BROOKHAVEN, N.Y. - The Caldwell College baseball team lost to Dowling College, 4-2 in a non-conference game Thursday afternoon at Golden Lions Field. The defeat drops the Cougars to 26-17 overall, while the Golden Lions improve to 25-17. The two teams are close in the latest NCAA Northeast Region rankings, with Caldwell ranked fifth and Dowling ranked seventh.

Dowling took a 2-0 lead with runs in the first and third innings before the Cougars scored a run in the fourth. Sophomore Omar Velazquez (Astoria, NY/Long Island City) came home from second on an error to make the score 2-1 Dowling. But the Golden Lions pushed two more runs across the plate in the bottom of the fifth to lead 4-1. Velazquez scored again in the eighth on an RBI single by senior Chris Chiarappa (Elmont, NY/Holy Trinity), but the Cougars would get no closer as Dowling beat Caldwell for the second time this season. Senior Tommy Murphy (Monroe, NY/Washingtonville) and freshman Edgar Santos (Woodside, NY/Bryant) each had two hits for Caldwell.

Velazquez started the game on the mound for the Cougars and gave up four runs, three earned, on six hits in five innings of work to fall to 3-1. Kevin McCormack (4-3) held Caldwell to seven hits and two runs, one earned, in eight innings to earn the victory.

The Cougars close out the regular season with three games against Bloomfield College this weekend. The two teams play a single game on Friday, May 2 at Breslin Field in Lyndhurst, N.J., before playing a doubleheader at Smith Field in Parsippany, N.J. on Saturday, May 3, beginning at 12:00 p.m.