The season started with triple-digit temperatures in Florida and concluded with the mercury in the low 30s in Sacramento, but the Cerritos College women's soccer team won their second straight CCCAA State Championship with a 3-0 win on Sunday. The Falcons (24-0-1) defeated Santiago Canyon College for the second year in a row with their victory at Cosumnes River College in Sacramento and have gone 30-0-1 in their last 31 games dating back to last season. Cerritos posted a 2-0 win over the Hawks last season and have now won four state titles in their school history, and more than likely, a second consecutive NSCAA Division III National Championship and third in the last six years. In their two games at the State Final Four, the Falcons outscored their opponents, 10-0, which included a 7-0 win over Foothill College in the semi-final game.

"This championship was the culmination of everything we have worked toward since the summer," said head coach Ruben Gonzalez, who has coached the Falcons to each of their championships. "Our goal the entire season was to maintain our focus and never let up because we knew that we were a target for teams. Santiago Canyon is a good team, but we felt that if we pressured them the way I knew we could, we should be able to score enough to win the game."

The weather conditions in the low 30s and a cold breeze affecting both teams, Cerritos still attacked Santiago Canyon from the outset and maintained possession of the ball for almost the entire game. Through the first several minutes, the Falcons were unable to get a shot on goal, but finally saw their hard work pay off when sophomore Claudia Lopez (Downey HS) was tackled in the box by Jamie Smith, resulting in a penalty kick.

Lopez, who was named the game's Most Valuable Player, drilled home the penalty kick past Hawks goalkeeper Crystal Allen for a 1-0 Falcon lead.

"I knew that stepping up for the PK, I needed to come through for my team because they work so hard the entire game," said Lopez. "This is probably the best feeling ever. I thought winning it all last year was the best, but being able to do it two years in a row is something I'll never forget."

The pressure continued, as the Falcons used their swarming defense to hold off Santiago Canyon any time they threatened to make an offensive attack. Led by returning All-American Alyssa Cabral (Bishop Amat HS), along with freshmen Malia Tilton (El Modena HS) and Clara Gomez (El Modena HS), the Falcons limited the Hawks to only seven shots, with sophomore goalkeeper Alexis Carrillo (Bishop Amat HS) posting six saves. 

As a team, the Falcons played the entire field, with sophomore Jasmine Cornejo (Artesia HS) setting up an offensive attack and then turning around to play defense on the other end of the field. She was an example of how the entire team played, with eight different players getting off at least one shot on goal. That helped set the table for their offensive transition, with Cerritos scoring twice in a five-minute span in the second half to put the game out of reach.

First, it was Lopez who made it 2-0 when she was credited with a goal after her rebound shot was deflected into the goal by Santiago Canyon's Reanne Macon in the 62nd minute. Then, freshman Carolina Ornelas (Artesia HS) finished off the scoring, as she worked her way around three Hawks players and found herself in front of Allen, and chipped the ball into the net.

The shutout for Carrillo was the second in the two state tournament games and culminates a return to the field after missing last year's national title run with an injury.

"I was really happy that the team won last year and I really wanted to be a part of another chance to win," said Carrillo. "As a team, we took our (overtime) win against Miramar as motivation that teams are out to beat us. We worked really hard all season and I'm really happy and proud of our accomplishments. I just wanted to make sure that when I needed to make a save for the team, I was up to the challenge. We worked hard as a team all season and now we're the champions."