On Saturday, the Cerritos College softball team posted 6-1 and 4-0 wins over visiting College of the Canyons to cap off a week where two games were washed out due to weather and wet playing conditions. The Falcons (7-3) will officially start their South Coast Conference season on Tuesday at 3:00 p.m. when they host Mt. San Antonio College. Last season, Cerritos eliminated the Mounties at the 3C2A State Championships on their way to a third place finish.

Game 1 - Sophomore pitcher Reanna Carranza (El Rancho HS) pitched a pair of complete games on the day, which started with a seven-hitter and four strikeouts. She allowed three hits in in the first two innings, but was able to keep the Cougars off the board. She was rewarded by her teammates scoring three times in the bottom of the second inning and added two more in the third inning. The offense started with the trio of sophomore shortstop Marley Manalo (Walnut HS), sophomore third baseman Natalie Basurto (Walnut HS) and sophomore designated player Celeste Carbajal (Mayfair HS) all slapping base hits in the second inning, with a fielding error allowing Macias to come in with the first run of the inning. A fielder's choice from freshman second baseman Ayiana Cardenas (Walnut HS) brought home the second run of the inning, with sophomore outfielder Jazmine Macias (La Mirada HS) driving in the third run with a base hit.

A sacrifice fly from sophomore outfielder Jocelyn Doan (Walnut HS) drove in Manalo in the third inning after she led off with a walk, while Macias drove in her second run in as many innings with a base hit that plated Basurto, who singled. The Falcons were able to get runners on base in every inning of the game, but stranded 11. Macias finished the game going 2-for-2 with two RBI and three stolen bases, while Basurto was 3-for-4 with two runs scored. Doan was also 1-for-1 with two sacrifices and a stolen base. The Falcons also had five batters get hit by pitches and drew five walks.

Game 2 - Carranza (7-3) was masterful against Canyons (2-6) in the second game, as she recorded her third shutout of the season. She allowed just three hits and withstood three Falcon errors in the game. She had a stretch where she retired 12 of 14 batters and capped off the game by setting down nine of the last 10 batters.

Once again, the Falcons got on the board early, as Macias singled, stole second and scored on a base hit by freshman outfielder Morgan Fontela (Long Beach Millikan HS) in the bottom of the first inning. Then, with two outs in the fourth inning, Macias reached base on a two-base fielding error on a dropped ball in the outfield and was plated on a double by Basurto. They closed out the game's scoring in the fifth inning, and, once again, Macias played a role. Manalo led off with a double, advanced to third in a single from sophomore catcher Jimena Velazquez (Fullerton Union HS) and scored on a sacrifice fly from Carbajal. With the bases loaded, Macias drove the team's final run with a base hit.

One the day, Macias was 4-for-5- with two walks, four stolen bases, three RBI and scored two runs, while Basurto was a combined 5-for-8 and scored a pair of runs. Doan had a solid day by going 3-for-4 with an RBI, stolen base and a pair of sacrifices. The Falcons did leave 12 more runners on base in the second game. Macias is currently third in the state with 13 stolen bases.

Photos by Daryl Peterson