Speed. Speed. And more speed. The Cerritos College women's soccer team concluded their cross-country trip with a convincing 5-0 win over Eastern Florida State College on Sunday morning. The Falcons, ranked #1 in the country by the National Soccer Coaches Association of American (NSCAA) Division III (non-scholarship), handed Division I (scholarship) second-ranked Eastern Florida State College (2-1-1) a 5-0 setback on Sunday morning. Cerritos (2-0-0) concluded their two-game trip by outscoring their opponents, 11-1 and will return home to host Cosumnes River College at 4:00 p.m. on Friday.

After a tight first 10 minutes of the game, the Falcons took advantage of their team speed, as freshman Nayeli Requejo (Bishop Amat HS) was tackled in the box by Jade Rhodes as she turned the corner, earning her a penalty kick. Requejo converted the penalty kick against Titans keeper Amy Clason-Messina for a 1-0 lead 14 minutes into the game. Cerritos kept on their pressure, which enabled them to open up a 2-0 lean when sophomore Claudia Lopez (Downey HS), who took the initial shot on goal. Clason-Messina made the first save, with the rebound going to freshman Carolina Ornelas (Artesia HS), who saw her rebound shot stopped by defender Jamie Perriello. But that rebound landed on the foot of sophomore April Juarez (Bishop Amat HS/USC), who controlled the ball and scored for a 2-0 advantage the Falcons took into halftime.

"We have some players who can really use their speed to their advantage," said head coach Ruben Gonzalez. "Eastern Florida tried to focus on Claudia (Lopez) with a man-mark, which opened up more space for our quick players on the edge. It's one thing to have speed, but we have five or six players that can score, which gives us an extra advantage."

Cerritos opened the scoring floodgates early in the second half, as they scored a pair of goals in :50 seconds for a convincing 4-0 lead. Less than five minutes into the second half, Juarez lifted a pass over the Titans defense to Lopez. She dribbled into the box and got off a shot, with Ornelas in the right spot for the rebound goal. The Falcon speed didn't waver in the Florida heat and humidity, as Ornelas was tackled in the box by All-American defender Heather Williams. Lopez drilled home the penalty kick for a 4-0 lead. The scoring concluded with 19 minutes left in the game, as Juarez and Lopez teamed up for a beautiful give-and-go move that resulted in the fifth goal of the season for Lopez.

The Falcon defense limited the Titans to eight shots on goal, and held leading scorer Jenci Villaverde to just two weak shots at the net. Led by sophomores Jasmine Cornejo (Artesia HS), Alyssa Cabral (Bishop Amat HS) and Cristal Yantuche (Lakewood HS), along with freshmen Clara Gomez (El Modena HS) and Malia Tilton (El Modena HS), Cerritos used their smothering defense to keep Eastern Florida State College at bay for 90 minutes. Sophomore goalkeeper Alexis Carrillo (Bishop Amat HS) played the first 57 minutes and recorded three saves, while freshman Adrianna Salazar (Downey HS) came on for the final 33 minutes and turned away five shots.