First-half shooting woes turned to an offense surge in the final two quarters, as the Cerritos College women's basketball team put up 36 second half points on their way to a 56-41 victory over El Camino College on Friday night. The Falcons (13-7, 3-0), who have now won four games in a row, outscored the Warriors (7-10, 1-2), 36-22 in the last 20 minutes of the game after being limited to just 20 points in the first half. One of the biggest keys to the victory was the fact that Cerritos only turned the ball over three times the entire game. The win also kept the team in first place in the South Coast Conference South Division and will host Compton College at 7:00 p.m. next Wednesday.

One player who benefitted the most from intermission was freshman guard Ilani Avila (Downey HS), who scored 20 second-half points on 8-of-14 shooting.

The outcome was still in question heading into the fourth quarter with the Falcons on top, 37-27. After Avila connected on a jumper with 6:15 left, she followed that with a three-pointer to put the team in front, 44-31 with 5:41 remaining. She followed that with baskets the team's next two baskets in successive possessions, but when freshman Izabella Apodaca (La Serna HS) hit a three-pointer from the corner with 1:51 left, the 15-point lead (51-36) all but secured the win.

Avila posted 25 points, with four steals, three rebounds and three assists to lead the Falcons. It marked her fifth game of 25 points or more on the year. Apodaca, who hit a pair of three-pointers, finished the game with 10 points, while freshman Dominique Harrison (John Glenn HS) accounted for eight points and nine rebounds in 15 minutes of action. Freshman Ashley Miller (Paramount HS) posted seven points in the victory, while the duo of sophomore Precious Yerena (Downey HS) and Therese Zekajj (Legacy HS) each pulled down seven rebounds.

Photos by Daryl Peterson