DEAN HARE/Daily Evergreen (Washington State) Arizona defensive end Carlos Williams attempts to block a pass by Cougar quarterback Matt Kegel during the first half of Saturday's 30-7 loss to Washington State in Pullman, Wash.

In their first game since the firing of former head coach John Mackovic, the Wildcats kept it close in Pullman for three quarters ÷ but once again fell short, losing 30-7 to No. 14 Washington State on Saturday.

Arizona pulled within six points of the Cougars midway through the third quarter and was trailing by just nine with under 10 minutes to go in the contest.

Two Wildcat miscues led to 14 Washington State points in the final nine minutes, making the score appear much more lopsided than the game was.

"We had two critical mistakes that opened up the score," said interim coach Mike Hankwitz. "It just reinforced that I thought we did improve, and we did compete. I am even more encouraged, even though it is frustrating to lose."

This was the second straight week the Wildcats were able to hang with a Top 25 opponent before losing late. And for the second straight week, the defense played the key role in keeping it close.

The Wildcats won the turnover battle by a three-to-two margin. They forced and recovered two fumbles, and senior cornerback Michael Jolivette had his first interception of the season when he picked off Cougar quarterback Matt Kegel in the end zone.

Arizona seemed to play a "bend, but don't break" style of defense, allowing only 23 points while giving up 513 yards of offense. They kept the Cougars out of the end zone on four occasions when WSU got inside the Wildcats' 25-yard line, forcing three field goals along with the Jolivette pick.

Although the offense was still fairly lackluster, the offensive line held the Cougars' defense sack-less. Washington State led the Pacific 10 Conference with 20 sacks going in to Saturday, and had a string of 23 consecutive games with a sack snapped.

"It shows that our line is picking up pressure better," Hankwitz said. "Our quarterback is continuing to improve, and he is handling pressure better."

For the second consecutive week, true freshman Kris Heavner started behind center for Arizona. He finished the contest 18-of-35 for 128 yards, but did throw an interception that was returned for a score.

"We are on the verge of making some big plays," Hankwitz said. "I think Heavner continues to improve, and with the limited amount of time that he has had, he shows great poise. He made one bad mistake, but that can happen to a lot of good quarterbacks."