Twenty-four-hour US preschool channel Sprout, which just recorded its highest-rated quarter in network history, is welcoming Saved by the Bell alum and Extra host Mario Lopez to the voice cast of its original preschool series The Chica Show.

The new live-action/animated series, which is set to debut in November 2012 and features Chica the Chicken from Sprout’s hit The Sunny Side Up Show, has Lopez voicing Chica’s friend Stitches, a lovable ragdoll boy.

The Chica Show, distributed by JBMW Media, follows the adventures Chica and her friends as they discover and play with whimsical and funny costumes at local shop, the Costume Coop.

Lopez will also make a guest appearance on The Sunny Side Up Show on Friday, June 29 at 9:00 a.m. ET.

The latest news comes as Sprout recorded a 56% increase in ratings in quarterly audience gains among kids ages two to 11, according to Nielsen.

Double-digit percentage gains were also reached among kids ages two to five (+68%), two to 11 (+72%) and women ages 18 to 49 (+22%), and the network is now available to an additional 4.8 million homes (a 10% distribution gain), making it the fastest-growing kidsnet on US airwaves.