SLU’s Joe Delaney steals second base as McNeese State’s Brad Burckel attempts to make the catch during game two of the Southland Conference championship series at Joe Miller Ballpark Friday. (Rick Hickman / American Press)

Brad Burckel summed up this Cowboy team best not by his words but rather his bat.

With all lost in the ninth inning Saturday night, Burckel stepped to the plate with one out remaining and McNeese State down by six runs.

Tired and down Burckel could have mailed in his last at-bat of the season, but instead he blasted a two-run homer to produce the final runs of the Cowboy spring.

It was his 10th of the year, tying him for the team lead.

“I just didn’t want to make the last out,” said Burckel. “I wasn’t being selfish, I just didn’t want the season to end.”

It did, of course, a few pitches later as Southeastern won the Southland Conference championship 11-7, taking the title series in three games.

“We played for a championship and came up short,” said head coach Justin Hill. “We managed the best we could with what we had.”

While there will be no three-peat or third straight trip to the NCAA Tournament, there is a regular-season title to be celebrated.

McNeese finished the year 34-23, winning eight straight games before falling in the championship series.

The Cowboys had their share of comebacks and walk-off wins, showing no game was out of reach. It also showed there was no quit in the team.

“I’m proud of the way this team always fought, no matter what the situation,” said Burckel.

These Cowboys will also be remembered for bringing life back to a stadium still in the process of rebuilding.

“You have to look back on it with perspective,” said outfielder Julian Gonzales, who has been with the program for five years.

“We have been through a lot with everything that has happened. We felt all along that we had our moments I will never forget.

“It’s just disappointing how it ends.”

McNeese finished the season as the top offensive team in the Southland, hitting .304 and scoring 440 runs. It also had the best pitching, posting a league-best 4.39 earned run average.

The Cowboys won SLC awards for best pitcher in Grant Rogers, top coach in Hill and Player of the Year Paton Harden.

“This team is not defined by one game or 24 hours, it is defined by an entire season of work,” said Hill.

After starting 16-16 and just 3-6 in SLC play, the Cowboys found themselves near the bottom of the league standings.

They would finish the year going 12-3 to beat Southeastern for the league title by a game at 15-9.

McNeese also went 18-7 overall while Hill split his time between his team and father who suffered a stroke.

“These guys went on a seven-week sprint where they had to win every time out,” said Hill. “They did what they had to do. I’m proud of what they accomplished.

“They emptied the tank.”

The Cowboys, who were supposed to be in a rebuilding season, came within five outs and maybe one call from a surprise championship.

“We were close,” said Burckel. “That makes it disappointing.”

For players like Gonzales who will move on now, the legacy they leave behind is one of winning.

“It has been a great five years,” Gonzales said. “We were fortunate enough to come here when there was a great culture with great leaders and build on it.

“We have tried to leave it in a better place.”

Now the program moves on, looking to learn from the series lost and build on what was gained.

“You want to have a team that plays in these types of games,” said Hill. “This time it just didn’t work out for us.”