Locked in a back and forth battle with host Mt. San Antonio College, the Cerritos College baseball team opened South Coast Conference play with a 10-7 win on Tuesday. The Falcons (5-7, 1-0) are scheduled to face the Mounties (4-8, 0-1) in the second game of their three-game series on Thursday at 2:00 p.m., weather permitting.

With the game tied at 7-7 heading into the top of the ninth inning, Cerritos was able to score three times, with the big hit being a two-run home run from sophomore shortstop Julian Francois (Serra HS). The inning got started when freshman Isaac Vega (Mary Star of the Sea HS) singled with one out and eventually scored on a base hit by sophomore designated hitter Daniel Castellanos (Gahr HS). With two outs, Francois clubbed a two-run home run off relief pitcher Trent Merrill, which was his first collegiate home run.

Sophomore relief pitcher Steven Salazar (Sonora HS), who came on in the seventh inning, earned the win with three innings of stellar pitching. He allowed three hits and struck out four batters, including Elijah Pelayo for the final out with runners on second and third base. The Falcons bullpen also saw Keanu Rodriguez (Los Altos HS) and Carter Stoddard (Sunny Hills HS) combine to toss 2 2/3 innings of shutout baseball.

Trailing 3-0, Cerritos scored three times in the top of the fourth inning, with the big hit being a two-run double from freshman Nico Briones (Long Beach Millikan HS). The Falcons were then down, 7-4 after the Mounties responded with four runs in the bottom of the inning. Sophomore Daniel Mariscal (Long Beach Poly HS) started the comeback with an RBI single in the top of the fifth inning, while Francois tripled in a pair of runs in the sixth inning. They were able to tie the game with a single run in the top of the seventh inning on a leadoff solo home run from Briones.

Francois (3-for-6, three runs, four RBI) and Briones (3-for-5, two runs, three RBI) led the offense, with sophomore second baseman Andy Vega (Mary Star of the Sea HS) recording a three-hit game.