For the second time this season, the Cerritos College volleyball team was forced to play five sets against Rio Hondo College in a South Coast Conference match. In their first meeting, the Falcons were a set away from a win, but had to play a fifth set to record the victory. On Friday, it looked as though Cerritos would sweep past the Roadrunners after taking the first two sets, 25-22, 25-23. But they slowly watched it slip away, as Rio Hondo responded with 25-22 and 25-21 wins before sending the Falcons to defeat with a 15-9 score in the fifth and deciding set.

Cerritos will try to regroup when they travel to East Los Angeles College next Wednesday for a 6:00 p.m. match.

Each point was hard-fought, with the Falcons posting 150 kill attempts to go along with 79 digs. A trio of players recorded double-digit kills, led by Aiyana Sierra (La Mirada HS) who had 17 kills in 39 attempts, while also contributing two solo blocks. Freshman Jayda Harris-Amete (La Mirada HS) contributed 16 kills along with 19 digs, while freshman Maleah Gonzales (Schurr HS) added 10 kills and a pair of service aces.

Freshman setter Carissa Mendibles (Downey HS) had another strong match, as she recorded 42 assists to go along with 15 digs and a block assist. The team's libero, freshman Breanna Lizarraga (Paramount HS) recorded 17 digs, with Marissa Mendibles (Downey HS) accounting for four kills, a team-high 20 digs and a pair of block assists.