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Falcons fail to win second straight title

2009-05-17T14:47:00.000-07:00

Sierra College proved the 3-2 victory in Game One of the state tournament versus the Cerritos College softball team was not a fluke.

Cerritos faced Sierra Saturday in a rematch and this time, Cerritos had no chance as it was eliminated from the tournament,8-1.

After Sierra sent Cerritos into the loser's bracket in their first meeting, Cerritos was forced to win six straight games to win the championship.

On day two of the tournament, Cerritos beat Riverside and Cypress but fell short again to Sierra.

The Falcons were able to get a quick 7-0 lead on Riverside and win, 10-4.

But it was the second game of the day versus Cypress that might have been the deciding factor in Cerritos' elimination.

Although the Falcons beat Cypress, 11-10, in walk-off fashion in 11 innings, they paid a price as Pitcher Hillary Perez-Ashley finished with a total of 20 innings pitched for the day.

Perez-Ashley was asked to start the third game of the day versus Sierra. With the short rest in between games, she allowed five runs in four innings.

Cerritos' offense gave a mere contribution as well with only three hits in the losing cause.

Sierra went on to lose in the championship game on Sunday against Mt.San Antonio.

Softball team sent to loser bracket

2009-05-16T00:18:00.000-07:00

Outfielder Jennifer Salas was up to bat in the bottom of the seventh inning with two runners on base with no outs. The stage was set for the walk off victory.

Salas, who hit a two-run homerun in the fourth inning, managed to hit a soft line drive out resulting in a baserunning blunder leading to a game ending triple play by Sierra College sending the Cerritos College softball team to the losers bracket in the state tournament on Friday.

The 3-2 loss in the first round snaps the Falcons' 14-game winning streak and forces Cerritos to win six games on Saturday and Sunday to win the state championship.

The last time a team accomplished that feat was in 1985 when Santa Ana was able to win the title after losing the first game.

Earlier this season when the Falcons were beating teams by double-digits, I wrote an article saying this wouldn't happen in the postseason. I went on to say that this young team would not be ready to handle close games in the playoffs.

It comes to no surprise that the deficit of Game One of the state tournament was by one run.

Sixty percent of the Falcons' losses this year have been by one run.

Pitcher HIllary Perez-Ashley suffered a loss and allowed two homeruns including one to the state's homerun leader, third baseman Rochel Vanyi.

The Falcons will face Riverside in an elimination game on Saturday at noon. They faced Riverside on March 27 and lost. Guess how much they lost by...you have a 60 percent chance of getting it.

No National Anthem...again

2009-05-03T15:55:00.000-07:00

Prior to starting game two of of the first round playoff series between the Cerritos College softball team and Ventura, the United States National Anthem failed to play on Sunday.

The players and coaches were introduced and each team stood down the baseline waiting for the national anthem to play and it never did.

Last Fall, at a Cerritos College football game, there was no National Anthem played as well.

One begins to wonder how many times it's not being played. I have not attended every single Cerritos sporting event but it makes me wonder how many times they've done it.

The National Anthem means much more to others than just a routine song before a game.

Many veterans take the anthem seriously and it has a big impact for them if it isn't played prior to a game. Many feel disrespected

Falcons face biggest test of the year

2009-04-07T21:28:00.000-07:00

For the Cerritos College softball team, its next game will be the most important one of the season.

The game at Mt. SAC on Thursday, will make or break the Falcons season. A lot of pressure is on as playoffs are approaching in less than three weeks.

The match-up will mark the third and final game of the regular season before the playoffs. The season series is tied, 1-1, after the Mounties stole one from the Falcons in their own backyard on March 24 and ended Cerritos' seven-game winning streak. And let's not forget handing the Falcons their one and only SCC loss.

To make the game a little more interesting, one team will be forced to get its winning streak snapped. Cerritos will enter Thursday's game with a five-game winning streak and Mt. SAC with seven straight.

