Although the Cerritos College volleyball team is still looking for their first win on the year, they have shown the ability to battle to the end with each opponent. The Falcons (0-7) suffered a 21-25, 22-25, 20-25 loss at the hands of Los Angeles Pierce College (4-2) on Wednesday night. All it would have taken for a different outcome was a few rallies going the way of Cerritos, which could have changed the momentum of the entire match. The team will open South Coast Conference play at 6:00 p.m. tomorrow at East Los Angeles College.

After falling behind early in the match, it took a while for Cerritos to generate some momentum. Down, 18-10 and then 22-14, the Falcons received a pair of kills from sophomore Abby Gutierrez (Downey HS), while three Brahmas attack errors closed the score to 23-20. A bad set was countered by a kill from freshman Kira Magdaleno (Artesia HS) before and attack error finished off the first set in favor of LA Pierce.

The second set was one of points coming in bunches. The Brahmas opened by scoring the first six points before the Falcons responded with eight straight points on the serve by sophomore Breanna Lizarraga (Paramount HS), as she posted three service aces. Once LA Pierce regained the serve, they scored eight consecutive points of their own for a 14-8 lead until the Falcons were able to rally and tie it up at 14-14. That would be the last time the match was tied or Cerritos would have the lead. It was a 22-17 Brahmas lead until the Falcons once again drew within striking distance after getting the score to 22-21 after a pair of LA Pierce attack errors. Cerritos gave LA Pierce their final three points on attack errors.

Looking to extend the match, Cerritos found themselves down once again and had to fight back to take a 13-12 lead on a kill by Gutierrez. Leading by as many as 17-14 in the set, the Falcons were then locked in a 20-20 tie, but surrendered three service aces, as LA Pierce scored the final five points to finish off the match.

Gutierrez led the team with nine kills and added 10 digs, with freshman Kaydence Portillo (Bell Gardens HS) finishing with five kills. Sophomore setter Carissa Mendibles (Downey HS) had 16 assists on the night, while Lizarraga led the team in digs (13) and service aces (4).

Photos by Daryl Peterson