One day after the Cerritos College baseball team saw a 3-0 lead slip away, they staked sophomore pitcher Sebastian Frutos (Bellflower HS) a 5-0 lead they they didn't relinquish on their way to a 6-1 non-conference win over Los Angeles Valley College at Kincaid Field on Saturday. The Falcons followed that game with a 4-1, eight-innlng loss to College of the Canyons that was called due to darkness. The same two teams will meet at 2:00 p.m. in Valencia on Friday.

Cerritos 6, Los Angeles Valley 1: In the top of the first inning, Cerritos spotted Frutos (1-0) a 3-0 lead, as freshman outfielder Jared Robinson (Bishop Amat HS) led off with a double and scored in a single by freshman second baseman Joseph Rivera (Savanna HS). A single by freshman third baseman Hayden Stevens (Katella HS) kept the inning alive before freshman catcher Anthony Vazquez (Bellflower HS) drove home the second run, while a wild pitch allowed pinch-runner Andrew Tapia (Bellflower HS) to score.

Frutos, who pitched six innings, allowed six walks, but none of them came home, as he shut down the Monarchs (0-2) on four hits and only one run. Freshman relief pitcher Christian Smith (Garden Grove HS) tossed the final three innings to earn a quality save.

Stevens (2-for-3, two RBI) drove home Rivera, who led off the third inning with a double, while Vazquez made it a 5-0 lead with a base hit that plated Stevens. The top of the lineup accounted for eight of the team's nine hits on the day.

College of the Canyons 4, Cerritos 1: The Falcons found themselves behind early, as the Cougars jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead against sophomore starting pitcher Jared Gibson (Downey HS). It was a 4-0 game before Cerritos got on the board in the bottom of the sixth inning when Robinson scored on a base hit by freshman Johnny Martinez (Katella HS), who had two of the three Cerritos hits in the game. Gibson (0-1) took the loss, while three other pitchers also saw action. Canyons scored three more runs in the top of the ninth, but the umpires called the game due to darkness.

Photo by Daryl Peterson