If that's not enough then maybe the fact that these teams faced each other in last year's championship, which Cerritos won, can make it just a little bit more interesting.

Perhaps the Mounties victory over the Falcons in their last meeting was a fluke, but if they were to do it again, then the Falcons' reputation of being this powerhouse might be tarnished and Mt. SAC would be the new team-to-beat in the SCC.

Now the question is: "Why wouldn't the Mounties win?"

The advantage is on their side. Even though Cerritos has some momentum after beating East LA on Tuesday, the Mounties' momentum is greater and has been growing since March 19. Aside from winning seven consecutive games, Mt. SAC has won 12 of the last 13 games.

The key player to this game will be Cerritos' ace pitcher, Hillary Perez-Ashley. Perez-Ashley gave up three home-runs in the last meeting which nearly matched her season total of four. Perez-Ashley will have to endure the pressure of facing the team that handed her the worst outing of the season.

Softball holding strong

2009-04-06T15:44:00.000-07:00

Apparently, the Cerritos College softball team wasn't finished riding the roller coaster.

Just when doubt was in the air after losing another close game over the weekend to Saddleback, 4-3, the Falcons proved why they should still be a championship contender.

Cerritos participated in the San Diego City Tournament and played five games over the weekend. Aside from the tough loss to Saddleback, Cerritos won four of the five games in an impressive fashion including a one-run victory.

The results of this weekend are:

Saddleback L, 4-3
Oxnard W, 12-1
Orange Coast W, 10-2
Grossmont W, 14-0
Fullerton W, 4-3

Momentum is beginning to ride the Falcons way once again after a rough end of March. They are on the verge of clinching the SCC title and are currently on a four-game winning streak.

Cerritos has a couple obstacles to overcome the next three weeks of the regular season.

The Falcons will have to protect a feeble two-game lead over Mt. SAC who is currently in second place in the SCC. In the six-game stretch, Cerritos will travel to face a hungry Mt. SAC team who defeated the Falcons in their last meeting at Cerritos and Pasadena City where it escaped with a one-run win last Thursday.

If Cerritos does in fact overcome the obstacles ahead, teams should be worried about facing it in the playoffs.

Lose close, win big

2009-04-05T23:01:00.000-07:00

And so the pattern continues.

One day after winning a surprising close game, the Cerritos College softball team lost another one-run game and followed it up with a big win this past weekend.

Cerritos fell short to Saddleback, 4-3, on Friday. After the tough loss to Saddleback, the Falcons bounced back beating Grossmont, 15-0, in five innings on Saturday.

Just when Cerritos looked like it was improving its ability to come out of close games with a victory, it proved once again that it can't.

Out of the nine losses Cerritos has suffered this year, five have been by one run.

There are only six games left in the regular season before playoffs and the Falcons can't expect to get the second chances they've been getting after their losses.

"Go big or go home" is what best describes the Falcons.

By the looks of it, if they aren't leading teams by more than eight runs, they are definitely going home early this postseason.

Softball rides roller coaster in March

2009-04-03T22:41:00.000-07:00

Although the Cerritos College softball team is 11-1 and currently in first place of the SCC, there is no way it can feel comfortable after the roller coaster month of March it had.

Once again, the young Falcon squad was put in a position to prove it is a worthy team.

The Falcons responded with a close 4-3 victory over Pasadena on Thursday after dropping four of the last six including a three-game skid.

Fresh off winning seven in a row and leading the ranks in the latest poll, the Falcons lost three in a row including the third loss handed by rival Mt. San Antonio, 9-4, on March 24.

The loss to Mt. SAC marked the first SCC loss for the Falcons and split the season series so far between both schools, 1-1.

It seemed as if Cerritos ran out of steam after it was demolishing teams by more than nine runs.

After losing to Mt. SAC, Cerritos responded like it has done all season, by killing its opponent, beating El Camino, 15-2.

