Alright, so a quick anecdote:
I was playing a 3v3 deathmatch game. Our crew did okay early on, but soon the enemy took the lead. For some reason, on both teams exactly one ship surrendered, turning from a 3v3 to a 2v2.
My crew was carrying the team in a junker, while our ally, a goldfish, was having some trouble.
The score got ridiculously close, as we made a comeback and only needed 2 points to win, while the enemy needed 1 point.
We were close to defeating at least one of the ships while trying to evacuate their spawn when suddenly, THE ENEMY'S THIRD SHIP REJOINED!
Of course, with a 3v2 battle, guess who won? The enemy.
Should a ship that surrendered be able to rejoin the game? I think that was an unfair twist that upset my team's crew and really sucked the joy from the gameplay. Surrender should be a permanent option.
Even though the enemy ship rejoined, on the commendation screen, it still said "surrendered" next to the name of the one that rejoined.