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At the start of the season, the Cerritos College
football team felt that one of their strongest positions
would be the offensive line, With four sophomores
returning, including returning All-American tackle
Mike Diaz
(Schurr HS), along with All-American candidate
Phillip Garcia
(Schurr HS) at the other tackle, the Falcons
appeared to be able to protect their quarterback and run
the ball with effectiveness. However, in the last two
games, Garcia went down against Fullerton College, while
Diaz went down against Santa Ana College on Saturday
afternoon in the team’s Mission Conference National
Division opener. The result was a 23-17 loss, while
sophomore quarterback
AJ Toscano
(El Rancho HS) was sacked seven times. Cerritos
(3-3 overall, 0-1 National Division) must now regroup,
as they travel to Riverside College for a 5:00 p.m. game
next Saturday.
Despite the woes
on the offensive line, the Falcons still found
themselves in a position to win the game late in the
fourth quarter. After fighting back from a 23-10
deficit, as Toscano connected with freshman wide
receiver
Ronnie Goforth (Mayfair HS) on a 36-yard
touchdown with 11:28 left in the fourth quarter,
Cerritos appeared to be driving for a game-winning
touchdown. After the defense held the Dons offensively
on their next two possessions, Cerritos took over
possession at their own 15-yard line with 4:41
remaining. Toscano hit Goforth for a 17-yard gain on
fourth-and-seven at the Cerritos 32-yard line to get the
ball at midfield. After an incompletion, Toscano
(7-for-20, 92 yards) completed a 10-yard pass to
freshman wide receiver
Sheldon Smith
(Culver City HS) to get to the Don 41-yard line.
But Toscano was sacked twice in the next four plays,
including on fourth down to end the drive and their
chance to win the game.
Cerritos jumped
out to a 10-0 lead in the first half, as sophomore
kicker Jesus Ochoa (Paramount HS)
converted a 23-yard field goal, while freshman
quarterback
Jeffrey
Fischer (Lakewood HS) drove the team
downfield in his first action of the game and hit
freshman tight end
Anthony
Recinos (Norwalk HS) for a 14-yard
touchdown pass. But Santa Ana scored twice by halftime
and took a 14-10 advantage. They upped their lead on a
third quarter field goal and a fourth quarter touchdown
before the Falcons began their comeback attempt.
The loss of both
tackles affected the team’s running game, but sophomore
Lorenzo
Goode (Hermitage, VA HS/Allan Hancock College)
still managed to rush for 112 yards on 25 carries, but
the team finished with just 60 total yards on the ground
due to all of the sacks. Fischer completed 3-of-4 passes
for 44 yards in his two first half series, while Smith
led the team with three catches for 46 yards.
The defense was
extended all game long, as the Dons ran 10 more plays
than Cerritos, with that gap closing due to the fourth
quarter comeback by the Falcons. Freshman linebacker
Doncel Bolt
(Long Beach Poly HS) turned in his best game of
the season, as he collected 13 tackles, while sophomore
Michael Terry (Bell Gardens HS) came on
strong when the defense was making a stand in the second
half. He finished with eight tackles, two tackles for
loss, two quarterback sacks to go along with a pass
breakup, quarterback hurry and a forced fumble. Freshman
linebacker
Kirt Puletasi (Long Beach Jordan HS)
added eight tackles, five quarterback hurries and an
interception. |
