UA gets break from Six-Pac

Brian D. Rothschild Arizona Daily Wildcat UA junior first baseman Kenny Corley slides into home safely against California in Sunday's 5-0 win at Sancet Field. Corley leads the Wildcats with his 11 home runs and 47 RBI.

Junior right-hander David Quick will have a lot of input on that question as he starts against non-conference foe Grand Canyon (11-23) tonight in Tempe. This is the second of three meetings between the Antelopes and the Wildcats. No. 19 Arizona (28-16, 11-7 in the Pacific 10 Conference Southern Division) was victorious in their first meeting in Tucson, 4-3 in 10 innings.

Quick (4-0) went 8 1/3 innings in the Grand Canyon game, allowing three runs, two earned, on three hits and a walk while striking out eight. Sophomore left-hander Ryan Moskau picked up the win with his 1 2/3 innings of relief.

Although Quick will have to follow superb outings by sophomores Darrell Hussman, James Johnson and Rob Shabansky, Arizona pitching coach Bill Kinneberg hopes that there will not be a lot of extra pressure on Quick in following them.

"There shouldn't be (any pressure)," Kinneberg said. "This is a new series, a new game, and hopefully that's forgotten."

In using only four pitchers in the three-game series last weekend, the Wildcats, currently second in the Six-Pac, are planning on getting a few guys some action on the mound tonight. After Quick, freshman left-hander Tony Milo, freshman right-hander Dave Abbott and possibly Moskau will see some innings.

"We are going to need all of them for the weekend, so they need to get a couple innings and see some hitters that they haven't seen in a couple weeks," Kinneberg said.

The weekend that Kinneberg was alluding to is this upcoming one, when the UCLA Bruins will be looking for revenge after losing two of three games against Arizona in their first meeting at Sancet Field.

"In the back of their minds at this point, I hope they are thinking about UCLA," Kinneberg said. "It's important that we win every game from here on in (so) that we can and with no exceptions. They will have to be ready to play against Canyon, which is traditionally a tough game up there."

While the pitching has been excellent for the Wildcats, defense has played a vital role in Arizona's recent success. The Wildcats played errorless baseball over the weekend and received solid play from sophomore catcher Greg Clark, junior shortstop Jake Thrower and sophomore third baseman Omar Moraga. The solid pitching and consistent defense have played off each other for a winning combination.

"I think it goes hand in hand," Kinneberg said. "One feeds off the other and vice versa."

Not to be overlooked, Wildcat hitters have also contributed to the recent victories. Junior first baseman Kenny Corley, whose 10th inning triple led to him scoring the winning run in the first meeting between Arizona and Grand Canyon, has continued to hit the ball well. Corley's 11 home runs and 47 RBI are the best on the team, and he had an RBI double in Sunday's 5-0 win against the Golden Bears.

Game time is set for 7 p.m. in Tempe. These two teams will meet again in Phoenix on April 22. On Friday, Arizona will continue conference play when they travel to UCLA for a three game series.