Cerritos College repeated as state community college women's soccer champion on Sunday with a 3-0 romp over Santiago Canyon, but Mt. San Antonio's bid for a fifth straight men's title was thwarted by Northern California's Hartnell, which claimed a 1-0 victory on a frigid day at Cosumnes River College in Sacramento.
Cerritos (24-0-1), from Norwalk, beat Santiago Canyon, from Orange, in the final for the second straight year, posting its 17th shutout this season and extending its unbeaten streak to 31 games. The Falcons have won four state titles.
"This championship was the culmination of everything we have worked toward since the summer," Cerritos coach Ruben Gonzalez said on his school's website. "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 Falcons dominated the women's match, outshooting SCC, 21-7, and had the advantage by the 10th minute, when Claudia Lopez was fouled by Jamie Smith and converted the resulting penalty kick.
Lopez, a Downey High School product selected championship MVP, doubled the lead in the 62nd minute, knocking a rebound into the net off Hawks defender Reanne Macon, and freshman Carolina Ornelas, from Artesia High in Lakewood, finished a breakaway five minutes later to make it 3-0.
