In their first season with the Cerritos College baseball program, head coach Nate Fernley and pitcher Derek Valdez (Los Alamitos HS) have made a huge impact. At the recent South Coast Conference coaches meeting, Fernley was voted the conference's Coach of the Year, while Valdez was voted the Pitcher of the Year. In all, six Falcons earned 1st Team honors, while two others received 2nd Team recognition. As for Fernley, this was his fourth consecutive Coach of the Year honor, with the last three coming as the head coach at El Camino College. Valdez is the first Falcon to earn the award since Gilbert Romero in 2018.

Joining Valdez as a 1st Team selection were sophomore pitcher Franky Lopez (Dominguez HS), freshman pitcher Myles Johnson (Katella HS), sophomore closer Calix Armijo (Mary Star of the Sea HS), sophomore first baseman Mike Santos (Servite HS) and sophomore shortstop DJ Massey (Gahr HS/Central Arizona College). Those named to the 2nd Team include sophomore infielder Anthony Bassett (Colegio Bautista de Managua, Nicaragua/Los Angeles Harbor College) and freshman outfielder Isaiah Rios (St. John Bosco HS).

Valdez has led a Cerritos pitching staff that has the lowest ERA in the state, while he has gone 11-1 with four complete games, a 1.41 ERA. He shares the state lead in wins, while his 96 innings pitched lead the state and is third in the state in ERA. A 2nd Team all-conference pick last season, Lopez has gone 9-0 on the year with a 1.79 ERA and two complete games in 80 1/3 innings. He's also struck out 73 batters and issued only 19 walks this season. Johnson, another piece of the Falcons starting rotation, has posted an 8-3 record and a 2.95 ERA with 65 strikeouts in 82 1/3 innings of work. When the starters aren't finishing games, Armijo has been able to step in and save 10 games, which leads the state. He's appeared in a team-high 17 games and has a 1-2 record with an 0.30 ERA and 28 strikeouts in 30 1/3 innings.

At the plate, Santos leads the team with four home runs and 39 RBI, along with 12 doubles and a .297 batting average. He's driven in 32 of those runs in conference play. Santos has also played perfect defense at first base and has not committed and error all season. Massey, the team-leader with 21 stolen bases, is batting .292 on the year with eight doubles and 21 RBI, while he's drawn 26 walks from his leadoff position. As a shortstop, Massey has been involved in 25 double players and has a .953 fielding percentage.

The team leader in batting average, Bassett is hitting .333 with a team-high 14 doubles to go along with one home run and 25 walks. He has also seen time at second base and has a .942 fielding percentage. Another solid defensive player, Rios has not committed an error all season and has three outfield assists. He's batting .303 on the year with six doubles and 18 RBI.