Recording a pair of goals in the first 15 minutes of the game, the Cerritos College men's soccer team won their seventh match in a row, as they posted a 2-0 South Coast Conference crossover win over Rio Hondo College on Friday. The Falcons (15-1-2), unbeaten in their last 17 matches (15-0-2), have two regular season matches remaining, which will include a 3:00 p.m. South Division match against visiting El Camino College next Tuesday.

Executing short, crisp passes, the Falcons got on the board in the fourth minute. Taking the ball on the Cerritos side of the field, freshman defender Ernesto Cueva (Bassett HS) sent a long, beautiful pass that landed on the foot of freshman Bryan Villalobos (Salesian HS). He quickly guided a pass in front of the net, where freshman Kevin Diaz (Connections Adademy HS) was there to chip the ball into an open portion of the net past goalkeeper Jesus Rendon.

Continuing their offensive pressure against the Roadrunners (10-5-5), the Falcons crashed the net looking for a loose ball. Coming in behind the play, sophomore Alberto Carrillo (Lynwood HS) was there to get a foot on the ball and get a hard enough shot that found the back of the net for the team's second goal.

Although neither team would score the remainder of the game, both teams were awarded penalty kicks, with the keepers coming up with saves. Less than three minutes after Cerritos took their 2-0 lead, Cueva tackled Angel Flores in the 18-yard box, which resulted in a crucial penalty kick. As Roman Delgado prepared to take his attempt, Falcon goalkeeper Jordan Aldama (North Torrance HS) set his footing and made a move to his left to stop the low shot. The save gave Cerritos an even bigger boost, as their two-goal lead was untouched.

As the game was coming to a close, sophomore Erick Gallinar (Connections Academy HS/UC Irvine) stepped up to take a penalty shot after Bryan Ortega (Cesar Chavez HS) was tackled in the box. But Rendon (seven saves) matched the feat of Aldama (five saves) and stopped the shot, which secured the final score.

Photos by Daryl Peterson