In the last 15 years, the Cerritos College women's soccer team has gone 23-1-3 against Pasadena City College heading into Friday's game. Facing the host Lancers (5-5-4, 0-1-0) in their South Coast Conference opener, the Falcons (8-3-2, 1-0-0) opened up a 3-0 lead and looked to cruise to another win. However, the Lancers, who had been outscored, 57-0 by Cerritos in the last seven years up to that point, score twice to put a scare into the Falcons before the game finished, 3-2. Unbeaten in their last seven games (6-0-1), Cerritos will play their third road game in a row next Tuesday when they travel to Rio Hondo College for a 4:00 p.m. conference affair.

Cerritos needed less than three minutes to get on the board, as sophomore Valeria Corrilo (Dominguez HS) sent a through ball to freshman McKenzie Cooper (Temescal Canyon HS), who was running at full speed. After getting to the ball, Cooper placed the ball into the rigth corner of the net from three yards out for her fourth goal of the season to put the team ahead on the road. Prior to the end of the first half, the Falcons made it a 2-0 game, as Corrilo had a hand in the goal. Controlling the ball at midfield, Corrilo sent another long ball deep into Pasadena City territory, where sophomore Nia Thompson (Kennedy HS/Alabama A&M University) went in alone against Lancers goalie Alyssa Holt, and sent the ball into the right corner of the net.

With 12 first half shots, the Falcons were starting to look like the type of team that had been in the last decade, as they attacked the opponent's defense with speed and a deluge of shots. Early in the second half, it became a 3-0 game, as Thompson sent the ball into an open space inside Lancer territory, where freshman Samantha Martinez (San Pedro HS) dribbled past the last defender to face the goalie all alone. She finished the play with a shot from seven yards out and into the right side of the net.

Pasadena scored their first goal in seven years against Cerritos in the 60th minute when Katy Coats scored her state-leading 23rd goal of the season on a breakaway shot that rolled past goalkeeper Melanie Corona (El Rancho HS) and into the net. 

Continuing to put pressure on the Falcon defense, Corona, who came in to play the second half, was called for a red card when she clipped Lancer forward Amanda Howard outside the box. Considered to be the last defender, Corona was issued the red card. Freshman Liza Cisneros (Bellflower HS), who started and played the first half, came back into the game, and Cerritos was forced to play with just 10 players for the final 10 minutes of the game.

Taking advantage of the shorthanded Falcons, Pasadena City needed a little over a minute to draw to within 3-2 on a shot from 25 yards out in the 82nd minute. Cerritos was able to hold on and even had a header by Lucia Yanez (El Rancho HS) just miss the net and would have iced the game.

With the win today, the Falcons have now won 15 games in a row over Pasadena City, and have not lost since a 4-2 setback in 2012.

Research on the series provided by Robert Lewis/Pasadena City Sports Information Director