Hobgood, Norco overpower Brea Olinda

NORCO - Norco's Matt Hobgood was more than Brea Olinda could handle in the first round of the CIF-SS Division I baseball playoffs on Friday.

The 6-foot-4, 250-pound right-hander, who has signed with Cal State Fullerton, pitched a one-hitter and slugged two home runs to lead the top-seeded Cougars to a 5-1 victory over the visiting Wildcats.

Hobgood finished with four RBIs. He entered the game with a 9-0 record and 0.38 ERA.

Ben Arroyo had Brea's only hit.

Hobgood, considered one of the top high school prospects in the nation by Baseball America, retired the first 12 batters of the game. Arroyo ended the streak with a single to left field to start the fifth inning.

Norco will face Temecula Valley in a second-round game Tuesday. Temecula Valley defeated Esperanza, 9-5, on Thursday in the first round.

Arroyo immediately stole second base and advanced to third on a wild pitch. With one out and runners on the corners, Remington Miller hit a ground ball to the shortstop, but he outran the Cougars' attempt to turn a double play, allowing Arroyo to score.

“Everyone knows the hype of Hobgood. He’s a great pitcher,” Arroyo said. “We tried to just go out there, get our pitch, and hit it as hard as we can.”

Norco hitting jumped on Brea Olinda starting pitcher Grant Bishop in the first inning as Hobgood hit a three-run homer with no outs.

In the third inning, Hobgood and catcher Jake Romansky hit back-to-back solo home runs to extend Norco's lead to 5-0.

“I am a little disappointed at the platem," Norco coach Greg Parcell said. “We let a lot of opportunities slip by. If we don’t hit three home runs, it’s a one-run game, basically.”

Brea Olinda relievers Johnny Contreras and Travis McGee combined to pitch the last two innings. They gave up one hit and struck out three.

“Johnny didn’t give up a run. He battled through it,” he said. “We went right to McGee, and he’s been our No. 1 all year and just slammed the door in the sixth.”

Contact the writer: preps@ocregister.com