Colleran Works Feverishly but Falls to Saugus

Hart High pitcher Mary Colleran never coughed, never sneezed, never put an ice bag to her forehead.

She never as much as sniffed.

Nobody would have guessed that she awoke Tuesday with a temperature of 103, hours before striking out 10 Saugus batters at Newhall Park.

Nobody was blaming Colleran either, after Saugus, ranked fourth in the region by The Times, beat the Indians, 2-0, in a game between two rival teams that were tied for first place in the Foothill League.

Saugus (17-4, 5-0 in league play) took sole possession of first place. No. 6 Hart (16-5, 4-1) dropped to second.

Colleran spent most of the day dozing in class. And she didn’t warm up before the game, saving her energy. Coach Al Weil said he couldn’t have expected a better performance.

“The only word to describe it was courageous,” he said.

But Colleran (14-5), who entered the game with an earned-run average of 0.89 and a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 10-1, walked two batters in the top of the first, including opposing pitcher Jamie Gillies with the bases loaded to force in the first run.

“I was just trying to pitch around them and not give them anything to hit,” Colleran said.

Colleran was victimized, however, by Nicole Giordano and Chris Gill, who accounted for Saugus’ five hits. Giordano scored both runs and was three for four, including a double. Gill was two for three, including a double. She drove home Giordano with a two-out single in the third.

Gillies (15-3) also allowed five hits, but she had a much easier time than Colleran, throwing only 67 pitches. Colleran threw 96.

Gillies also got help from Giordano’s fielding at shortstop and some poor Hart baserunning. With two out in the fourth, Melissa Harrison slid past third base on a steal attempt and was tagged out by Giordano. In the fifth, Kelli Nordhagen led off with her second single of the game. One pitch later, she was picked off.

Giordano robbed Courtney Sherlock of a hit in the third with a strong throw from the hole. Later that inning, she made a diving stop of a line drive by Danni Socha.

“I was definitely more into this game than normal,” Giordano said. “I [wanted] it so much more because it’s Hart.”