RICHARDSON, TX (05.07.11) – The UT Dallas baseball team, which had possessed late-inning magic all season long, came up just a little short on good fortune Sunday afternoon as a 9th-inning rally in the American Southwest Conference Baseball Championship Tournament title game ended just a batter or two away from a miracle finish.

Concordia University-Texas, which had to win just once Sunday, held off the late Comet charge for a 6-4 victory and its first ASC title since 2002. UT Dallas, which has now played in four championship games in the last nine year, is still waiting to claim its first crown.

The Comets, who rallied for three runs in the final inning of an elimination game Saturday to defeat Hardin-Simmons, 5-3, put three runs on the board again in the 9th Sunday and left the potential tying runs on base as the miracle finish ended too soon.

UTD had four players named to the ASC All-Tournament Team – designated hitter Joseph Killgore, outfielder Jason Diemer, catcher Grant Friddell and reliever Max Willard. (LINK HERE for entire team).

CHAMPIONSHIP GAME: CONCORDIA 6, UT DALLAS 4 (BOX SCORE)
The Comets had been doing it all season long - winning games in their final at-bat. So, why not in the championship game of the ASC Tournament. And, down to their final three outs this time, UTD trailed Concordia, 6-1.

But six of the first seven hitters in the inning reached base, and when Chase Brown came to bat with two runners on, he represented the go-ahead run. But Brown's slow roller to second base ended with a close play at first base and the Comets were relegated to runner-up status for the fourth time in the last nine years.

Grant Friddell, who had reached 11 out of 15 times in the tournament, started the 9th with his seventh hit of the weekend. After a quick flyball and fielders' choice, the Comets were down to their final out. Pinch-hitter Larry Bolding was hit by a pitch, then Jacob Starnes singled hard up the middle, driving in Friddell and Garet Norton. After the second pitching change of the inning, Jason Diemer beat out an infield hit and pinch-runner Ryan Miner scored, bringing up Brown. The Comet centerfielder, who had struggled at the plate until Sunday, hit almost an identical ball to Diemer and charged down the line, but was called out at first base on a close play.

An earlier umpire's ruling also helped the Comets stop the bleeding in a 6th inning that let Concordia break the game open. Concordia had already broken open a 1-0 game with two runs and UTD had thrown another runner out at the plate. Then, with two runners on, the Tornados' Robert Brown ripped an apparent triple to deep right field that brought home two runs. The Comets appealed that Brown had missed second base on his way to third. The appeal was upheld and the runs allowed, but the potential for an even bigger inning was erased.

The Comets actually started their late rally in the 8th inning when Diemer tripled with two outs and scored on a Brown single up the middle.

Concordia got the early 1-0 lead in the 3rd after a walk, sacrifice bunt and error allowed a run to score. They added a 6th run in the 7th inning with a key two-out single.

FINAL ELIMINATION GAME: UT DALLAS 5, HARDIN-SIMMONS 3 (BOX SCORE)
On a day filled with offensive futility, the UT Dallas baseball team finally got a pair of key hits when it mattered most Saturday afternoon. The Comets, facing elimination after a loss earlier in the day and a sluggish start in the final elimination game with Hardin-Simmons, rallied for three runs in the top of the 9th inning to take a 5-3 victory, punching a ticket to the title game of the American Southwest Conference Championship Tournament Sunday afternoon against Concordia.

A pair of key hits against HSU's ace reliever James Simmons, and a critical error on Cowboy rightfielder Jay Hiller propelled the Comets to a 5-3 win in the final inning of what had been a frustrating day for the home team.

Down 3-2 entering their last three outs, UTD's Jake Wyand opened the inning with a hard single to center, forcing HSU Coach Steve Coleman to summon Simmons and his 1.48 ERA from the bullpen. After a strikeout, Simmons (who had only walked eight all year) walked Garet Norton and then faced Larry Bolding , who had just nine hits all season. Bolding promptly lifted a 1-2 pitch into leftfield to score pinch-runner Matt Olszewski with the tying run.

