In their final tune-up before the start of South Coast Conference play, the Cerritos College women's basketball team took third place at the Fullerton Tournament over the weekend. The Falcons (11-6) opened with a 56-47 win over Skyline College before dropping a 62-45 decision against South Coast Conference rival Mt. San Antonio College in the semifinals. In the third place game, Cerritos defeated the host Hornets, 68-61. They will open conference place on January 7 with a 5:00 p.m. game at Los Angeles Harbor College.

Cerritos vs. Skyline: Looking to find their shot from the field, the Falcons were able to counter with some solid defense that limited the Trojans to a 19-for-76 night shooting. Cerritos came out strong and opened a 15-2 lead early on, with sophomore Cassidy Carrillo (St. Paul HS) accounting for 10 of the points. She netted a pair of three-pointers to help get the team out to their lead and scored 16 of her game-high 19 points in the first half. The Falcons scored their final seven points from the free throw line after netting their last field goal with 8:48 remaining in the game. Freshman Aissha Baldwin (Mayfair HS) added 10 points and 18 rebounds, with sophomore Michelle Navarro (Warren HS) finishing with four points, five rebounds and four assists.

Cerritos vs. Mt. San Antonio: Their nemesis for many years, the Mounties scored the first six points of the game and opened up a 35-19 lead at intermission. Cerritos did take a 9-8 lead with 10:54 left in the first half, but surrendered the next 13 points for their first-half deficit. Baldwin led the team with 11 points and added eight rebounds, while All-Tournament selection Crystal Lomax (Lynwood HS) pulled down nine rebounds and scored six points in a losing cause.

Cerritos vs. Fullerton: After the loss to Mt. SAC, the Falcons bounced back the next day and took a 16-5 lead over the Hornets and turned it into a 35-26 advantage at halftime. Freshman Sydney Lopez (Whittier Christian HS) scored all eight of her points and hit a pair of three-pointers in the first half, while freshman Ashley Flores (California HS) did most of her damage in the second half with eight points and seven rebounds on her way to 12 points and a team-high 13 rebounds. It was a 33-9 bench scoring advantage that catapulted Cerritos to the win, with Carrillo leading the starters with 14 points. Lomax concluded the tournament with six points and five rebounds, while Navarro added eight points in the win.