Watson Blockade Halts Saugus

Lauren Watson had a lot on her plate Thursday and she had no intention of sharing.

All day long, Saugus High baserunners tried to get past Valencia’s junior catcher. All day long, Watson guarded home plate as if it were a case of national security.

“This was definitely the busiest day I’ve had all year,” said Watson, who tagged out four runners on close plays to keep her team in the Foothill League game long enough for the Vikings to take a 4-2 victory in eight innings at Saugus.

Almost every crucial play in the spirited game involved Watson, who threw out two would-be base stealers, made two athletic plays to stab foul pop-ups and hit two singles, including a bad-hop bullet to shortstop to ignite a three-run rally in the eighth.

Watson beat a throw to the plate to score the go-ahead run in the final inning.

“She’s probably the best catcher I’ve seen all year,” Coach Ron Hilton of Saugus said of Watson, who entered the week batting .432. “She made all the plays when they needed them.”

Valencia needed every single one against a Centurion lineup that collected 12 hits against pitchers Michelle Smith and Tori Rocco (4-1).

Julie Watson and Jaclyn Holden each had three hits and Jennifer McLarty and Elizabeth Harkins each had two for Saugus, which stranded nine runners in addition to the six cut down on the basepaths.

“I don’t have a word to describe it,” Hilton said of the frustration on the bases. “Actually, I do, but I’m not going to use it.”

The Centurions (10-5, 2-1 in league play) fell into a second-place tie with Valencia (10-5, 2-1).

With five talented freshmen in the lineup, the Vikings have shown they can play with anybody and have defeated Crescenta Valley, Moorpark, Quartz Hill and Saugus, all ranked in The Times’ regional top 10 at various times this season.

They also have shown their youth, most recently committing five errors in a league-opening loss to Burbank last week.

There would be no such defensive letdown against Saugus, when Valencia played error-free and got pin-point throws to the plate from right-fielder Danyale Peterson, second baseman Meredith Garcia and reliever Rocco, all freshmen, and first baseman Michelle Malbon.

With 10 players from a team that tied for the league title last season, Saugus looked less sure in the field, allowing an unearned run in the second, then yielding Valencia’s third and fourth runs with two out in the eighth by letting Garcia’s infield pop-up fall untouched.

To Lauren Watson, it was a satisfying turnaround from a 1998 game in which the Vikings lost in the final inning when she flinched and bobbled a throw to the plate to allow a Saugus runner to score the winning run.

“Never again,” she vowed. “I figure now that if I get injured standing up to a runner, I’m doing my job. If I back up and don’t make the play, I’m letting my team down.”