Cerritos did something else it has done all season: Lose the close game. Following the blowout, Cerritos suffered a one-run loss to Riverside, 2-1.

But knowing the young zealous crew, it shut-out its next opponent, 10-0.

Because of the pattern the Falcons were falling into, the 4-3 result between Cerritos and Pasadena City on Thursday was most likely going in the favor of PCC.

However the Falcons are maturing and it is evident as they were the ones that walked away with a rare one-run victory.

Perhaps the Falcons needed the wake-up call to help them realize that they can't beat every team by nine.

The performance by Cerritos in the month of April will determine how well-prepared the Falcons really are for the Southern California Regionals.

Bitter-sweet situation for softball team

2009-03-17T01:08:00.000-07:00

Not only is the Cerritos College softball team winning, they're obliterating the competition mid-way through the season. But that might not be a good thing toward the end of the season.

The Falcons are averaging eight runs a game and also beating teams by seven runs or more.

The Falcons have gotten quite familiar with the mercy rule as they have utilized it in 10 of their 19 wins.

The only problem is that as it gets deeper into the season, playoffs in particular, it will not know how to handle the pressures of close games.

Teams in the playoffs will not roll over like the El Caminos and the LA Harbors.

With all the success stomping on other teams, the Falcons should be concerned about not finishing off teams in close situations.

The main problem is that the only solution in learning how to complete those close games with a win is through experience and the Falcons don't have much of that.

The Falcons have a total of four losses. In those four losses, three have been by one run and the other was by three runs.

Mt. SAC fans rattle the Falcons

2009-03-02T16:36:00.000-08:00

If it wasn't enough that the Cerritos College women's basketball team had a big task ahead facing top seeded and defending state champion Mt. San Antonio, the Falcons had to go on the road and face the Mounties' unfamiliar gym and its rowdy fans.

The Falcons walked into a gym full of state championship banners and an opposing bench holding twice as many players as them.

From the start of the game, the biggest fan club in the gym and the main contributors to the distruption of Cerritos' game, the Mounties football players, arrived shirtless with red and black paint covering them from the waist up to their faces.

It was so fitting for the Mounties football players, who were upset by the Cerritos football team last season in triple overtime, to take their wrath out on a different Cerritos team.

The football team's rowdiness began to immediately take effect in the first half.

After an air-ball from Cerritos forward Mercedes Taylor, the football players did not let her forget about it as they chanted "air-ball" the rest of the game every time Taylor had possession of the ball.

On one occasion, after Taylor missed a shot, she ran back down the court while giving the middle finger to the football team.

Mission accomplished.

The football team had successfully made it into Taylor's head and ultimately affected the team captain's level of performance.

Toward the end of the game, Taylor was nodding her head to a heckle given by one of the men and signaling a sarcastic thumbs-up in between a set of free-throws.

Cerritos looked uncomfortable from the start and did not look like the same team that barely lost to the Mounties back in January at Cerritos.

Mt. SAC proved that playing at home makes a difference especially in post-season games.

Home field...advantage?

2009-02-26T09:46:00.000-08:00

Home field advantage in sports is one of the vital and key components in winning postseason games, but for the Cerritos College men's basketball team, success is earned away from The Aviary.

It was to no surprise that the Falcons went into LA Valley's backyard and stole a victory in the first round of the regional playoffs, 80-76.

With the win on Wednesday, they now travel once again, this time to face top-seeded Saddleback college.

The Falcons completed their 2008-2009 season sporting an undefeated record of 5-0 in the SCC conference and a 7-1 record overall when they are on the road, not to mention a 10-game winning streak they're riding on entering Saturday night's game.

When playing at home, Cerritos finished the season with an awful record of 5-6.

The talks of an upset are definitely high as the Falcons enter Saddleback college comfortably and confident attempting to extend their streak to 11.

Softball wins, no score to prove it

2009-01-26T19:06:00.000-08:00

The Cerritos college softball team had a scrimmage against Santa Ana last Wednesday.

