The Cerritos College women's basketball team split their two games at the Fullerton Tournament over the weekend, but probably felt they should have come away with a pair of victories. The Falcons (8-6) held a second half lead over the host Hornets, but saw that get away from them in a 58-51 loss before rebounding for a 69-48 win over San Diego Mesa. The team will travel to San Diego to take on the same Olympians (3-9) when they return to action on December 30.

Cerritos vs. Fullerton: Leading 40-26 with less than a minute remaining in the third quarter, the Falcons went scoreless for the next 4:18, which allowed the Hornets to draw to within 40-38. Freshman Izabella Apodaca (La Serna HS) hit a three-pointer to make it a 44-38 lead, but another dry spell saw Fullerton pull ahead, 46-44 with 4:33 remaining in the fourth quarter. The team's last lead (49-48) came on a layup from freshman Brianna Flores (Norwalk HS) with 2:47 left. The team shot 1-for-7 the remainder of the way, which forced them to foul the Hornets, who made three of their last five shots. Cerritos still had their chances, as Fullerton made just 2-of-7 free throws in the final two minutes.

The Falcons opened a 28-17 halftime lead and limited Fullerton (5-8) to just two second quarter points. But by the end of the game, Cerritos shot just 26% from the field, which included netting only 2-of-23 three-point shots.

Freshman Ilani Avila (Downey HS) was the lone player to score in double-figures, as she finished with 14, while freshman Ashley Miller (Paramount HS) came off the bench to add eight points, seven steals and four rebounds. The trio of Apodaca, Flores and sophomore Precious Yerena (Downey HS) all contributed seven points, with sophomore Therese Zekajj (Legacy HS) and Apodaca combining for 17 rebounds.

Cerritos vs. San Diego Mesa: Looking to hold onto a lead against the Olympians, the Falcons limited their opponents to just 10-for-25 from the field in the second half. Additionally, Cerritos was more effective from three-point range than they were the day before, with Miller hitting a pair in the third quarter to help them continue pulling away. As a team, they were 6-of-13 from three-point range.

Leading 40-19 at intermission, Flores and Apodaca opened the second half by hitting three-pointers, followed by Miller, whose trey put the team up, 51-24. It was a 27-point lead (58-31) after Miller dropped in a shot from long distance with just five seconds left on the clock in the third quarter. Thanks to their 29-point lead (62-33) in the fourth quarter, a three and a half minute dry spell didn't hurt them, as the defense limited the Olympians to just five points during that stretch.

Avila, who connected in 7-of-13 shots, led the team with 19 points, while Miller produced 13 points off the bench. Apodaca contributed 11 points, while Flores and freshman Dominique Harrison (John Glenn HS) led the team with six rebounds each.