PREP SOFTBALL ROUNDUP : Capistrano Valley’s Hugelshofer Shuts Down Loara

Daniela Hugelshofer quit playing softball year-round after her junior year because she felt burned out.

But Thursday afternoon, it was Loara that got burned by Hugelshofer’s performance.

The Capistrano Valley senior needed only 73 pitches to dispatch Loara, 1-0, in a nonleague game that gave the Cougars (6-6) their fifth consecutive victory and the confidence that they can compete with the county’s best teams.

The loss was Loara’s second in a row. The Saxons (11-3) on Tuesday defeated Laguna Hills--ranked No. 8 in Orange County--but lost, 2-1, to Long Beach Millikan on Wednesday before playing host to Capistrano Valley.

Hugelshofer (5-3) gave up three hits and struck out a season-high seven batters, including two in the seventh inning. Her previous high was three strikeouts. She lowered her earned-run average to 0.12.

“She’s just now starting to come back into form,” Capistrano Valley Coach Ron Willms said. “Last year she had (139) strikeouts, but she has been off for a year. She’s getting better every game.”

Hugelshofer quit participating in club softball after her junior year because it had taken an emotional toll. When this season started again, so did she.

“Now it’s fun,” she said. “There’s not as much pressure because I know I’m not going to be playing in college.”

Instead, she will concentrate on her child psychology major at Claremont-McKenna College.

Jodi Morris scored the game’s only run in the fifth inning on a wild pitch. She reached first base on an error, stole second and third, then beat the tag of catcher Jami Watson with a headfirst slide.

Hugelshofer’s performance overshadowed that of Loara sophomore Michelle Harrison (1-1), who retired Capistrano Valley’s first 12 batters and gave up only two hits.