The Roadrunners lost to Cerritos College Tuesday night in the first round of the Southern California Regional Playoffs 54-47. This was the third meeting between these two squads this season after splitting the first two games.

Miscues and missed opportunities hurt the Roadrunners all night long, only scoring 15 points in the first half alone. 

Defense was the name of the game as both teams combined for only 15 points in the first quarter. Cerritos ran away with the lead in the second quarter, putting up 16 to end the half. 

The third quarter saw Cerritos extend their ten point lead to a 14 point gap. Things turned around in the fourth quarter after Rio Hondo started to rally late in the final minutes. 

A 20-point deficit slowly started to decrease and the momentum started to shift to the Roadrunners’ favor. Clutch three-pointers and much needed rebounds by Jennyfer Morales and Rosalie Avalos kept the game close.

The great effort was not enough for Rio Hondo and Cerritos came out on the road with a victory. Errors and miscues hurt Rio Hondo big time which set the tone for the rest of the night.

The Roadrunners had trouble with ball security by allowing 22 turnovers in the first half.

Head Coach Rene Herra gave his thoughts postgame saying, “I think we played probably one of the worst games we’ve played all season,” Herra said. “ We just did a poor job taking care of the ball.”

On the other side of the court, Cerritos College will travel to Irvine on Thursday to take on the #2 seed Irvine Valley College. 

Looking Forward

As for the Roadrunners, they will end their season with a final record of 11-16 and a first round loss in the postseason.

“Overall, I’m just happy that we actually completed a season and making the playoffs is a big plus for this team,” Herra said. “We have a lot of freshmen coming back next season and there are high expectations for these girls next year.”  

A total of nine freshmen are expected to come back for the 2022-2023 basketball season. Coach Herra and his team are ready to get back to work this November and hope for a better outcome next season.