Despite a sudden change, Cal Poly pitcher Marc Nobriga hasn't missed a beat.

The 2004 Saint Louis School graduate is off to a modest start with the Mustangs of the Big West Conference. In his first season since transferring from Hartnell College (Salinas, Calif.), the right-hander is 2-1 with a 2.82 earned run average in five appearances, three as the team's Friday starter. He gave up a run on four hits and two walks with four strikeouts in six innings in a 10-1 win Friday against Washington.

The Mustangs, picked to finish fifth in the eight-team Big West, swept the three-game series to improve to 8-6.

While at Hartnell in 2005 and 2006, Nobriga caught the attention of Cal Poly pitching coach Jerry Weinstein. Nobriga also drew offers from Texas Tech, Cal State Fullerton and Long Beach State, to name a few.

"I liked the program and the location, and the pitching coach is good," Nobriga said in a telephone interview.

So good that several weeks after the Christmas break, the pitching coach that Nobriga liked left Cal Poly to become manager of the Modesto Nuts, the High-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies. Nobriga said he couldn't blame him, plus he likes the new guy. And Nobriga apparently hasn't lost the luster he had in junior college.

Scouts are still watching his games as they did while he was at Hartnell, where he was a 47th-round selection of the Texas Rangers strictly as a draft-and-follow. Although he wasn't signed before the draft the following year and wasn't drafted after his second year at Hartnell, he still has piqued the scouts' interests.

"Scouts are pretty much at every one of our games," he said, adding the Rangers have since lost interest. "A lot of other teams are looking at me now."

Nobriga said he likes his role as the No. 1 starter in the rotation.

"It's all right," he said. "It should be fun. I like being put in that role."

He isn't the only player from Hawai'i on the Cal Poly team. Sophomore relief pitcher Derrick Saito (Baldwin '05), a left-hander, has allowed only one run, which was unearned, in eight innings. He has 15 strikeouts to one walk. He struck out 10 in five no-hit innings of relief against Southern California Jan. 30.

Cal Poly is in San Luis Obispo, Calif. The school used to be known as Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, but has since dropped the city name.

Reach Stacy Kaneshiro at skaneshiro@honoluluadvertiser.com.