The Cerritos College women’s basketball team converted four of six free throws in the final minutes of their non-conference game at Santa Ana College on Wednesday night to record a 68-63 victory. The win by the Falcons improved their season mark to 9-6, while the Dons dropped their third in a row and are now 9-5 on the year. The win was also a big one for Cerritos, as the Dons defeated talented Ventura College earlier in the season in a tournament championship game.

    Leading by as many as 16 points in the second half (54-38), the Falcons saw the Dons score 10 straight points to get to within 54-48, before Jamie Glover drained a three-pointer for Santa Ana to get the game as close as 62-59. But the free throws by freshman Mercedes Taylor (Gahr HS) and sophomore Maltresa Neely (Downey HS) secured the victory.

    Taylor led the Falcons with 16 points and also pulled down 10 rebounds, while Neely added 12 points and 12 rebounds. Joining in the scoring was sophomore Genesis Lewis (Paramount HS), who had 13 points on 6-of-11 shooting, to go along with eight rebounds, with sophomore Tiffany Wilson (Mayfair HS) contributing 10 points. Freshman Rachel Butler (Calvary Chapel HS) came off the bench to add eight points for Cerritos. Heather Couzens led all scorers with 23 points and 14 rebounds, while Glover was the only other Santa Ana player in double figures, as she ended up with 16 points.