SAUL LOEB/Arizona Daily Wildcat Senior shortstop Brad Hassey ropes one of his three hits on April 16 during the Arizona baseball teamâs 17-8 win over Grand Canyon at Sancet Field. The Wildcats end their finals hiatus Friday night against UCLA in the first game of a three-game set at Sancet Field.

The Arizona baseball team enjoyed an 11-day hiatus to focus on exams, but returns to play a final stretch of games against UCLA, Washington State and Washington in the next three weeks, all with postseason implications.

After a 15-12 win on the road against Southern California on April 28, the Wildcats have had limited practice sessions that included three consecutive off days from Friday through Sunday.

ãIâve been relaxing a lot and been sleeping in late,ä sophomore Joe Little said. ãThe break has been good because, this deep in the season, weâre giving everyone a rest and letting some sore arms heal up.ä

Arizona (28-19 overall, 6-9 in Pacific 10 Conference) is on the bubble for receiving an at-large bid to the NCAA regionals, said third baseman John Hardy.

The NCAA determines the postseason field based on a benchmark of at least 30 wins and a solid non-conference record, Hardy said. The Wildcats could reach the win plateau this weekend against UCLA and have a 22-9 non-conference record. But because of a lackluster conference record, UA has to treat the final nine games of the season with a playoff atmosphere.

ãWe have to win seven games to finish our Pac-10 record above .500,ä Hardy said. ãWeâve put ourselves in this position because weâve had a lot of one-run games, but thereâs a good chance of pulling this off.ä

The Bruins (21-27, 6-8) have struggled throughout the season. Josh Arhart and Ben Francisco, each hitting over .368, lead the offense that boasts a .301 team average.

The Wildcats will take on UCLA this weekend at Sancet Field with the first game Friday at 7 p.m.

On May 17, Arizona will close out its home schedule against Washington State (18-26, 4-13) and then head to Seattle to take on Washington (21-20-1, 9-5) in the final series of the season.

ãWe know what weâve got to do in terms of getting to the regionals, and we know itâs a lot,ä outfielder Kevin Anderson said. ãBut you get up in the morning, put your pants on one leg at a time, take batting practice one pitch at a time and the games one inning at a time. You just take it all in small steps.ä

In the meantime, the team seems to be enjoying its finals break.

Designated hitter Rick Mercado stayed at right fielder Jeff Van Houtenâs home in Phoenix last weekend.

ãIâve stepped away from the game and refocused since Iâve been trying to readjust to many things in the last couple of weeks,ä Mercado said.