NEWPORT BEACH – J.T. Schwartz’s grand slam broke open a close game Friday and led Corona del Mar to an 8-2 win over Northwood in a Pacific Coast League baseball game.

Corona del Mar’s home win makes the Sea Kings 2-1 in league play, tying them for second place with Northwood and leaving them a game behind Beckman (3-0).

It was the first loss of the season for the Timberwolves, who are 9-1 overall. Corona del Mar is 4-4 overall.

Schwartz’s shot to center field highlighted a five-run fourth inning for the Sea Kings, who sent 11 batters to the plate in the inning. Schwartz, a left-handed hitting shortstop who signed with UCLA and was last season’s Pacific Coast League player of the year, also had a single and scored the game’s first run as Corona del Mar took a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning.

Chazz Martinez, a senior left-handed pitcher who signed with UC Santa Barbara, pitched five shutout innings for his first victory of 2018.

Reece Berger’s two-run single in the first drove in Schwartz and Martinez for the 2-0 lead. Alex Rosen had an RBI single in the fourth to make it 3-0. One out later, Schwartz launched a high fly to dead center field that cleared the fence by a few feet.

It was Schwartz’s first high school grand slam, and his first since he was …

“Maybe when I was 12 years old,” said Schwartz, who this season has three homers and 13 RBIs. “That’s the last one I can remember.”

Corona del Mar added a run in the fifth inning when Nick Rottler singled and eventually scored on a double play.

Northwood got its runs in the sixth on a two-run homer by Julian Tristan.

The Sea Kings turned four double plays.

Corona del Mar’s next game is a league home game Tuesday against Irvine. Northwood’s next game is Tuesday, at home against Beckman.

Corona del Mar has lost to some good teams, including Corona, which is No. 7 in the CIF-Southern Section Division 1 top 10; Gahr of Cerritos, which on Monday beat El Toro, No. 1 in the OC Varsity top 25; and Beckman, which is No. 8 in the OC Varsity rankings.