KEVIN KLAUS/Arizona Daily Wildcat Wendy Allen hurls a pitch earlier this season. Allen and UA will take on the Oregon schools tonight at home.

Wildcats open Pac-10 play as Oregon, Oregon State come to Hillenbrand Stadium

When UA head coach Mike Candrea switched yesterday's and Tuesday's practice to 6 p.m., he wanted his team to have an edge over tonight's Pac-10 competitors.

That's because the Wildcats will have to adjust to playing under the lights at UA's Rita Hillenbrand Memorial Stadium beginning tonight at 7 p.m.

The night game will also be the first chance for the young Wildcat pitching staff to test its mettle against the brutal Pac-10 conference beginning with the Oregon schools.

"The night practices are to get some cuts under the light," Candrea said. "(Playing under the lights) takes a while to get used to, and it's harder to pick up the spin of the ball. But we need to get accustomed to it and will get accustomed to it."

While their pre-conference season mimicked a story tale ÷ the Wildcats lost just three games in 34 efforts ÷ the Wildcats haven't come close to seeing the type of competition that the Pac-10 houses offer, beginning tonight with No. 20 Oregon State.

"In the Pac-10, teams go deeper in the line-up," Candrea said. "The pitching is better and they're not intimidated playing Arizona."

By switching to evening practices ÷ which Candrea said the team will do throughout the season ÷ Arizona hopes to gain an advantage.

"The pitchers are more affected by it, especially (when throwing) the change-up," UA assistant coach Larry Ray said. "We need to get more used to it and have an edge."

Although Candrea was skeptical that, early on in the season, his team's inconsistency and sloppy defense made it a weak competitor among the Pac-10, 34 games later Candrea is confident in his team's ability.

"I think this team is very capable and can be competitive in the Pac-10," Candrea said. "We need to work smarter and learn from our mistakes. We just got a little rash and need to clear up and move on."

Ray agreed.

"It's going to be an exciting race and it will be a great fight every game," Ray said. "The key is to be consistent, and we haven't showed that we have been. That's a major concern."

In a doubleheader against No. 9 Cal State Fullerton, the Wildcats snapped a 17 game winning streak with a 15-3 loss to the Titans.

Arizona took the first contest, 5-2, but lost the second game, revealing its glaring weakness: inconsistency.

"We still have more work to do," junior catcher Mackenzie Vandergeest said. "We need our defense and we need to hit for our pitchers. Right now, we can't seem to score."

The Wildcats face off against Oregon State at 7 p.m. at UA's Rita Hillenbrand Memorial Stadium.