back of the net in the 32nd minute when she scored on a one-timer off a pass from sophomore Elizabeth Mendez (Long Beach Millikan HS). Prior to the end of the first half, Carr assisted on a nice goal from Paz, who took the ball all the way in after getting a pass near the corner kick flag.

Sophomore goalkeeper Deisy Rodriguez (Katella HS) was tested a couple of times in the game and posted a pair of saves against Julianne Garcia, while finishing the match with five saves. Rodriguez has yet to allow a goal all season. She received an insurance goal in the 85th minute of the game when Carr dribbled around the defense and found the lower corner of the goal to cap off the scoring.

Photos by Daryl Peterson