Looking to make a statement against Mt. San Antonio College in their final regular season South Coast Conference game, the Cerritos College men's water polo team did just that in a 14-5 win on Wednesday. The victory not only secures the #2-seed for the upcoming SCC Tournament next week, it also earned the Falcons (18-9, 4-1) a bye in the first round. But before they play in the tournament, the team will travel to Arizona this weekend to compete in the OUAZ Tournament at Ottawa (AZ) University. Cerritos will play one game on Friday and then three times on Saturday.

Against the Mounties (12-9, 3-2), the team came out strong and scored the first three goals of the game. Although Mt. SAC did close the gap to 4-3 early in the second period, the Falcons clamped down on defense and executed on offense, as they accounted for 10 of the last 12 goals in the game.

Prior to halftime, Julian Almanza (St. John Bosco HS) took the game over, as he scored three consecutive goals to help the Falcons take a 7-3 lead into halftime. He also posted four steals, while goalie Aiden Parra (California HS) came up with one critical save after another to keep Mt. SAC at bay.

Cerritos received four goals in the second half fron Christian Acosta (Schurr HS), while Max Lucero (Whittier HS) picked up a pair of goal in the dominant second half.

Almanza and Acosta each scored five goals, while Almanza also assisted on four goals, with Acosta drawing four exclusions. Isaiah Wright (Whittier HS) assisted three of the Falcon goals, with Parra turning in 14 saves in a winning cause.

Photos by Daryl Peterson