POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (May 8, 2016) – The Vassar College baseball team celebrated Senior Day Sunday afternoon prior to a Liberty League doubleheader against Union College on Prentiss Field, needing to take both ends to qualify for the conference tournament. Unfortunately for the Brewers, Union (23-12, 15-7 Liberty) picked up the win in each of the contests Sunday with scores of 4-2 and 8-5. Sunday marked the end of the careers of the most successful class in program history, as the group of seven posted 66 wins over its span, the most ever by a four-year class.

Game 1 – Union 4, Vassar 2
Visiting Union College posted two runs in the top of the seventh inning, using them as the deciding margin in a 4-2 victory that eliminated the Brewers from playoff contention.

The Dutchmen jumped out in front in the top of the first, as Jake Fishman walked to lead off the game and was plated on a single up the middle by Kent Curran. Union threatened again in the second inning, but Vassar starter Adam Erkis worked out of the jam to strand two.

VC put together a two-out rally in the bottom of the second, as Eric Strickland singled followed by senior Dakota Sagnelli reaching on catcher's Interference. Union's Jake Vesling worked out of the bind as he induced a two-out groundout thanks to a nice play from second baseman Anthony Amoroso.

Union doubled its lead with another run in the top of the third, as Joe Ganim delivered an RBI single with one out to make the score 2-0. Vassar got on the board in the bottom half of the frame, as senior Brooks English scored Denis Shanagher on a sacrifice fly to center field.

That's where the score would stay until the fifth inning when senior Nick Johnson came through with a one-out single to center field, as his fly ball to short centerfield landed just in front of the left and center fielders to score junior Mike Koscielniak. VC would not get anymore though, stranding three runners in the fifth.

The Dutchmen had something going in the top of the sixth with runners at first and second, but senior Connor Cucalon came in with one out and got two ground outs to keep the game knotted at two.

In the decisive seventh inning, Cucalon looked to almost have gotten out of the inning unscathed, but Ganim just beat out a potential inning-ending double play to score the game-winning run on a fielder's choice. Union added to its lead with a Nate Olson single to plate Curran. VC went 1-2-3 in the bottom half to end chances of a comeback.

VC only managed three hits in game one, as Strickland, Johnson and Bobby Kinne each had singles. Erkis allowed two earned runs over 5.1 innings of work for VC, striking out five while surrendering five hits and two walks.

Curran was 2-for-3 with two runs for Union, while Amoroso and Harrison Glatt each added two hits in four at-bats as well. Jamie Faber worked two spotless innings of relief to pick up the win for Union.

Game 2 – Union 8, Vassar 5
Koscielniak posted three hits, including a double and a triple, in game two for the Brewers but a five-run first inning for the Dutchmen proved to be the difference.

Union, who clinched the regular season title in the Liberty League with the game two win, was motivated in the second contest, sending 10 batters to the plate in the opening frame while scoring five times.

Vassar senior Jonathan Hong settled down after the first inning though, allowing no more runs over the next four innings which allowed VC to get back into the game. In the bottom of the fifth, Sagnelli singled to start the inning, and would score later on a double by Koscielniak.

Two batters later, Bobby Kinne lined a single to center field to score two and pull the Brewers to within two at 5-3, but VC stranded three runners as Ryan Kuchar came on in relief to keep the hosts at bay.

Union regained its three-run cushion in the seventh inning, as Eric Egan singled up the middle to score Fishman from third. The Brewers came right back with a run of their own in the seventh, as Johnson singled through the right side to plate Koscielniak after he was hit with a pitch. VC once again though missed a chance to add more, leaving three more runners on.

The Dutchmen added another run in the eighth, but once again Vassar was able to trim the lead back down to two as English doubled down the left field line, just out of the reach of a diving Devin Coffey for Union, to score Koscielniak. Union tacked on another score in the ninth as Glatt singled in Curran.

In the ninth inning in his final at-bat of his career, Johnson powered a ball to the top of the wall, but Curran jumped up and robbed Johnson of a homer at the 375-foot sign in right centerfield. Strickland singled to keep the game going, but Faber got Sagnelli to fly out to center to end the game.

English finished with two hits in his final game as a Brewer, as he finishes 10^th all-time in hits at Vassar with 131 for his career. Johnson's RBI in game two was his 99^th of his career, the third-most ever at VC, and all but one VC starter in game two had at least one hit.

Hong went five total frames for Vassar, allowing 11 hits, while Johnny Mrlik worked three innings of relief, striking out five while surrendering three hits and three runs. Glatt paced Union with three hits, while four others had multiple hit performances.

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The Brewers finish the 2016 season with an 18-21 overall record, finishing with the second-most overall wins in program history while the 12 conference wins are also one shy of the program record.