Hosting Taft College on Friday, the Cerritos College women's soccer team was able to stay close with the state's #11-ranked team through the first half. After spotting the Cougars (7-1-0) a 2-0 first half lead, the Falcons (1-6-0) cut their lead in half with a perfectly placed goal in the 39th minute. However, Taft was able to regroup and scored twice in the second half to come away with a 4-1 decision over Cerritos. The team will now open South Coast Conference place on October 5 when they travel to East Los Angeles College for a 4:00 p.m. contest.

Down 2-0 after the first 20 minutes of the game, freshman Jaque Adame (North HS) took the throw-in from freshman Nadiah Palomares (East Los Angeles Performing Arts Magnet HS) and lifted a shot from 30 yards out into the upper corner of the net for her first goal of the season. The goal came not long after sophomore goalkeeper Anahi De Leon (Lynwood HS/East Los Angeles College) stopped a penalty kick in the 23rd minute, which would have made it a 3-0 game.

On that play, freshman defender Valerie Becerra (La Serna HS) was called for a foul inside the 18-yard box against Jennifer Vera. De Leon then stepped up and made a diving save against April Jimenez to keep the Falcons within striking distance.

The first Taft goal, De Leon made the initial save on a Vera shot, but freshman Mary Morales (Santa Ana HS) tapped the ball into the Falcons goal for an own goal. De Leon, who made four saves on the day, let in a soft goal, when she went down to make a save against Devan Furukawa, only to see the ball roll under her and into the net.

In the second half, the Cougars were able to convert on their second penalty kick of the day, as De Leon was charged with a hard tackle against Ashley Marquez, which allowed Juliet Garcia to step up and convert for a 3-1 Falcon deficit. The fourth goal came in the final minute on a shot similar to the one by Adame, as the shot by Alussandra Gonzales was placed over the outstretched arms of De Leon.

Taft went on to out-shoot the Falcons, 11-6 on the day.

Photos by Daryl Peterson