From the first whistle to the last, the Cerritos College men's soccer team held a dominant edge over visiting Golden West College in a non-conference home game on Tuesday. The Falcons (4-2-1) exploded for four second-half goals to post a 5-1 win over the Rustlers (0-3-1). The goal output was the most by a Cerritos team since they defeated Imperial Valley College, 8-0 on September 3, 2023. The team will travel to Glendale College next Tuesday for a 5:00 p.m. non-conference match.

Back in 2018, Cerritos defeated Golden West, 2-1 to capture their fourth 3C2A State Championship in school history. The Falcons are now 7-0-2 in their last nine games against the Rustlers.

Entering the second half in a 1-1 tie, with the Cerritos goal coming in the 26th minute on a penalty kick by sophomore Donovan Perez (South East HS), the team was able to maintain their offensive pressure. They peppered Golden West goalkeeper Charlie Murray all afternoon, and were able to break the tie in the 55th minute when sophomore Adan Gonzalez (South East HS) sent a hard shot into the upper corner of the net.

Once they regained the lead, Cerritos did not take their foot off the gas and scored three more times in the final 18 minutes of the game. Freshman Gustavo Arias (Fairmont Prep HS) was able to steal the ball at midfield and found freshman Cesar Solarzano Garcia (California Pacific Charter HS), who fired a shot into the back of the net to extend the lead.

Sophomore Erick Velasco (Norwalk HS) accounted for the team's last two goals to close out the scoring. After a foul was called in the 18-yard box against Golden West, Velasco was able to convert the penalty shot in the 85th minute and then added a goal in extra time on a loose ball in front of the Golden West net with Murray out of position.

Photos by Daryl Peterson