After placing fifth in the South Coast Conference Tournament, the Cerritos College men's soccer team has been seeded #11 for the Southern California Regional Playoffs. The Falcons (12-5-4) will be facing conference rival Long Beach City College in the first round of the playoffs. The Vikings (12-5-4), who came in third place in the conference tournament, will host Cerritos at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday. The winner will advance to the next round and take on the winner of the #3 Norco College vs. #14 Santa Ana College game next Tuesday or Wednesday.
In their first meeting of the season, Cerritos posted a 2-0 win over Long Beach City back on October 17 in Long Beach. In that game, the Falcons scored what would be the game-winning goal in the 21st minute, however, it was their overall defensive effort that secured the win. Cerritos did not allow the Vikings a single shot on goal the entire game, which led to a shutout win by sophomore goalie Juan Pablo Camacho (Norwalk HS).
Cerritos got on the board in the 21st minute when sophomore Mark Cristino (Downey HS/UC Riverside) finished off the play on a chipped shot that got past Vikings goalkeeper Yancy Monterola. Cristino received the ball on a through pass from freshman Jose Lopez (MY Academy HS). The Falcons were able to add an insurance goal in the 69th minute, with Lopez knocking home his fourth goal of the season. Freshman Luis Medina (Callifornia Connections Academy HS) got the play going and recorded his first helper of the season.
The Falcons are led by freshman Donavan Perez (South East HS), who has 10 goals on the year, with Cristino adding six and three others posting five goals on the season. Lopez has nine assists this season to lead the team, with Perez accounting for seven assists. The duo of Camacho (1.49 goals against average) and sophomore Steven Ruiz (Cathedral HS), who has a 1.24 GAA, are one of the best duos in the state.
Long Beach City has relied on Kayvon Monfared for more of their offense with his 19 goals, while 20 players have recorded at least one assist.
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