CLU NOTEBOOK: REGALS GET IT IN GEAR : CLU PROFFITTING AFTER A SLOW START.

Byline: Patrick Hipes Daily News Staff Writer

In the beginning, Cal Lutheran pitcher Kathy Proffitt said it looked like it was going to be a long, long season.

The Regals softball team had gone to the playoffs in both Proffitt's freshman and sophomore years. But in 1998, the loss of key personnel and early-season injuries conspired with a rugged schedule to spot CLU a 1-7 start.

``It was tough in the beginning,'' said Proffitt, a junior from Wasco. ``We were struggling, and playing the toughest teams we'd played since I've been

here.''

But all of a sudden, the Regals (16-16, 7-1) have recovered, winning eight of their past 11 to lead the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference entering today's doubleheader at Occidental.

``(In coach Kecia Davis' eyes,) we were as good as last year,'' said Proffitt, who was part of a team that finished 26-12-1 in 1997. ``And now we're finally playing together.''

And winning. Proffitt, who did the brunt of the pitching when No. 2 starter Melissa Eichenberger missed two weeks with a pulled muscle, is pitching better than at any point in her career. She has improved to 10-9 overall with a 12-7 victory over Claremont-Mudd-Scripps on April 8.

Proffitt's ERA is falling daily, currently at 2.33 in 24 appearances.

``There were a couple games early when she pitched her heart out and we would still lose,'' Davis said. ``She's only gotten better from it.''

A solidified lineup - Davis said she didn't have the same lineup in the Regals first 12 games - and a boost in confidence have helped CLU. Wendy Jackson, Donna Scott and Sara Carlson are each hitting over .300, and the team fielding percentage is .936.

``The first part of the season, we were trying everything,'' Davis said. ``It finally came down to everybody knowing they were good. They just had to do it.''

Davis, Part II: It would be a good time for Davis to continue her three-year playoff streak, considering she plans to step down at the end of the season.

``I still love the program and where it's going,'' said Davis, who, at 130-64-1 in five seasons, the winningest coach in the CLU history. ``I'll still be around to take care of the girls and go to the games. I just won't be on the field every day.''

Davis said her family - a husband and two kids - and the growing sports medicine program that she runs at the university were higher priorities than her coaching duties.

``It's time to move on,'' she said. ``I'd come home at night after practice and tell my husband I'd rather be with them. It's time to spend more time with them.''

A replacement has not been found, but Davis has been ``pulling strings'' for four-year assistant Jason Wilson.

``He's been with me,'' Davis said. ``I put a lot of heart and soul into this program, and I'd like to have a say on who would take over.''

It's in the blood: Regals freshman shortstop Stephanie Cain (Righetti High) is the cousin of Chicago White Sox third baseman Robin Ventura. Cain has just eight errors on the season, batting .259 with 10 RBI.

For the record, Ventura is hitting .306 for the Sox.

Baseball bids: CLU athletic director Bruce Bryde has submitted a bid for the school to host an NCAA baseball regional, spokesman John Czimbal said.

The Kingsmen (18-5, 14-1), ranked No. 7 in NCAA Division III, are alone atop the SCIAC standings and virtually assured of a postseason berth into the four-team regional. Last season, CLU hosted Chapman University in the old, two-team format.

If selected, the games would be played at Moorpark College.

It had to happen: The CLU golf team lost its first dual meet of the season April 8, falling 320-314 to Claremont six days after setting a school record for the lowest team score (288).

The Kingsmen (6-1) are tied with the Stags for first place in the SCIAC heading into the SCIAC Championships on April 20 at Brookside CC in Pasadena.

Track set for SCIAC: Kyle Donovan and Amanda Daily will be looking for conference discus titles at the SCIAC track championships this weekend.

Donovan, who threw the discus 157-11 to earn an NCAA provisional mark, is almost assured of a national championship berth. Through March 31, only one other thrower in the nation had a provisional mark. He helped the men to a 4-3 SCIAC record this season, the first time the program finished over .500 since it joined the conference in 1992.

Daily, a sophomore, threw 120-4 at Point Loma on March 21. She is 3 feet, 8 inches shy of the school record (124-0), set in 1989 by Vicky Gurney.

The prelims are Saturday and finals Monday at Redlands. The meet was originally scheduled for Thursday-Saturday, but Redlands students return late from spring break and needed the extra day for training.

Still going . . .: The Kingsmen tennis team might be struggling (2-15, 2-4) but No. 1 singles player Jenia Karimov is most certainly not.

Karimov, the Ukrane native who won the NCAA doubles title last season, is 19-0 in singles matches in 1998 and is poised for a berth in the NCAA Championships May 15-20 in Williamstown, Mass.

The women's tennis team (2-9, 1-6) is seeded seventh in Friday's SCIAC Championships at La Verne and will meet No. 2 seed Pomona-Pitzer in a round-robin matchup.

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