Harwich, Mass. - They were one swing and one defensive play away from changing the outcome of Thursday's postseason game.

That's why the Mitchell College Mariners were so frustrated after a 4-2 loss to Endicott College in the NCAA Division III baseball Harwich Regional winners' bracket game at Whitehouse Field.

A failure to deliver in the clutch and a few defensive breakdowns helped send them into the losers' bracket.

"A couple of situations we were a swing away from putting something together," senior Marc Dorsi said. "It's very frustrating to know Mitchell could have won this game and should have won this game.

"… We pressed a little. Coming out of the winners' bracket, we thought we had a chance. I think the moment might have gotten a little too big for us."

The eighth-seeded Mariners couldn't duplicate their performance from the previous day when they shocked top-seeded Eastern Connecticut State University.

"That's what we feared after a really great game against Eastern where I thought we played fairly well and clean," coach Travis Beausoleil said. "It was a letdown."

Beausoleil told his team before the game that if they could hold Endicott (32-14), a potent offensive team, to four runs, the Mariners would win. He didn't count on his team scoring just two.

Mitchell outhit Endicott 9-6 but stranded eight runners, including leaving the bases loaded in the seventh inning, and committed three errors.

"We needed to come up in a big spot and get a big hit and we just missed it," Beausoleil said. "We had plenty of opportunities."

Mitchell faces sixth-seeded Saint Joseph's of Maine (29-14) at 9:30 a.m. today, with the loser going home. Senior Mike Tandy will be on the mound.

The Mariners (24-13-1) wasted a strong pitching effort from sophomore right-hander Al Jordan Johnson, a Fitch High School graduate.

"Al was an absolute workhorse," Beausoleil said.

Johnson (2-4) battled his way through nine innings, allowing three earned runs while striking out three and walking three. He changed speeds to keep the Gulls guessing and threw 143 pitches overall.

"I knew coming into the game that they were one of the best hitting teams in New England," Johnson said. "I knew I wasn't going to be able to beat them with my velocity, so I tried to slow it down a little and find the zone. I knew once I found the zone, I could pick up the velocity."

If not for few bloop hits and defensive miscues, Johnson would have earned a win.

Endicott took a 1-0 lead in the second and then added another run in the third. Brett Holmgren's bloop single into shallow left field fell just out of the reach of diving shortstop Dorsi and handed the Gulls a 2-0 edge.

Mitchell struggled to produce runs against left-hander Zac Poland (7-0), who went five innings before reliever Davarn Nova took over and earned the save by going the last four.

Dorsi's RBI single scored Gavin LaLima, who reached on a hit-by-pitch, in the third to cut the deficit to 2-1.

Endicott took advantage of some sloppy play to add two more runs in the seventh. Tad Gold's two-out single pushed the lead to 4-1.

The Mariners were on the verge of a big inning in the seventh when Will Charkowsky, Blaze Iannetti and Dorsi singled to load the bases with one out. But Nova fanned Ken Olszewski. A wild pitch scored Charkowsky before Evan Peck grounded out to end the threat.

Sophomore outfielder Neftali Arroyo left the game with a head injury after being kneed in the head while sliding head-first into second base in the fourth. The Mariners missed him at the plate - he had two singles in his first two at-bats - and in the field.

Arroyo, who was taken to an area hospital, may not be available today.

"They sent him to the hospital worrying about his jaw a little bit," Beausoleil said. "He was a little dazed and confused. Our trainers will look at him and we'll make a decision."

Dorsi has faith that the Mariners will bounce back from a disappointing day.

"We have a big heart," Dorsi said. "We're the little school that could. … We're going to regroup and refocus and get our positive energy back."

g.keefe@theday.com