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Knoxville, Tenn. • Kate Dickman and Heather Bowen had wiped their eyes and faced a room full of reporters.

Utah softball coach Amy Hogue called to her outfielders as they headed for the door.

"I'm proud of you guys," she said.

Utah's season ended with a 3-1 loss to Tennessee in Sunday's NCAA softball regional final.

A sellout crowd at Lee Stadium, unfazed by an hourlong rain delay halfway through the second inning, cheered Tennessee (45-14) to its super regional victory.

Utah (36-19) reflected on its run.

"That stung," Hogue said. "I always say you've got to believe you can get it done, then you've got a shot. That means risking having it hurt as bad as it does when you don't get it done. We were willing to risk it, so it stings. That team that I coached busted their butts today. It's the difference of a couple swings."

The swing that lifted Tennessee: shortstop Meghan Gregg's two-run homer in the first. She turned her first pitch from Utes' starter Katie Donovan into her 10th homer of the season. It cleared the wall in left center and rolled to the train tracks behind the stadium.

"One missed pitch put two runs on the board," Hogue said. "If we put that one in the right spot, it's a double play."

The swing that will haunt Utah: Bowen's long, deep fly ball to left in the bottom of the fourth that turned into an out when Tennessee left fielder Shaliyah Geathers caught it on a dead sprint. Bowen, whose RBI single in the second inning provided the Utes their lone run, was a few feet away from her fourth homer of the season.

"I can't dwell on it and look back," Bowen said.

Tennessee center fielder Tory Lewis' RBI single added an insurance run in the sixth.

Both teams effectively used a two-prong pitching approach.

Tennessee's Erin Gabriel (17-6) started and picked up the win, surrendering four hits through four innings. Reliever Rainey Gaffin pitched three scoreless innings, fanning six of the nine she faced.

Donovan (17-10) took the loss, surrendering five hits in 51⁄3 innings. Reliever Sammy Cordova surrendered three hits and a run in 12⁄3 innings pitched, before Donovan returned in the seventh.

Utah's pitching wasn't the problem.

"I was surprised we chased that many balls in the dirt," Hogue said. "I think some of the emotions played into that."

Seniors like Dickman leave a legacy worth celebrating. Utah's 13th appearance in a regional was its first since 2006.

"We did a lot of things we haven't done in a long time," Dickman said. "We all got on the bus, and the plan was to go to [Oklahoma City]. We didn't get it done, but we all believed every step of the way."

Freshmen like Bowen found motivation.

"It's going to help a ton, just to see how close we were," Bowen said. "It's just going to make us want to get here again, keep going further and further."

Their coach has plenty to be proud of. —

Tennessee 3, Utah 1

• Utah's season ended with a 3-1 loss to Tennessee in Sunday's NCAA softball regional final in Knoxville.

• Utes right fielder Heather Bowen drove in Utah's lone run and nearly hit a solo home run in the fourth inning.

• Tennessee reliever Rainey Gaffin shut the door on the Utes, striking out six of the nine batters she faced.