Since 2003, former Cerritos College softball coach
Nancy Kelly has been awarding a
scholarship in her name to a sophomore softball
player to help in the aid of purchasing textbooks
and supplies after transferring to a four-year
university. After a season where she was named the
South Coast Conference Pitcher of the Year and
earned All-State recognition, Jessica Lozano
(Banning HS) was named the recipient of
this year's scholarship.
Those eligible for the scholarship must have played two
seasons for the Falcon softball team and are
required to submit a personal statement, as well as
their transcripts and a letter of recommendation
from at least one of their professors. Lozano turned
in the required information and was notified by
Kelly herself that she would be receiving the
scholarship.
"I was really surprised and happy when Coach Kelly contacted
me to let me know I would be getting the
scholarship," said Lozano, who posted a 30-8 record
this season and helped Cerritos to a 34-12 record
and advanced to the Super Regional before being
eliminated from the playoffs. "I knew that the
scholarship was available, but I never thought I
would get it. (Head coach) Kodee Murray
gave the sophomores a flier with all of the
requirements and I went ahead and did everything it
asked."
On her way to Cumberland (TN) University, located 30 miles
east of Nashville, Lozano will be one of three
pitchers next year on the Bulldogs roster after they
posted a 31-27 record in 2011. They are members of
the Trans South Conference, where they posted a
17-15 mark.
But being one of several pitchers is familiar to Lozano, who
spent the majority of her freshman season watching
Hillary Perez-Ashley (the 2010
scholarship co-recipient) post a 33-2 record in 2010
and was named the state's Pitcher of the Year for
the second consecutive season. Lozano went 6-4 with
two saves her freshman year with a 2.08 ERA.
However, she showed signs of being able to dominate
games, as she struck out 57 batters in 86 innings.
"I knew what I was capable of doing and just waited for my
turn," added Lozano. "I came to Cerritos because it
has a reputation of being a very good program and I
knew that if I continued to work hard, that time
would come for me. I'm really happy I decided to
come to Cerritos because it was such a great
experience. I didn't get to go where I wanted to
after high school (Cal State Northridge), but I
wouldn't trade coming to Cerritos."
Lozano responded in her sophomore year by going 30-8 with a
2.46 ERA and 182 strikeouts in 233.1 innings. But
some of those innings didn't come easy, as she
battled through a nagging back injury in the
playoffs. In the first Super Regional Playoff game,
Lozano struck out nine batters and didn't allow a
walk, as they team defeated Palomar College, 5-4.
She struggled the next night against Mt. San Antonio
College, but rebounded later in the evening to pitch
her team to a 4-2 win to eliminate Palomar. The
season came to an end the next day against Mt. SAC.
"I had been getting recruited by Cumberland (along with
outfielders Natalie Garcia and Aina
I'aulualo) through most of the season and
they decided to come out to see me pitch at the
Super Regional," stated Lozano. "I knew Coach
(Heather) Stanfill was watching me pitch and was
really depressed because of my back injury. I wanted
to do so well and was afraid she might not be
interested if I didn't do well. She didn't know
about my back injury until after the first game, but
I guess she liked how I battled through it and
didn't let it keep me from doing what I had to do."
Lozano, who was a four-year letter-winner at Banning High,
went 29-3 her senior year for the Pilots and was
spotted by Murray and her father Bud Murray,
who is her top assistant coach, at game at Gardena
High. They both liked what Lozano had to offer and
informed her that Cerritos was interested in her
talents.
"I saw Kodee and Grandpa (Bud) talking to my parents during
the game and didn't know who they were or why they
were talking to them," said Lozano. "But they talked
to me after the game and invited me to come to the
campus for a tour. I really liked what I saw and
could see that they were compassionate about winning
and helping the players get better. I also had a
friend (Ashley Ventura) who was on
the team and she told me how much she enjoyed
playing for Cerritos. It was a great decision for
me."
Lozano, who will be moving away from home for the first time,
is excited about the new adventure. The biology
major, who aspires to be a pediatrician, will still
have family able to come see her play. With cousins
that live in Georgia, she will still have the
feeling of family around her, which makes her happy.
"I've always been dependent on my parents and now this will
be my first experience away from them," said Lozano.
"I'm excited to experience the dorm life, which not
everyone gets to do, and look forward to the
opportunity to become more independent. My parents
are helping me with the move and then it's up to me
to be on my own and do what I've always wanted to
do. This is a great opportunity for me, and
receiving the scholarship really helps make things a
little easier with everything that's going on. But
I'm excited for the opportunity."
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