Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

Garden City, N.Y.  - The Adelphi University baseball team saw its 2012 season come to an end on Sunday at William J. Bonomo Field, dropping both ends of a doubleheader against the University of New Haven, 4-0 and 6-2. With the win, the Chargers sneak into the fourth and final playoff spot in the Northeast-10 Conference Southwest Division, finishing the regular season with a 11-9-1 record in the division and 24-17-1 mark overall. After Thursday's extra-inning win over New Haven, the Panthers needed to split the twinbill to clinch a Northeast-10 Tournament berth, but instead finish the season 23-22 overall and 11-10 in the Southwest.

The doubleheader was the last as Panthers for six seniors, who were honored during pregame Senior Day ceremonies: Michael Carletti, Justin Farnum, Jamie Liebowitz, Craig Matteo, Chris Murphy and Lucas Romeo. Senior Chris Pabisch was also recognized with his senior class, but holds another year of eligibility and will return to the squad in 2013. The seven aforementioned players proved to be one of the most successful in program history, having a hand in a pair of conference titles and two trips to the NCAA East Region finals. 

Game one saw the Panthers run into a stellar pitching performance by Chargers starter John Melville, who threw a complete game three-hit shutout to pick up his fourth win of the season. Nick Zito, Donato Signore and Chad Houghton were the only Adelphi batters to muster hits in the opener, during which the Panthers put just two runners in scoring position. 

Carletti got the ball in the opener and battled through 6.2 innings, scattering six hits and allowing three earned runs with three strikeouts. The senior cruised through the first two frames, but ran into trouble in the third when a pair of doubles and a passed ball plated all the runs New Haven would need. A two out single in the seventh prompted a call to the bullpen for Murphy, who coaxed the final out of the inning and then tossed a hitless eighth for 1.1 innings of perfect relief minus a fielding error.

In the nightcap, the Panthers jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning. Back-to-back singles by Farnum and Zarrella, followed by a double steal, put Chargers pitcher Pat Simone up against the ropes, and Richard Mejia struck with an RBI single to set the stage for a Liebowitz sacrifice fly. The 2-0 score would hold up through the next five innings as Pabisch spun six innings of one-hit baseball, surrending a bunt single in the third as the lone blemish on six quality frames. 

The Chargers picked up an unearned run in the seventh after a leadoff error gave way to an RBI single for Brendan Buckley, but a pair of key defensive plays ended the New Haven threat. Catcher Jacob Beard pounced on a would-be sacrifice bunt and fired to second for the first out, and left fielder John Campbell hosed the runner attempting to go first-to-third on a base hit for the second out. Pabisch induced a lazy fly ball to end the inning and kept the Chargers at bay. 

The eighth inning would be the undoing for Adelphi, as a pair of one-out, one-run singles gave New Haven a 3-2 lead. Joe Romenelli then broke the game open with a three-run homer, making it a 6-2 score by which the game would end as the Panthers went down in order the last two innings. 

Campbell was the lone Panthers with multiple hits on the day, reaching twice on bunt singles. Matteo and Liebowitz each ripped doubles, and Liebowitz and Mejia picked up an RBI apiece.

The pair of setbacks marks the first time Adelphi has missed the postseason since 2004, but a 23-22 final record gives the Panthers their eighth consecutive season with at least 20 victories.