With a chance to send the game into extra innings, the Cerritos College baseball team left the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth inning in a 4-3 loss to Fullerton College at Kincaid Field on Friday. Not only was it the season opener for the Falcons (0-1), it also marked the first game for new head coach Nate Fernley. Cerritos will get another shot at the Hornets on Saturday with a noon game in Fullerton.

Trailing 4-2 heading into the bottom of the ninth inning, the Falcons received a one-out pinch-hit triple from freshman Isaiah Rios (St. John Bosco HS) off Fullerton's Mike DeHaro, who was in to close the game. With two outs, freshman catcher Alonso Reyes (Culver City HS) drew a walk, while sophomore designated hitter Mike Santos (Servite HS) was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Freshman first baseman Juan Garcia (Narbonne HS) drove in the third run of the game for Cerritos on a walk. DeHaro was then replaced by Ryan Franson, who struck out sophomore outfielder Anthony Godfrey (Long Beach Millikan HS) to end the game.

Freshman starting pitcher Myles Johnson (Katella HS) was able to work out of trouble several time to keep the team within striking distance. He allowed a single run in the top of the first inning, while he worked out jams where Fullerton had runners in scoring position in both the second and third innings. After recording the first two outs in the fifth inning, Johnson (0-1) allowed a run-scoring triple, while the Hornets picked up their second run of the inning on a wild pitch from sophomore relief pitcher Cade Sonoqui (Long Beach Millikan HS).

The Falcons, who collected hits in four of the first five innings of the game, finally cashed in on two baserunners in the bottom of the sixth inning. Garcia led off the sixth inning with a single up the middle and after freshman second baseman Dylan Immel (El Segundo HS) reached base on an infield hit, Cerritos had a pair of baserunners. They loaded the bases on a base hit by sophomore shortstop Anthony Bassett (Colegio Bautista de Managua (Nicaragua/Los Angeles Harbor College). That set the table for sophomore pinch-hitter Marco Lopez (Narbonne HS/Vanguard University), who laced a two-run double to get the team to within 3-2. However, the next eight batters were retired before the start of the ninth inning.

Fullerton scored what would turn out to be the game-winning run in the top of the ninth on a solo home run from Trevor Schmidt.

Reyes and Immel each had a pair of hits on the day for the Falcons.

Photos by Daryl Peterson