Heading into their final regular season game of the year, the Cerritos College defense had picked off just 11 passes. But on Saturday against Moorpark College at Falcon Stadium, the defense intercepted five passes and returned one for a touchdown in their 42-20 win. The win evens the Falcons record at 5-5 and there is an outside chance the team may be invited to a post-season bowl game. The pairings are scheduled to be announced on Sunday.

Of the five passes that were picked off, three led to Falcon touchdowns, including the 50-yard interception return for a touchdown by sophomore Vailele Peko (La Habra HS/Saginaw Valley State) in the second quarter that put Cerritos up, 27-7. The series before that, sophomore Ronald Davis (Dominguez HS) picked off Max Leffler at the Raider 33-yard line. On the ensuing drive, sophomore quarterback Morgan Fennell (Long Beach Poly HS) scrambled for 17 yards on a fourth-and-nine situation and concluded the drive with a five-yard touchdown pass to sophomore tight end Tristan Henderson (Los Alamitos HS).

Moorpark (2-8) opened a 7-0 lead when Steven Townsley scooped up a fumble and brought it back 22 yards for a touchdown. But the lead didn't last long when sophomore running back Donald Livingston (Savanna HS) broke through the middle for a 54-yard touchdowns run on a fourth-and-one play. Davis recorded his interception on the next possession, while freshman Travone Davis (Dominguez HS) intercepted Leffler (19-for-32, 169 yards, 4 INT) at the Raider 37-yard line. That turnover led to a five-yard touchdown run by freshman Michael Jasper (Bellflower HS), with sophomore lineman Sione Lavulo (Cottonwood, UT HS) leading the way with a key block. That put Cerritos up, 20-7 with 9:34 left in the second quarter and was followed by the Peko touchdown.

The Raiders got to within 34-20 and had a chance to close the gap even more, but a penalty negated a late third quarter touchdown. That drive ended when sophomore Jamie Turner (Dominguez HS) intercepted a Brent Stevens pass in the end zone. Cerritos opened their 34-20 lead when sophomore defensive lineman Sola Hala (St. John Bosco HS) scored a defensive touchdown when he picked up a fumble and returned it for a 25-yard touchdown. The final scored was a six-yard touchdown pass from sophomore Paul Lopez (St. Paul HS) to sophomore wide receiver Robert Abeyta (Servite HS) in the fourth quarter.

Freshman Michael Garrison (Dominguez HS) led the ground game with 69 yards, while Fennell added 62 rushing yards and completed 7-of-13 passes for 70 yards. Sophomore linebacker Chass Glaspie (Westchester HS) led the defense with nine tackles, while freshman David Moala (Serra HS) had eight stops and 2 1/2 tackles for loss, along with a sack. Jordan Allen (Mater Dei HS) also finished with eight tackles, while the defense recorded seven tackles for loss.

Photo by Daryl Peterson