AUSTIN, TX (03.05.22) - The UT Dallas softball team continued its hot start to the season on Friday with a pair of 2-1 victories over Concordia Texas to kick off a three-game ASC road series with the Tornados.However, the Comets dropped the series finale with the Tornados, 4-3, on Saturday afternoon.

The Comets (11-2, 8-2 ASC) will next take a break from ASC play with six games next weekend in California. UTD will visit California Lutheran, Occidental and La Verne during its Spring Break trip to the West coast.

GAME 1 - UTD 2, CTX 1
After falling behind early, the Comets got a pair of RBI hits in the top of the 4th to rally for a 2-1 win over Concordia Texas to open Friday's doubleheader.

The Tornados grabbed a 1-0 lead in the 1st while UTD struggled offensively until scoring twice in the 4th. Ashley Ambrosy opened the frame with a bunt single, the Comets' first hit of the contest, and came home two batters later on a double to left center by Megan Todd. Todd later scored the go-ahead run on a Sarah Lewis two-out single up middle.

Comet starter Emilie Hoelscher gave up just the single run on two hits in the bottom of the 1st and then limited the Tornados to just two hits over the next six innings. She struck out three CTX batters and issued two walks. The Comets collected seven hits off of CTX starter Bailey Tisdale with Todd leading the way with a 2-for-3 performance.

GAME 2 - UTD 2, CTX 1
In Friday's late game, it was the Comets who struck first with two runs in the top of the 5th and held on to complete the sweep of CTX.

Both teams would put runners on base in each of the first four innings, but it would be the Comets that came through the big hit in the 5th as Todd plated both Alexia Mullen and Avery Markley with a one-out single up the middle to give UTD a 2-0 lead. The Tornados cut the lead in half in the bottom of the frame, but would leave the game-tying run at third base.

Devyn Yanello (3-0) matched Hoelscher's impressive start, giving up one unearned run on eight scattered hits with two strikeouts. Yanello would allow just a single base runner after CTX plated its sole run in the 5th. Ambrosy and Lewis were both 2-for-3 in the contest while Mullen was 2-for-4 from the lead-off spot.

GAME 3 - CTX 4, UTD 3
The Comets jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead in the top of the 1st but host CTX rallied and scored twice in the 6th to take the lead en route to a 4-3 victory in the series finale.

After a lead-off CTX three-base error on a ground ball by Mullen, Ambrosy opened the scoring with a single to center field. Cole Johnson then plated Ambrosy with an RBI groundout to give the Comets a 2-0 advantage.

The Tornados answered with a solo home run in the bottom of the frame and eventually knotted the game with a run in the 5th. CTX then took the lead with two runs in the bottom of the sixth. Nicole Peters cut the deficit in half with an RBI double down the right field line with one out in the 7th, but would be stranded at second base as the potential game-tying run.

Markley was the lone Comet to record a multi-hit game, going 2-for-3 from the plate. Starter McKenzie Cutbirth gave up one run on four hits with four strikeouts in her 4.0-inning start before Hoelscher (5-2) gave up three runs on five hits in 2.0 innings of relief.