SOUTHERN SECTION BASEBALL PLAYOFFS : 3-A : Brea Is Blanked by North

Steve Hiskey thought his luck had finally changed. After five struggling seasons, he had finally helped get Brea-Olinda’s Wildcats into the playoffs. After construction forced them to play on three different fields in three seasons, the Wildcats finally had a park they could temporarily call home. The days of having pitchers busing to Fullerton College and hitters practicing in third baseman Robbie Grubbs’ backyard because he had a batting cage seemed mercifully over.

With 12 seniors on the team and Shon Riley starting on the mound, Hiskey finally had both the experience and the pitcher he thought could beat visiting John W. North.

But when Bobby Kopenhaver, North’s stocky left fielder, came to bat in the fourth Tuesday, Hiskey discovered the new field’s fences weren’t tall enough and Riley’s control wasn’t good enough. Kopenhaver hit a home run over the left-field fence, scoring the first of six runs in that inning as North shut out Brea-Olinda, 7-0, in the second round of the 3-A Southern Section baseball playoffs.

“That’s the first time (Riley has) been hit that hard all year,” Hiskley said. Riley (4-3) lasted only 3 innings. “He was the kind of guy who was going to give them problems.”

Said Rich Stalder, North coach: “Things just happened to go our way that inning. Except for that inning it’s a different ballgame. We just got hot.”

Hiskey was unable to use his best pitcher, Jim Murray, because he was still sore from having thrown 135 pitches Friday in Brea-Olinda’s 5-2 victory over Anaheim.

Riley (4-3) had allowed only two singles in the first three innings. After Kopenhaver’s home run, Riley came back to strike out Ruben Ayala. But he gave up a single to Chris Comeaux and hit Philip Hekman. Bill O’Rourke then doubled to drive in Comeaux.

Riley’s situation was still not bleak. The Wildcats were down only, 2-0, and when David Ayala was called out for interfering with the fielding of first baseman Ed Vargas, Riley was only one out from ending the inning.

Then the roof fell in. With two out, and two strikes against him, Steve Nelson hit a three-run home run over the left-field fence.

Riley was relieved by Gary Chiotti, who gave up the inning’s final run when Troy Francis, who had walked, scored on Kopenhaver’s single.

Brea pitchers faced 11 batters in the fourth, giving up six runs and five hits.

North scored its final run when Francis doubled in Nelson, who had singled.

Scott Schanz, the winning pitcher, struck out six and gave up only two hits before being relieved by David Ayala in the seventh. North (24-5) faces Buena Friday at a site to be chosen by a coin toss. Brea-Olinda ends the season 12-12.

“I’ve been doing this 18 years,” said Hiskey. “And I still haven’t figured this game out.”