A 3-1 loss to the Cotuit Kettleers in game two of the Cape Cod Baseball League Western Division finals Tuesday evening ended the Wareham Gatemen 2010 season.

"Everybody was very disappointed, we worked so hard to get to the place we were," said Assistant Coach Jake Long.   "We were 4-13 at the beginning of July, we did an outstanding job of turning it around."

The Gatemen had advanced to the division finals late last week after defeating the Western-division leader Bourne Braves in two games, the second of which was an 11-inning nail-biter for fans at Spillane Field.

The Braves tied the game at 2-2 in the eighth. But after numerous tense moments for each team as bases were loaded and pitches were missing the strike zone, it was the Gatemen's LJ Mazzilli who broke the tie, driving a hit over the centerfielder's head with the bases loaded in the top of the 12th to end the game.

But the team ran into trouble against the Kettleers.  They opened the season by defeating Cotuit on Opening Day, but have lost to them four times, and tied them once, since.

The first game of the series was tied at 2-2 going into the sixth, but Cotuit exploded to score two runs off of starting pitcher Jack Armstrong in the bottom of the inning and then scored two more off of relief pitcher Andrew McKirahan in the bottom of the seventh to bring the final score to 6-2.

Over 3,100 fans attended Spillane Field Tuesday night to watch the Gatemen fall 3-1 and allow Cotuit to return to the championship game for the third year in a row.

After the game, the team retreated to the Narrows Restaurant for some food and to reminisce about a tough season.

Third Basemen Tyler Bream, of Liberty University, was awarded the Francis Tripp Award in recognition of his positive contributions to the organization and the community on and off the field. He joins good company:  previous award recipients include Major-League players Justin Masterson, Barry Zito, and Carlos Pena.

Max Perlman, of Harvard, was elected by the Gatemen President, GM and coaches to receive the Albert Bigelow Award, in recognition of the season's most outstanding pitcher.

Jonathon Smith, a second basemen from Tennessee Wesleyan, was honored with the Silvia Bigelow Award, annually given to the most outstanding position player.

At the annual season-ending clambake last week, Field Manager Cooper Ferris had mentioned that it had been a trying season for the team with a rough start to the season, nagging injuries that affected key players, three players leaving to join Team USA, and a roster that had completely changed between May and June.  Nevertheless, the team should be proud of their accomplishments.

But "now it's cleanup day," said Long, who's task for the day is washing the team's uniforms. He's been doing laundry since 7 a.m. "There's mounds and mounds and mounds of stuff."

The Kettleers now face the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox in the championship best-of-three series. Game one is Thursday, August 12 at 3 p.m. at Yarmouth-Dennis.