For the second time in the last week, the Cerritos College volleyball team suffered a five-set loss in South Coast Conference play. In both instances, the Falcons (14-10, 7-4) led two games to one before losing the next two sets and the match. On Friday, the team fought back after a bad first game against Pasadena City College and responded with a pair of wins. They were unable to maintain that momentum and ended up suffering a 12-25, 25-17, 25-15, 21-25, 11-15 loss.

If the team had won both the match against the Lancers and Mt. San Antonio College last Friday, they would be in a tie for second place and in contention for a post-season bid. Those two setbacks have the team fighting with PCC for third place in the conference and a very slim chance at qualifying for the Southern California Regional Playoffs. The team will host East Los Angeles College at 3:00 p.m. on Wednesday and have only two more matches remaining after.

In all three of the games they lost, the Falcons had a negative hitting percentage, which also held true for Pasadena City. Cerritos was unable to hit through the height the Lancers posed at the net, as they finished with 15 blocks, compared to just four for the Falcons. The combination of Kendra Logan and Lahiz Longobardi accounted for 10 of those blocks.

Cerritos looked to the duo of sophomore Nicole Spigner (La Mirada HS) and freshman Monica Vega (South Gate HS) for their offensive attack. The two combined for 33 kills, but also had 25 attack errors, which was the team's downfall. They didn't help their cause with 10 service errors, either, but countered that with some strong defensive play.

Spigner (15 digs) and Vega (13 digs) both played a big role in the team's effort, as did sophomore Jasmine Peralta (Lakewood HS), who also had 15 digs. At the net, freshman Kayley Stephens (Cypress HS) recorded eight kills, with sophomore Valerie Montoya (La Mirada HS) posting six kills and eight digs.

Sophomore setter Natalie Caravantes (Baldwin Hills HS) finished with 45 assists, while freshman Cristina Kennedy (Cabrillo HS) came off the bench to contribute seven digs.

Photos by Daryl Peterson