ERIC M. JUKELEVICS /Arizona Daily Wildcat Sophomore UA catcher Mackenzie Vandergeest tags out a Long Beach State runner Sunday at Hillenbrand Stadium. The No. 2 Wildcats begin a two-game home set against Boston College today at 6 p.m.

Wildcats look to extend home winning streak before hitting the road

The Arizona softball team is looking to continue its 63-game home winning streak tonight and tomorrow night when it plays host to Boston College at Hillenbrand Stadium at 6.

The two-game set with the Eagles will conclude an 18-game homestand for the Wildcats and give them a final test before they head to an opposing school's home park for the first time this year.

The Wildcats come into the game with a 23-2 record and ranked No. 2 in the NFCA/USA Today coaches poll.

Arizona is riding a 16-game winning streak, but head coach Mike Candrea said he knows there are things his team still needs to work on.

"We need to eliminate some strikeouts. We're striking out at some crucial times," Candrea said.

Another thing Candrea recognizes is the lack of talent his team has faced early in the season.

"We haven't played a lot of tough teams yet, and actually they're going to get tougher," he said.

Boston College (3-10) comes into the game riding a three-game losing streak thanks to a trio of losses to Arizona State over the weekend in Tempe.

The Eagles managed to score just one run against the No. 8 Sun Devils while giving up 26 runs.

Junior shortstop Cara Blumfield leads the way for the Eagles with a .500 batting average through her team's first 13 games.

Blumfield, native of West Hills, Calif., comes into the game with four of her team's eight home runs and 14 of its 34 RBIs.

She was named Big East Conference Player of the Week Feb. 25 after hitting .647 at a tournament in Georgia.

After the conclusion of their series with Arizona, the Eagles will head to Las Vegas for a tournament held by the University of Nevada Las Vegas.

BC is currently on its annual spring break trip to the Western part of the country.