Baseball Game Preview: Norco Cougars vs. King Wolves

For the second straight game, Norco will face off against King. The Cougars will head out to take on the Wolves at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday. Norco's pitching crew has only allowed 2.7 runs per game this season, so King's hitters will have their work cut out for them.

Norco is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. They blew past King 19-4 on Tuesday. The victory continues a trend for the Cougars in their matchups with the Wolves: they've now won five in a row.

Jordan Ayala was a major factor no matter where he played. He tossed four innings while giving up just one earned run off four hits. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in four consecutive appearances. He was also solid in the batter's box, scoring two runs while going 3-for-4.

Marcus Blanton

Stolen Base (Career)

04/15/25 vs King	3
04/08/25 vs Centennial	1
04/04/25 vs Great Oak	1
04/03/25 vs Bonita	1
04/02/25 vs Temecula Valley	1

In other batting news, Marcus Blanton was a standout: he scored two runs and stole three bases while going 3-for-3. Those three stolen bases gave him a new career-high. Ryan Farias was another key player, scoring four runs while going 4-for-5.

Norco always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .568. That's the best OBP they've posted all season.

Norco pushed their record up to 13-8 with the win, which was their sixth straight at home. The home victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 8.8 runs over those games. As for King, they have been struggling recently as they've lost eight of their last nine matchups. That's put a noticeable dent in their 7-10 record this season.