Norco is preparing for their first league matchup of the season on Monday. They will be playing in front of their home fans against the Centennial Huskies at 4:00 p.m. The two teams have allowed few runs on average (Norco 0.7, Centennial 3.6) so any runs scored will be well earned.
While Norco's win against Great Oak wasn't quite the blowout it was the last time the pair played, they still came out on top. The Cougars' pitcher stepped up to hand the Wolfpack a 1-0 shutout on Saturday. Those one runs were actually the fewest the Cougars have put up all season, but given the result they're probably not too concerned.
Norco's victory was truly a team effort as three different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Zion Martinez, who went 1-for-2 with one RBI.
Meanwhile, in Thursday's Canine Competition, Centennial didn't have enough. They fell just short of Ayala by a score of 5-3 on Thursday.
Christian De La O made the most of his time in the batter's box despite the final result and went 3-for-4 with one home run, two runs, and one triple. The team also got some help courtesy of Devin Bishop, who got on base in three of his four plate appearances with one stolen base.
Norco pushed their record up to 6-1 with the win, which was their third straight at home. Those home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 0.3 runs on average over those games. As for Centennial, their defeat dropped their record down to 5-3.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Monday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Norco has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.7 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Centennial struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 8.4 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Everything went Norco's way against Centennial when the teams last played back in May of 2025, as Norco made off with a 9-2 win. Do the Cougars have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Huskies turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
