The Falcons (17-5) ended the season strong by handedly beating Ventura College (5-5) on Tuesday, April 1 with a final score of 7-2. This marks the first time, for the Cerritos College men’s tennis team, that they’ve marked a victory over Ventura College.

Coach Kim was content with the trailblazing victory against the highly reputable Pirates, as well as finishing the season tenaciously.

“Ventura is a repeat state champion in the past, this is the first time that we’ve ever beaten them and so it’s a really big deal for me today. Not only finishing the season with a win but with a win against Ventura, it’s a good feeling,” said Kim.

The Falcons are currently the third seed in the South Conference, while posting a 6-0 conference record heading into the playoffs.

The Cerritos College men’s tennis team hosts the South Coast Conference Tournament on Thursday, April 10 and extends to Saturday, April 12.

Sophomore Nathan Eshmade sees the home-field advantage as an opportunity for the Falcons to capitalize on their success from the regular season.

“Definitely, I mean home-court advantage is a huge thing you see in every sport, you get the home crowd out, you get plenty of support. Playoffs being at home is a huge advantage for us, we’re looking forward to it,” said Eshmade.

Coach Kim expects to play San Diego Mesa (12-9) in the first round of the South Coast Conference Tournament.

The Falcons narrowly beat the defending Pacific Coast Athletic Conference champions on Mar. 14 with a final score of 5-4 this season.

Coach Kim is also certain that they will ultimately have the same result come playoff time.

“We should be solidified as the number three in the South (conference), so next Tuesday we’ll play our next match here, probably against San Diego Mesa. We’ve beaten (San Diego) Mesa before but we’ll do it again,” said Kim.

The Cerritos men’s tennis team hosts the South Coast Conference Tournament on April 10 through April 12.