The scrimmage was postponed due to the lack of communication between both teams.

Cerritos had the game scheduled for Tuesday and Santa Ana for Wednesday.

Because a scrimmage is more of a practice than an actual game, no one kept score or stats.

According to head coach Kodee Murray, the Falcons won 13-3. However, assistant coach Nicole Deel, had a different result. She claimed the score was 14-2 which included an alleged homerun from catcher Samantha Vaaulu. However, because there were no stats taken, the homerun never existed.

Either way, Cerritos dominated.That's all that matters.

A team that can walk away from a scrimmage feeling victorious has accomplished its goal of the scrimmage.

Cerritos can now walk away feeling confident after the performance it put up.

Wrestling team gets ready for regionals

2008-11-19T22:43:00.000-08:00

After the tough loss against Santa Ana late October, the Cerritos College wrestling team has come out with a vengeance during the month of November.

Since being defeated on Oct. 29, the Falcons have dominated in the month of November going 3-0 in conference dual matches outscoring opponents by a total of 91-36.

The Falcons also finished 2nd as a team in two tournaments in November including 5 first place finshers in those tournaments.

Much of the Falcons success has come from Mike Koehnlein at 141 lbs with a record of 31-1, Caleb Gerl, 30-3 in the season, and heavyweight Juan Enriquez, finishing with a record of 27-4 before the Southern California Regional Tournament on Dec. 6.

With Regionals right around the corner, the month of November makes it the perfect time for the Falcons to get hot and gain as much momentum possible before the crucial tournament.

The Falcons are coming off big wins week after week and the success will continue to be there with the momentum and confidence that is growing everytime they compete.

Recent sports history has proved it is not always the best team that wins the championship but the hottest team with more momentum during the end of the season that takes it all.

Professional teams like the 2008 Philadelphia Phillies in baseball and the 2007 New York Giants in football were not considered getting passed the first round let alone winning the championship title. Like the Falcons, they also gained momentum going into the playoffs which played a key role in winning it all.

After Wednesday night's victory over Mt. San Antonio, the Falcons should feel good about the position they have put themselves in going into regionals and should make a strong push for state champions in the weeks to come.

iFALCON is the next big thing

2008-10-31T21:42:00.000-07:00

The iFALCON campaign coming in Spring is a new program to improve student success.

Now this is not just another "do good in school" rally.

This campaign has so many great features that there is no reason for failure.

The idea to help first generation students like myself is outstanding alone.

But wait, thats not it, there's these cool campaign cards that have a little bio of successful students in Cerritos and the campaign also provides recognition to other notable students in iFALCON's very own website.

The presentation of iFALCON by Mr. Reece gave clear motives and descriptions of how the campaign would work which makes you realize how big this project really is.

You can feel the excitement in the room when more and more students responsible for the making of iFALCON arrived to sit on stage until the presentation was over. At the end of the presentation, the stage was filled with students.

Although it may have a rough start in Spring, iFALCON will develop as the key to success for college students.

Not Just a Class

2008-10-22T14:01:00.000-07:00

"I'm waiting for some of you to become member's of the team and not just members of the class!"

After reading my adviser's message, it hit me, I'm part of a team again. Except this time, I'm not playing football or wrestling, but reporting.

When I first joined the Talonmarks staff, it was nothing but another class for me. During the month of October, it began to sink in, the students in my class weren't just classmates, they're my teammates.

I was very shy at first and i knew i was going to be taken out of my comfort zone but I'm glad I went through it.

Given it's my first semester on the staff, I know need a lot of help and all my editors have been extremely helpful and to say Mr. Cameron has been really patient is actually an understatement. For a cool minute, I thought he actually hated me.

I have gotten over that hump and now I am focused on improving my skills. More importantly, we as a staff are much more in sync and are working together to accomplish the goals we have this semester.