But the Comets weren't done yet. Simmons then intentionally walked leadoff hitter Jacob Starnes to set up a force play at any base. The next batter up, though, was Jason Diemer, and Diemer made him pay with a deep fly ball to center that allowed Norton to tag up and run home from third with the go-ahead run. Chase Brown followed with what should have been the final out of the inning on a fly ball to  right, but Hiller let the ball bounce out of his glove for an error and Bolding scampered home just ahead of Starnes, who was thrown out at the plate.

UTD closer Max Willard then came in and shut the door on any rally ideas HSU had, finishing off the inning with two straight strikeouts.

Prior to the 9th inning, it had been a frustrating game (as well as day) for the Comets, who were coming off a poor showing in an 8-3 winner's bracket game with Concordia and had managed just two hits through the first five innings to fall behind 2-0.

But Diemer came up big in the 6th after Starnes led off the inning with a single up the middle. Diemer launched his third home run over the left field wall and on one pitch, the score was tied at 2-2. The jubilation didn't last long, though. HSU strung together three straight hits against starter Jason Fink to open their half of the 6th and reclaimed the lead, 3-2.

Taylor Payne picked up his second win as the pitcher of record and Willard claimed his fourth save. Diemer was the only Comet with more than one hit, but he led the way with three RBIs.

WINNER'S BRACKET: CONCORDIA 8, UT DALLAS 3 (BOX SCORE)
The Comets came out flat in the Winner's Bracket game Saturday afternoon, and let things unravel early. UTD gave up seven runs in the first four innings as starter Marvin Prestridge struggled to cool off the hot-hitting Tornados.

Prestridge threw over 100 pitches in his four-inning start, allowing eight hits, two walks and a hit batter in the first four frames as the Tornados jumped out to a 7-0 lead. But he didn't get much help from his defense, which was charged with a pair of errors and gave up six stolen bases.

The Comets finally chipped into the lead with a two-run 5th. After Friddell was hit by a pitch, Wyand delivered a triple to the rightfield corner. Wyand then scored on an RBI ball up the middle by Clint Dunham. A pair of singles to open the 7th by Killgore and Friddell set the stage for an RBI groundout by Wyand, who finished with two RBIs.

The Comets, however, managed just one other base hit in the other seven innings of the game.

UT DALLAS 5, HARDIN-SIMMONS 1 (BOX SCORE)
The Comets broke open a scoreless game with single runs in the 4th, 5th and 6th innings, then got some much-needed insurance with a two-run outburst in the 7th against the HSU Cowboys, who had shown resiliency throughout the post-season.

HSU (30-13), which had rallied five times in its first-round finale against Mississippi College before finally winning 12-11 in 14 innings last week, continually missed early opportunities against Comet ace Derek Dallas, who stranded 12 HSU runners, and picked up his UTD record-tying ninth win of the season.

Dallas and his defense got into some trouble in three of the first four innings, dealing with runners at third base each time as errors opened the door to a potential big inning. But the sophomore from Ballinger worked his way out of the jam each time, including a one-out, bases-loaded situation in the first inning. HSU did finally break through with single runs in the 7th and 9th inning with a two-out hit and a two-out home run, but Dallas finished off the complete game in the 9th with a fly ball.

His 9th win of the season tied a school record set by Kevin McKnight in 2004, and tied first by Mark Cox in 2008.

Joseph Killgore and Grant Fridell led the offensive attack, accounting for six of the Comets' 11 hits. Killgore drove in two of the first three runs of the game for UTD, lacing a two-out double to left-center, then belting a two-out home run in the 6th. Friddell had three straight singles, but got his only RBI in the 7th when he was hit by HSU pitcher Skylar Sillivent with the bases loaded. UTD also left the bases full in the 5th and 6th as the Comets stranded eight runners.

UTD took a 1-0 lead in the 4th on Killgore's first RBI hit, scoring Jacob Starnes. In the 5th, Friddell singled to lead off the inning and scored on a Garet Norton double down the leftfield line to make it 2-0. Killgore then made it 3-0 in the 6th with his second home run of the year.

In the 7th, eight UTD batters went to the plate against two HSU relievers. Tyler Hobbs walked, and later scored on a Chase Brown single; and Friddell picked up his RBI the hard way on the Sillvent HBP.