ALL-STAR TRIO SPARKLES; COX, HERNANDEZ AND RAWSON LIFTED EAST TEAM.

Byline: Gerry Gittelson Staff Writer

Matching their softball skills against the best of the best, Jodie Cox, Melissa Rawson and Latisha Hernandez proved themselves in a big way. The local threesome helped the East - co-coached by Coy Ray of Quartz Hill High - to a 10-5 victory in the 13th annual Daily News All-Star Softball Game on Monday at Cal State Northridge.

In seven at-bats, Cox of Quartz Hill, Rawson of Highland and Hernandez of Paraclete combined for four hits and five runs batted in.

Cox, the returning Daily News Player of the Year, was 2 for 4 with three RBI. She stroked the game's first hit, a clean single to left off West starter Maureen LeCocq of Chaminade. On her next at-bat, Cox lined a two-run single off Jenny Pitillo of Canoga Park for the first runs of the game. An inning later, she came through with an RBI grounder off LeCocq, who re-entered.

Rawson cracked a run-scoring double off the right-center fence in the fifth, when the East scored six runs to break open the game.

Hernandez's RBI single in the fifth gave the East a 5-4 lead, which was never relinquished. Hernandez had walked and scored in her previous plate appearance.

Cox originally was scheduled to be the starting pitcher for the East. However, an elbow injury deprived her of the opportunity to showcase herself on the mound. Cox was 23-2 with a 0.62 earned run average and 222 strikeouts during the regular season.

``I'm disappointed (about not pitching) because that's what I've done all year,'' Cox said before the game. ``But I guess the doctors know best.''

Cox soon will undergo arthroscopic surgery to remove scar tissue from her left elbow, according to her father, Gary Cox. The elder Cox said the recovery should take about two months and that his daughter's freshman season at Cal State Fullerton won't be affected.

Ray's appearance as a coach for the East was his first in the series. He teamed with Quartz Hill co-coach Ben Meyer and Kennedy High's Barbara Rodrigue to guide the East to a 9-4 advantage in the series.

``I'll tell you what. The whole East team battled,'' Ray said. ``This was a great experience.''

Cox said she had fun but said the nine-inning game ran a bit long.

``I went 2 for 4 and we won, so obviously that's exciting,'' Cox said.

Rawson said she enjoyed playing third base and left field, which were new positions for her.

Fenced in: Cox and Rawson went homerless in the pregame home run derby, both failing to hit a ball over the wall in 10 swings. Lacey Cope of Thousand Oaks won the contest.

Feels like the first time: The game was a reunion of sorts for Cox and Rawson, even though they were Golden League rivals for two years in high school. They were teammates at Quartz Hill during their sophomore seasons before Rawson transferred to Highland. Rawson batted .333 with one home run and four RBI in 33 at-bats for the Rebels in 1997.

Meyer's making: Meyer handled the not-so-easy job of making sure all 19 players on the East shared equal playing time.

``Ben did most of the work in that department,'' Rodrigue said. ``He kept a chart of all the players, and he handled everything. He did a great job.''

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PHOTO (Color) Left to right, All-Stars Latisha Hernandez, Melissa Rawson and Jodie Cox combined for four hits in Monday's Daily News All-Star Softball Game at Cal State Northridge.

John McCoy/Daily News