In their first game of the season, the Cerritos College women's basketball team used a frenetic offensive and defensive approach against visiting MiraCosta College on Friday. Although the Falcons (1-0) committed 34 turnovers, they also forced 44 against the Spartans, with the end result being a 78-73 win. The team will now open the Riverside City Tournament next Friday and will start with a 3:00 p.m. game against Bakersfield College.

Cerritos trailed 59-52 at the end of the third quarter, and then trailed 60-54 until freshman Jesenia Rendon (Carson HS) scored to get the team to within four points with 8:46 remaining. After sophomore Angie Ferreira (Long Beach Millikan HS) scored on a layup after a court-length pass from freshman Miranda Ta'amu (Los Alamitos HS), it was a 60-58 game. Baskets by freshmen Jessica Gomez (Legacy HS) and Serena Rendon (Carson HS) closed the gap to 67-64 with 4:50 left.

Ferreira was fouled on a rebound and netted a pair of free throws, which was followed by an Alexis Clark (Mayfair HS) layup with 2:43 to put the Falcons on top, 68-67. Jesenia Rendon then stole the ball and drained a three-pointer, which put Cerritos up, 71-67 with 2:27 left in regulation. It's a lead the Falcons would not relinquish, as Jesenia Rendon added another three-pointer with :58 seconds left to extend the team's lead to 76-69.

Jesenia Rendon led all scorers with 26 points on 10-of-26 shooting, including four three-pointers and added seven rebounds with six steals. Clark came off the bench to account for 11 points and nine rebounds, while Ferreira contributed nine points, seven rebounds and five assists.

Along with the turnovers, the Falcons converted only 17-of-32 free throws, as the Spartans were saddled with foul trouble and saw four players foul out of the game.

Photos by Daryl Peterson