The baseball season ended in disappointment on Sunday as the Judges lost their final game to the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth 11-4, stumbling to a final record of 11-24. The Corsairs scored seven runs in the first three innings in a game that, like the Judges' season, seemed lost from the start. Brandeis stayed off the board until the fourth inning, in which left fielder Chris Ferro '13 hit his team-leading fifth home run to make it 7-1. The team added three more in the eighth to make it interesting, but the Corsairs added three of their own in the bottom of the inning to silence the would-be comeback.

However, on Wednesday, the Judges showed the same burst of life that appeared sporadically throughout the season. Coming off a rain-shortened 11-6 home win over UMass-Dartmouth on Tuesday, their seventh come-from-behind win ended in exciting and unlikely fashion against Bowdoin College in Brandeis' home finale.

Down seven runs in the bottom of the eighth inning, the Judges put nine on the board to win 17-15. It marked the third time this season that the team has won in its final turn at bat.

"That was a great win for us," said first baseman Drake Livada '10. "All year, we've been giving up big innings and never really had a big inning ourselves. Everyone was hitting [in the eighth], and hitting [is] contagious."

After allowing three runs in the first two innings on Wednesday, Brandeis battled into the lead with five in the third.

A two-run home run from center fielder Tony Deshler '11 and an RBI double from third baseman Jon Chu '12 combined with singles by shortstop Sean O'Hare '12 and Ferro, a wild pitch and a hit batter to give the Judges a two-run lead.

The Polar Bears went back in front in the fifth with two more runs. After Brandeis got one back in the bottom of the inning on catcher Artie Posch's '10 single that scored Chu, Bowdoin scored four runs to go up 9-6.

Brandeis picked up two runs in the top of the seventh to pull within one, but Bowdoin quickly retook a commanding lead, scoring six runs in the top of the eighth before pitcher Andrew Weissenberg '13 able to close out the inning on a 4-6-3 double play.

The Judges came from behind two times and broke two ties in their home opener win against Bridgewater State University back on March 18, and despite entering the bottom of the eighth inning facing a 15-8 deficit and high odds, were determined to leave the Stein Diamond the same way that they had arrived.

After leading off with a Deshler double, Brandeis sent a barrage of men across the plate that left a stunned Bowdoin team looking at a two-run deficit when the dust settled, where seemingly moments earlier they had seen themselves on the short path to victory.

With only four hits in the inning, the Judges were able to score nine runs with the help of two Bowdoin errors, two walks, a hit batter, three wild pitches and a passed ball.

Pitcher Alex Tynan '12 delivered the finishing touch with his first career save.

The upset of a strong Bowdoin team was neither the Judges' first nor their most impressive during the season.

On Feb. 19, during the team's season-opening southern road trip, Brandeis pulled out a nine-inning, 7-6 upset over Trinity University in Texas, which is currently ranked No. 14 by the d3baseball.com NCAA poll.

Livada said that games like the ones against Bowdoin and Trinity give the team hope for the future.

"We play one of the toughest schedules in the country, so we know that we're capable of playing with anybody," said Livada. "That just gives us hope for the team next year. All year, we gave up one big inning every game, which cost us in our losses, but other than that, we were right with them for a lot of games."

Going into next season, the team will lose key seniors that include the three team captains-Livada, Posch and second baseman John O'Brion '10-and four-year starter Drew Brzozowski '10.

To fill those holes, said Livada, the team will look to players like Deshler, O'Hare, and pitcher John McGrath '11.

Pitcher and utility player Pat Nicholson '11, who won five games with a team second-best 4.58 earned run average in the 2009 season, will return from an injury that caused him to miss the entire year.

Further, the team has an impressive class of rookies that will continue to develop, including lefthander Mike Swerdloff '13, who had the team's third-lowest ERA with 5.40. He also pitched 40.0 innings during the year, which was the third most on the team.

Ferro, who played a significant role in almost all Brandeis wins and often added a touch of Judges pride to tough losses at catcher and in the outfield, had a team-leading .355 batting average, five home runs, 44 hits and 25 RBIs.

For the departing seniors, a tough moment in any athete's career was made more bitter by dissapointments, but Livada said he speaks for all seniors in his appreciation of the Brandeis program and confidence in its future.

"It's definitely been a positive experience. It's a great group of guys, and the athletic administration has been great. It's been a bumpy road, but there have been more pros than cons, and us seniors are going to reflect on the good things that happened in the four years for us. We've had a [great] time together, and we'll miss the program.