Andrew Robles’s goal in the 50th minute secured Cerritos’ spot in the second round of the playoffs, as Cerritos topped Palomar College, 2-1, on Nov. 21.
Forward Ruben Gonzalez scored Cerritos’ first goal in the 27th minute and assisted on the game-winner from Robles
The win means the defending state champions will now host LA Harbor on Tuesday at 2 pm.
Cerritos went ahead midway through the first half when Salvador Melendrez collected a long pass from Paul Montalvo and played it across the goal for Gonzalez to slot home.
Melendrez also played a part in the Comets’ only goal. Erik Torres’ strike took a deflection off of Melendrez’s head before finding its way past goalkeeper Jhovany Hernandez to make the score 1-1 at halftime.
The Falcons responded early in the second half when Gonzalez teed up the ball for Robles, who sent a scorcher into the top right corner from 25 yards out.
Although they are ranked No. 3 in the playoffs, the game was by no means a walk in the park for the Falcons.
“This was not one of our better performances, but in the end it was a gritty, hard-fought game that we won, said head coach Benny Artiaga.
“Each of the last three years, it’s always been a one-goal game in the first round,” he added.
After a lackluster initial 15 minutes, the grit and toughness was shown most in the second half, as the Falcons stepped up the intensity on defense and were able to create a number of chances on offense.
“At first we were kind of panicking, but we settled down after that. The defense had a talk, and we knew that if we could stop them from scoring in the second half, then our offense would win the game for us,” explained defender Timmy Seo.
Robles and company did just that, outshooting the Comets 20-3 in the second half.
Robles, a member of the state champion team a year ago, agreed that the second half is what made the difference.
“The second half is always our half. No one can compete with us in the second half,” he claimed.
Although he feels the team played well, Robles knows that it must make the most out of the opportunities created on offense.
“We need to do a better job finishing. In the playoffs, you have to be able to finish. Every game gets harder, and you have to be able to finish off opponents, he said.
“If we play Cerritos soccer no one can beat us. We’re the defending state champs, so the title has to go through us,” he added.
Coach Artiaga agrees that the team must take advantage of its offensive capabilities to retain the state title.
“We need to regain that killer instinct. We have the ability to beat any team six or seven to nothing, but the longer we keep teams (our opponents) in the game, the longer they think they can win,” he commented.
The Falcons will have a chance to recapture their killer instinct on Tuesday against LA Harbor. Cerritos beat the Seahawks both times the teams faced off earlier in the season.
| Game Stats | Cerritos | Palomar |
| Shots (on target) | 27 (14) | 6 (3) |
| Corners | 8 | 4 |
| Fouls | 16 | 6 |
| Offsides | 2 | 3 |
| Saves | 2 | 12 |
| Yellow Cards | 3 | 2 |
| Red Cards | 0 | 1 |
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