With the game tied, 5-5 heading into the top of the eighth inning, the Cerritos College baseball team saw a throwing error account for two runs in an 8-5 loss. The Falcons (8-17-1, 4-11) were swept by Mt. San Antonio College (19-6, 9-3) in their South Coast Conference series, with the team getting ready to take on Long Beach City College in a three-game set starting Tuesday at 2:30 p.m. in Long Beach.

The Falcons tied the game at 5-5 in the bottom of the seventh inning after freshman second baseman Andy Vega (Mary Star of the Sea HS) led off with a walk, moved to second base on a sacrifice and then moved to third on a base hit. He then came home on a wild pitch. With freshman Sawyer Chesley (Laguna Beach HS) on first base after his hit, a slow roller by freshman Lucas Iorgulescu (Marina HS) led to a collision on the base paths, and Chesley was called out when he collided with Mountie second baseman Will Bermudez. At the time, it forced Vega back to third base, but he did come home on the wild pitch by Damian Torres.

Facing relief pitcher Dawson Holbrook (Godinez HS) in the top of the eighth inning, Mt. San Antonio loaded the bases on a single and a pair of walks with one out. CJ Ontiveros drove in a run on a sacrifice fly to make it a 6-5 game. However, on the next play Nin Burns hit a ground ball to freshman Mike Santos (Servite HS) at third base and his throw to first went over the outstretched glove of Chesley, which allowed the other two runners to score.

Cerritos took a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the second inning when Chesley was hit by a pitch, followed by a singles from Iorgulescu and Santos, which loaded the bases. Freshman catcher Daniel Mariscal, Jr. (Long Beach Poly HS) drove in a run with a base hit, with the other run coming home on a sacrifice fly from freshman outfielder Jason Givens (Santa Fe HS). A sacrifice fly from Santos in the third inning brought in another run, while later in the stanza, a throwing error brought home Chesley, who reached base when he was hit by a pitch for the second time.

Freshman relief pitcher Carter Stoddard (Sunny Hills HS) did a fine job in his three innings of work, as he allowed one run on two hits and struck out two. At the plate, Iorgulescu went 3-for-3 with a walk, while Bueno went 2-for-4.

Photos by Daryl Peterson