If their performance in their season-opening game for the Cerritos College men's soccer team is any indication of how they will play this season, they could be considered when other schools talk about state contenders. The Falcons, who won the state championship in 2006, opened with a 7-0 non-conference win over San Bernardino Valley College on Wednesday. The game was the first official contest on the school's new soccer facility.

     Making the most of his scoring opportunities was returning All-American forward Michael Paz (California HS), who scored four goals and had chance at a fifth, but his penalty kick in the 88th minute was stopped. Paz scored the game's first two goals, in the eighth and 15th minutes, while he finished out his scoring in the 61st and 79th minutes. On his first two goals, he was assisted by sophomore Alex Munoz (Corona Centennial HS), while Munoz got on the scoreboard in the 31st minute with his first of the season.

     On the first goal, the play was set up after freshman midfielder Timmy Seo (Los Alamitos HS) stole the ball and fed it to Munoz, who sent a pass into the box for Paz. It was the aggressive attack by Munoz that set up the second goal, as his initial shot was saved, with Paz in the right spot to put it away for a 2-0 lead. Munoz made it 3-0 when he received a leading pass from freshman defender Fabian Perez (Bellflower HS) and chipped into the back of the net.

     Freshman midfielder Salvador Melendrez (Long Beach Millikan HS) and sophomore defender Juan Davila (Birmingham HS) also scored for the Falcons, while sophomore goalkeeper Diego Millan (Paramount HS) was asked to make just four saves in the game.

     Cerritos will now head up north to compete in the Hartnell Tournament over the weekend. They open on Friday at 11:00 a.m. against Foothill College. Last year, the Falcons won the tournament for the first time in school history. The tournament is usually comprised of the defending state champion and teams that advanced to the state tournament. Cerritos was eliminated from the playoffs in the third round and missed out on defending their title from two years ago.