With sole possession of second place in the South Coast Conference on the line, the Cerritos College softball team overcame a slow start and went on to post a 5-1 win over Long Beach City College at Nancy Kelly Field on Monday. The Falcons (25-12, 17-5), winners of seven in a row and 12 of their last 14 games, will travel to Rio Hondo College for a 3:00 p.m. conference game tomorrow.

After allowing the Vikings (24-12, 16-6) one run on three hits in the first inning, sophomore pitcher Samantha Islas (Roosevelt HS) came on in relief and limited LB City to just one hit for the remainder of the game. Islas (pictured, below) recorded the last 10 outs in the air.

Going hitless the first time through the lineup, the Cerritos bats came to life in the bottom of the fourth inning. Freshman outfielder Jazmine Macias (La Mirada HS) led off with a double, and with two outs, sophomore third baseman Brooklyn Bedolla (Mayfair HS) launched a two-run home run to put the Falcons in the lead.

The advantage extended with three more runs in the fifth inning, which all took place with two outs. Sophomore second baseman Alyssa Sotelo (El Rancho HS) doubled to the centerfield wall, followed by another double from Macias, which plated Sotelo. Long Beach City replaced staring pitcher Ashley Hester with Olivia Ramirez, who was greeted with a two-run home run blast from sophomore first baseman Richere Leduc (California HS).

That would be all the offense necessary, as Islas (15-6) won her sixth games in as many appearances over a span of eight days.

Prior to the start of the game, the team honored longtime groundskeeper Bill Griffin (right), who threw out the first pitch of the game.

Photos by Daryl Peterson