Once again escaping Waltham for the sunny fields of the south after earlier playing in a series of games in Peoria, Ariz., the baseball team hoped to defend the University Athletic Association co-Championship title they won last year in the annual UAA Baseball Championship. But with two losses in the final weekend of the tournament after splitting their first four games, the Judges went from contenders for the title to dead last in the span of 24 hours. Brandeis lost to the University of Rochester and Emory University in its two games last Saturday after splitting games with Washington University in St. Louis, beating Case Western Reserve University in walk-off fashion and losing to Rochester earlier in the week. The Judges finished the tournament at 2-4 and fell to 4-7 overall.

"We had high expectations going into the week," captain and outfielder Mike Alfego '09 said. "We obviously wanted to defend the title, but it's a very strong league-a league of parity-and anybody can beat anybody else in the league on any given day. So now we've got to come back and work harder, so we can move forward."

Last Saturday's game against Rochester was essentially a championship game for both teams as Rochester needed the tiebreaker over Brandeis and the Judges needing two wins on the day to get a share of the UAA title.

The Judges sent captain James Collins '09 to the mound to face a Yellow Jacket offense that has a team batting average of .347. Collins lasted five innings and left the game with the Judges only trailing 5-3. Brandeis came to within 6-5 and cut a 9-7 Rochester lead to 9-8 in the ninth inning but would not come any closer.

"Throughout the game, we basically spotted them four runs on mental mistakes that hurt us bad. If we cut out on those mistakes then it's a very different game," assistant coach Brian Lambert '97 said. "But we fought back and finished the game with two men on base and a line drive that their first baseman made a great play on."

Tony Deshler '11 led the Judges by going 3-for-5 with 3 RBIs and two runs scored. Catcher Zach Wooley '11 finished the day 2-for-5 with two RBIs, including an eighth-inning home run, the first of his career. High school teammates infielder Nick Gallagher '09 and Alfego combined to go 5-for-8 on the day.

"It was a really tough loss, a back--and-forth game," Gallagher said. "It seemed like we'd come back and score three runs, they'd score four, we'd score one, they'd score one and so on. ... We just couldn't close that gap."

Lambert said he appreciated the Judges' effort.

"[Last Saturday's game] shows that we have some fight, which is a good sign," he said. "We just need to get that consistent effort and focus to play well when the game's on the line in the fourth inning, not just the ninth."

With their UAA title hopes dashed, the Judges were never in the game against Emory later in the day. Emory jumped on Brandeis immediately, batting around its order in the first inning to get out to a 9-0 lead that eventually turned into a 12-0 shutout that ended after seven innings because of the lopsided score. Pitcher Pat Nicholson '11, pitching on three days' rest after a complete game 3-1 victory over WashU March 10 in which he took a no-hitter into the seventh inning, started for Brandeis against Emory and gave up eight earned runs, lasting just a third of an inning. David Packard '09, John Clark '09 and left-hander Jonah Mandell '09 followed Nicholson and all saw their earned-run averages rise, giving up four more runs over the next 3 2/3 innings as Emory extended the lead to 12-0.

"It ended pretty bad, and of course it's disappointing. We went into a big day with a chance to win the whole thing and ended up in last place." captain Mike Alfego '09 said.

Lambert said he was also disappointed with the way the team closed out its annual trip to Florida.

The Judges went 2-2 earlier in the week, with the most dramatic game occurring against Case Western Thursday. The Spartans took a 4-1 lead before Brandeis responded with three runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to tie the score at 4-4 heading into the ninth inning.

The Spartans broke the tie in the top of the ninth inning, taking a 5-4 lead, and were just one out away from the victory. But Case Western rookie pitcher Sam Alexander walked Sean O'Hare '12, loading the bases for Deshler. Deshler eventually singled, sending home two runners to give the Judges the walk-off win.

"It was a big game, and it was huge to get those runners on base. With two outs, I was just thinking about trying to get a pitch to hit and get it through the infield," Deshler said.

Lambert said the team is still trying to find a lineup that will work moving forward.

"We've still got more to see, but we just want to find the nine guys who are going to work hard and play hard all of the time," he said.

The Judges will next play tomorrow at Bridgewater State University at 3 p.m.