A week before the Wildcats officially begin their national title defense, they gave the Tucson faithful a glimpse of what's in store for the upcoming season.

UA softball fans were treated to some familiar heroics along with a new cast of future stars during the team's four-game exhibition series sweep this weekend at Rita Hillenbrand Stadium.

The Wildcats cruised through two opening-day shutouts against Sonoma State, 15-0 and 8-0 on Friday. While runs were harder to come by on Saturday, the outstanding pitching that UA will rely on this season dominated again in 3-0 and 6-1 victories against Western New Mexico.

For head coach Mike Candrea, it was a promising weekend that saw nine newcomers - including seven freshmen and two transfers - get their feet wet and gain some much-needed experience.

"I like what I saw," Candrea said. "We made a lot of mistakes, but that is part of the process. I like this team a lot because they work hard and they want to do well."

One Wildcat who made very few - if any - mistakes this weekend was senior pitcher Jennie Finch.

The returning National Player of the Year took little time to regain her undefeated form of a year ago, and threw five perfect innings against Sonoma State in Friday's opening game that ended early due to the 10-run rule.

After sophomore Mackenzie Vandergeest and freshman Courtney Fossatti each blasted home runs and drove in four runs apiece, the Wildcats were well on their way to victory in their first competition since defeating UCLA 1-0 in last year's National Championship.

Sophomore Leneah Manuma also went deep for UA, and junior transfer Lovie Jung finished her first game in front of the home crowd only a home run shy of hitting for the cycle.

Sophomore pitcher Jenny Gladding picked up where Finch left off in Friday's second game and allowed only a single and a walk over seven shutout innings while striking out nine.

Vandergeest single-handedly carried the offense with three more home-run blasts and five RBI, and Jung also added the home run that eluded her earlier in the day in the 8-0 win.

While the Wildcat's bats cooled a bit during Saturday's twin bill, the Jennie and Jenny duo again took care of business on the mound. The two will carry the pitching load for UA this season and the exhibition series this weekend was no exception.

After seven more innings of no-hit ball in the 3-0 shutout, Finch's weekend numbers totaled 12 innings pitched, no hits allowed and 28 strikeouts. Western New Mexico fared much better than Sonoma State, however, and was able to draw a walk off of the senior All-American.

Gladding followed with another solid effort of her own, allowing just one run on two hits - both in the first inning - in UA's 6-1 win over the Division II Mustangs.

After trailing 1-0 heading into the bottom of the fifth inning, it was the Wildcat newcomers who helped ensure there would be no upsets this weekend.

Freshman infielder Jackie Coburn doubled to deep right with one out in the fifth inning and scored two batters later on a double by senior outfielder Meaghan Finnerty to tie the game. After a passed ball sent Finnerty to third, freshman outfielder Allyson Von Liechtenstein smacked an infield single to put the Wildcats ahead for good.

UA padded its lead in the sixth with four runs, including a two-run triple by Vandergeest to right-center and an RBI single for Coburn.

Coburn said it was an exciting opening weekend, and for all the freshmen, it was a chance to show their ability to contribute on the No. 1 team in the nation.

"It was fun, but it was tough because of the fans," said Coburn of the estimated 1,000 Wildcat supporters that came out both days. "I was a little nervous because of the team they had last year, but everything went okay.

"We were in a little rut (Saturday), and I think (the freshmen) started to realize that the older girls aren't always going to do everything for us. We have to start doing what we can to help the team win."

Candrea said he liked what he saw from some of his newer Wildcats to help his team to Saturday's victory. With two more tuneups tomorrow against Central Arizona, he said he feels his team will be set to officially begin its title defense Friday against Alabama.

"We have two more games tomorrow to iron out the bugs, and then we start playing for keeps," Candrea said. "The name of the game is making adjustments, and that's why you play games, and I think this team will continue to get better and better."