Cougars Battle in Road Doubleheader at Cerritos

Taft College dropped a competitive road doubleheader at Cerritos, falling 6-5 in the opener and 7-4 in the nightcap at Kincaid Field in Norwalk, Calif., despite a pair of big offensive innings and several strong individual performances from the Cougars' lineup.

In Game 1 on March 19, Cerritos used a late push and shutdown relief to edge Taft, 6-5. The Falcons broke open a scoreless game in the bottom of the third with a four-run surge, highlighted by Jose Perez's grand slam to left that made it 4-0. Taft answered in the fourth with its first run, then mounted a four-run rally in the fifth to briefly seize control before Cerritos capitalized late and turned the game over to its bullpen.

The Cougars' fifth-inning outburst was the offensive highlight of the day. Aiden Otano doubled down the left-field line for a two-run double, and Taft continued to apply pressure with productive outs and timely hitting. Carson Rodart laid down a sacrifice bunt that brought in a run, and William Glover followed with an RBI single to cap the four-run frame and push Taft in front, 5-4. Taft finished with 10 hits, including two home runs, and drew four walks while leaving five runners on base in the opener.

Cerritos answered in the later innings behind Perez and its bullpen. Perez homered again in the seventh as part of the Falcons' comeback, and right-hander Jake Fowler closed the door with 4 2/3 scoreless innings of relief. Fowler scattered five hits, struck out four and did not allow an earned run to preserve the one-run margin. Taft starter Ryden Walker and reliever Fabian Cruz both saw action on the mound as the Cougars limited Cerritos to six earned runs on 10 hits, but Perez's six-RBI performance proved to be the difference.

In Game 2 on March 20, Taft again struck for a big inning but could not hold a midgame lead in a 7-4 setback. After Cerritos grabbed a 1-0 advantage in the first, the Cougars answered in the second with a three-run inning built on pressure and execution. A fielding error opened the door before Noah Duran ripped a run-scoring double, Rodart executed another sacrifice bunt RBI and Glover delivered an RBI single to put Taft up 3-1, with two of the runs going down as unearned.

Taft added insurance in the sixth to extend the lead to 4-1, but Cerritos responded immediately with a three-run bottom half to swing the momentum for good. The Falcons tied the game on CJ Berthon's bases-loaded walk, then moved in front on a two-run double from Wyatt Ormonde that made it 5-4. Cerritos tacked on single runs in the seventh and eighth while holding the Cougars scoreless over the final three innings to pull away. Taft finished with eight hits and a home run in the nightcap while committing just one error and stranding three.

The Cougars' offense featured multiple bright spots across the doubleheader. Otano went 2-for-3 with a double, two RBIs and a run scored in the opener, while Duran chipped in a run-scoring double and a run in Game 2. Rodart's pair of sacrifice bunt RBIs and Glover's two run-producing hits over the two games underscored Taft's ability to manufacture runs in key spots. On the mound, Taft arms limited Cerritos to a combined 19 hits over the two contests.

Taft will look to build on its multi-run innings and tighten up late-game execution as it moves deeper into the schedule, with the Cougars having shown the ability to create sustained offensive pressure on the road against a strong Cerritos lineup.