GLENS FALLS * The Glens Falls Golden Eagles had a chance to put the perfect ending on their season Monday.

More important to them, perhaps, was that it was their last chance to play together at all.

The perfect ending didn’t happen. Elmira beat the Eagles 9-5 at East Field to win the New York Collegiate Baseball League championship series, two games to none.

The Eagles were left to balance Monday’s loss with an amazing season in which they won 34 of 40 regular-season games and won two dramatic playoff series.

“It’s kind of upsetting we didn’t win, but you’ve got to look at the up(side),’’ third baseman Kevin Mahoney said. “We had a great season and we broke the (NYCBL) win record. Just the experience with everybody was so much fun.’’

The Golden Eagles has squeaked by in the first two rounds of the playoffs after losing the first game of those best-of-three series. The wear-and-tear of playing eight playoff games in eight days — Elmira swept both of its first two series — finally caught up with them in the finals.

Glens Falls pitchers, reliable throughout the season, gave up 23 runs in two games.

“The two playoff series we had with Little Falls and Saratoga were keys for us,’’ manager John Mayotte said. “We played hard, we used the pitching staff, it was the highlight of our season. I think we bottomed out after that. So many pitchers had been used up in those series.’’

Almost all of the damage Monday came in the second and third innings, with starter Tommy Meagher (5-1, 1.93 ERA before Monday) pitching on three days’ rest. All of the runs scored with two outs.

Elmira didn’t hit the ball real hard, with the exception of two doubles by No. 9 hitter Brad Bonney. The ice-breaker came in the second inning, when Bonney fouled off four straight pitches on a 2-2 count before doubling in the game’s first two runs. He hit another two-bagger in the third that gave Elmira a commanding 8-0 lead.

And it wasn’t as if the Golden Eagles couldn’t do anything with their bats. They recorded 10 hits and had runners on base in every inning except the eighth. But they hit into double plays in each of the first five innings, and that devastated their chances of mounting a comeback.

With Zac Farry pitching well in relief, the Eagles crept back into the game with one run in the sixth, three in the seventh and one in the ninth. But there was not enough magic left in their bats to force a third game in the series.

Elmira picked up the championship plaque and T-shirts after a short celebration. The Eagles then said their goodbyes and players headed for home, and later college, remembering an extraordinary season that ended just short of a title.

“I had some of the greatest young people in the country on this team,’’ Mayotte said. “Everybody seemed to have a passion for playing and winning baseball. That made my summer a great experience. Obviously, our record was mind-boggling; playing that many games and winning that many.’’

“We had one hell of a season, even though we didn’t win the championship,’’ outfielder Casey Larson said. “(This is) something to cherish the rest of your life. It was an amazing experience.’’

Notes: Mayotte said he’s not sure whether he’ll continue coaching summer-league baseball. “I’ll go home and think about it. There’s got to come a time real soon where I hand ‘em up,’’ he said. ... Elmira pitcher Shane Wolf was named MVP. of the playoffs. The Big Stick award went to Elmira’s Andre Licinsky.

and the Golden Glove award went to Mahoney of Glens Falls. ... Elmira almost had a sixth double play in the game, but first baseman Jake Wells came off the bag.