COUGARS WIND UP A TOUGH SEASON.

Byline: Bryan Winchell Special to the Daily News

When College of the Canyons softball coach Ray Whitten goes to sleep every night, a little prayer runs through his mind.

``My No. 1 wish to the softball god is for a pitcher,'' said Whitten, who just finished his 10th and most difficult season.

The year might not have been so tough had fate not stepped in in the form of a bizarre, still unexplained, season-ending injury to Whitten's only starting pitcher, Stacy Creo.

With Creo, the Cougars started the season with a 6-2 win over Chaffey College in the Cyprus tournament in early February.

``We really looked good,'' Whitten said.

But then Creo hurt her arm with what doctors believe is some sort of nerve injury, Whitten said, and the Cougars were stuck with a season to play and no pitchers with any high school experience.

``We were in a deep bind so we put posters all over the school,'' Whitten said.

Into Whitten's office walked Tiffany Mercado. Mercado had pitched batting practice at Saugus High but never in a game.

Needless to say, Mercado did her best, but her lack of experience put the Cougars at a big disadvantage and they finished the year with a 1-26 overall, 0-16 Western States Conference (WSC) record.

``I've never before faced an obstacle like this,'' Whitten said. ``And most of the girls on the team had never been through it, either.''

There were close games, as the team played seven extra-inning contests. But the Cougars would always fall just a little short. And that was tough. After their 23rd consecutive loss, Whitten had a talk with his players.

``The tears of defeat had stopped but the look of defeat was still there,'' Whitten said. ``I told them we may have lost the season but the thing you have to remember is that none of you are losers.

``And that seemed to appease the shock of losing a bit.''

Through it all, Whitten said, the team didn't have any personality problems and fingers were not pointed to lay the blame for losing.

And he feels Mercado, whose fastball was probably 20 mph slower than her opponents' fastball, deserves a lot of credit.

``(We didn't lose) by walks or wild pitches or home runs,'' Whitten said. ``Usually it was six or seven singles and then we'd sometimes come back and tie but end up losing in extra innings.''

Amazingly, when Whitten had individual meetings with the players this week, all said they wanted to come back next season.

``A couple girls said even though we lost they really had a good time,'' Whitten said.

Whitten was impressed by the play of his infield, which includes Sunshine Esparza (.327) at third base, shortstop Jennifer Sprague (.389), Shalyn Martinez, second base, and Torey Stotts, first base.

He also was pleased with Cassi Lemasters (.273) in center field and was especially satisfied by the play of right fielder Rebecca Plise, who had never played softball in high school but finished hitting at .303.

``If I don't ruin her by overcoaching, she may be able to get up close to .400,'' Whitten said.

For Whitten, the off-season will be spent recruiting and hoping that some good players will come to the school from out of the Santa Clarita School District.

Because WSC recruiting policies only allow Whitten to make first contact with players from Hart, Canyon and Saugus (and Valencia next year when it has seniors) and because Hart pitcher Mary Colleran and Saugus pitcher Jamie Gillies are headed to four-year schools and Canyon is without a senior pitcher, Whitten is out of options for making the first contact in recruiting a pitcher.

``It makes it extra difficult for me,'' Whitten said. ``For girls in the (San Fernando) Valley I talk to after they go somewhere else, they say `you never contacted me so I didn't think you were interested.'

``But it's just that I can't contact them with a letter saying I can't contact them because that would be contacting them,'' Whitten said.

For Whitten and his team, then, they're hoping somewhere out there is an experienced pitcher who needs a school to play for.

``I think we have a very good nucleus of girls here,'' Whitten said. ``If we can get a good competitive pitcher we can be competitive with anyone.''