The Cerritos College athletic program finished the 2016-17 season with an overall ranking of No. 7 in California.
Athletics Dean Dan Smith said in a Long Beach Press Telegram article that “It was a phenomenal year” with a national championship, three state championships and six conference championships, with the women’s programs leading the way with two state titles.
Juanita Webster led the women’s track and field team to its third consecutive state title. Webster won four individual state championships and led the nation with 5,471 points in the heptathlon.
The perennially top-ranked women’s soccer team with its fifth consecutive state title and second consecutive national title, winning the NSCAA Division III non-scholarship national title.
Falcon softball finished 28-15 and powered its way to the super regionals.
Not only did the win advance the team into the next round, it was also the 500th win for head coach Kodee Murray who now holds a 500-196-3 record. She is just two wins away from tying the college’s all-time leader, Nancy Kelly, who went 502-320-1 in hehr 22 seasons as the head coach.
Standout sophomore Kylee Brown received the Nancy Kelly Scholarship and sophomore Ashley Melendez was maned recipient of the Bob Arthur Athletic Scholarship.
Both women are transferring to four year schools to continue their softball careers.
Coach Murray predicted “This is a team that will go on and finish college and have something to give back to the community.”
Men’s athletics also finished the season on a high note with Track and Field placing 16th at the CCCAA Championships and for the second year in a row finishing 3rd place at the So Cal Championships. Sophomore Zach Munoz came in second place in the decathlon.
Falcon football had 19 players named All-Northern Division. Of those that were selected, sophomore linebacker Alex Bush was named the Defensive Player of the Year, while sophomore running back Kishawn Holmes was a unanimous 1st Team choice.
Freshman cornerback Darian Cornay will play at Arizona State University. Cornay joins linebacker Alex Bush (Texas Christian University), strong safety Elijah Walker (Kansas State University) and cornerback Brandon Ezell (San Jose State University) as Falcons who transferred to Division I schools.
Also signing with four-year schools was quarterback Nick Mitchell who signed with NAIA Southern Oregon University, wide receiver Landry Jones, who will play Division II at Central Washington University and offensive lineman Art Gomez, who will play at Division II East Central (OK) University.
The men’s basketball team finished a winning season 21-7 with Christian Perez, Tyler Payne, Carlos Salvador, Brian Nebo and Anthony Lefeau receiving scholarships to four-year schools.
Former Falcon, National Basketball Association (NBA) player and coach Tom Tolbert was inducted into the California Community College Men’s Basketball Coaches’ Hall of Fame.
Both men’s and women’s tennis teams had stand-out seasons finishing the year as Couth Coast Conference Champions.
Reigning Coach of the Year Alvin Kim led his team to a 27-2 record and the women to a 10-6 record.
The men’s double team of Sasha Krasnov and Nikita Katsnelson finished second in the state. Sasha Krasnov won State Player of the Year honors and plans to attend UC Irvine in the fall.
The Wrestling team won the wrestling duals state championship, with an 18-1 record, overtaking Fresno City to win the State Title match 23-16.
Both men’s and women’s water polo teams ended their seasons in the win column and moved on to compete in the playoffs.
Dean Smith attributed the success of the athletic program to the “committed dedicated coaches” at Cerritos College.
Despite all of the team wins and championships, Smith believes the biggest success of the program is the more than 100 Falcon student-athletes transferring to four-year universities to continue their athletic and academic careers.
