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Noah Fluman knew he was pitching against Kyle Molnar.

Sort of.

“There was nothing I could do to change how he did,” Fluman said. “I just focused on doing the best I could.”

Fluman’s best was good enough. He pitched a complete game Wednesday to lead El Toro to a 5-2 win over Aliso Niguel in a South Coast League game at El Toro.

The sophomore left-hander was not overpowering – he struck out only two – but he was efficient. He gave up a first-inning home run and one run on three hits in the seventh inning. In between he allowed only three base runners on two hits and one hit batsman.

“He’s got a bright future,” El Toro coach Mike Gonzales said. “He throws a lot of strikes, he’s got a good changeup and he’s able to move the ball in and out.”

Fluman is 3-2 with a 1.34 ERA.

It was a crucial win for the Chargers. They improved to 2-3 in the South Coast League. Three of the league’s five teams are in the Orange County top 10.

“Being 1-4 would be an uphill climb in this league,” Gonzales said. “The league champion could wind up with five losses.”

El Toro, No. 10 in the county, is 14-9 overall. No. 4 Aliso Niguel is 13-8 overall and 3-2 in league. The Wolverines, whose other league loss was to El Toro last month, is tied for second place with Dana Hills; Capistrano Valley (3-1) is in first place.

The top three finishers in the five-team South Coast League receive guaranteed playoff berths. El Toro is fourth at 2-3.

Molnar, who signed with UCLA and is an MLB draft prospect, took the loss. He is 5-2.

Aliso’s Eric Wagaman homered in the first inning to give the Wolverines a 1-0 lead. El Toro tied it in the second when Gavin Garcia scored on Dillon Sherman’s infield single.

The Chargers took a 3-1 lead in the fifith inning. Kyle Oyama walked, went to second base on Tyler Lasch’s sacrifice bunt and scored on Andy Krear’s single. Kenny Oyama, pinch-running for Krear, scored on Jake Smith’s ground out to the pitcher.

El Toro scored twice in the sixth. Sean Skelly was hit by a pitch, went to second on Sherman’s sacrifice bunt and scored on Oyama’s single up the middle. Kyle Oyama took second on the throw to the plate that did not get Skelly and scored on Lasch’s single to make it 5-1.

Aliso got a run in the seventh when Remy Wassenbach scored on Demitri Colacchio’s sacrifice fly. The Wolverines left runners on first and second when the inning and game ended.

El Toro plays at Aliso Niguel today.

Also in the South Coast League:

No. 3 Dana Hills 3, Tesoro 2: Marrick Crouse pitched a complete game for the visiting Dolphins (18-3, 3-2).

In the Empire League:

Cypress 3, Pacifica 1: Dominic Fletcher homered and drove in all of the runs for the visiting Centurions (10-8, 1-0).

In the Golden West League:

Orange 8, Ocean View 6: Justin Marquez homered and drove in two runs as the visiting Panthers (11-5-1, 5-1) moved into a first-place tie with Ocean View.

In the Orange League:

Savanna 2, Magnolia 1: Patrick Showalter pitched his fourth consecutive complete game for the host Rebels (10-9, 4-2).

In the Sunset League:

No. 5 Huntington Beach 9, No. 4 Edison 5: Logan Pouelsen doubled, tripled and drove in four runs for the host Oilers (11-7, 3-1).

Newport Harbor 3, Los Alamitos 2: Rigsby Duncan had two RBIs and Liam Ogburn pitched a complete game as the host Sailors (11-8, 1-4) got their first league win.

In the Trinity League:

Mater Dei 6, No. 1 JSerra 4: Rece Goodman allowed two hits in 5 1/3 innings, and Blake Hunt had two hits as the Monarchs handed the Lions a loss at JSerra.

All six teams in the Trinity League are 1-1 in league play.

In nonleague:

No. 9 El Dorado 6, Foothill 2: Nick Sprengel pitched a complete game and Rob Diaz and Cade Ryerson drove in two runs apiece for the host Golden Hawks (13-6) who snapped the Knights’ 10-game winning streak.

Contact the writer: sfryer@ocregister.com