Skipworth sets state record

Kyle Skipworth of Riverside Patriot High set the state high school record for consecutive base hits Monday when he lined a single to right field in the bottom of the first inning against host Anaheim Canyon in a pool-play game of the OCNissan.com Select Invitational.

The single was the 17th hit in a row for Skipworth, a 6-foot-4 left-handed-hitting catcher who signed with Arizona State.

He picked up his 18th hit in a row in the second inning, when he grounded a single into right field. Skipworth was caught looking at a third strike in the fourth inning, ending his streak of reaching base in 25 consecutive at-bats, also a state record.

The previous state mark for consecutive hits was 16, set by Shane Mack of Cerritos Gahr in 1981, according to CalHiSports.com. The national record is 22, set by Pat Simmons of Bradley (Ill.) Bradley-Bourbonnais in 1982. Skipworth is second on that list, with three tied at 17.

While there apparently is no national record for reaching base in consecutive at-bats, the state record had been 17, set by Steve Dailey of Ventura in 1988 and Luke Quaccia of Oakdale in 1993.

A senior who turned 18 on March 1, Skipworth achieved his record-breaking hit against left-hander Gabe Garcia, who started last season’s Southern Section Division I final at Dodger Stadium.

He touched the Canyon pitcher again for his second hit, but Garcia finally got him out with the fourth-inning strikeout.

Skipworth grounded to second in his last at-bat of Patriot’s 11-5 loss to Canyon (7-6). The Warriors are 15-1.

He is batting .654 (34 for 52) with seven home runs and 27 runs batted in.

After his sophomore season, Skipworth drove in a team-high 16 runs to help the U.S. youth national team win the gold medal at the Pan American Championships in Venezuela.

During his junior season, he hit .422 with eight home runs and 45 RBIs.

Skipworth’s stock as a potential professional player improved significantly over last summer, when he was selected to the AFLAC All-American game, a showcase of some of the nation’s top seniors-to-be, and he drove in three of his team’s four runs.

He is listed by various scouting services as a possible top-five pick in June’s amateur draft.

Times staff writer Eric Sondheimer and Eric Maddy contributed to this report.

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dan.arritt@latimes.com