The Nashua Silver Knights traveled to Fitton Field on Saturday night and dropped a back-and-forth game to the Worcester Bravehearts 14-12 despite a late rally.
Nashua fell behind early but hung around, with Brendan Horne (VCU) and Phoenix Williams (Mount St. Mary’s) each hitting RBI doubles in the second to tie it at 2. The Knights grabbed a brief 3-2 lead in the third on a Caleb Vacchiano (University of Southern Maine) RBI double before Worcester erupted for six runs in the bottom of the third, capped by a Hunter St. Denis two-run double and a Julian Mercado two-run single to go up 9-3.
The Bravehearts extended the lead to 13-8 through five innings on a Mercado two-run home run and a Cade Centracchio two-run triple. Nashua made it interesting in the eighth on a Vacchiano two-run home run, and the Knights scored twice more in the ninth on an unearned run and a Hunter Troiano (Gannon) sacrifice fly, but couldn’t complete the comeback.
Phoenix Williams was the offensive standout for Nashua, going 4-for-5 with 2 RBI. Vacchiano added a homer and 3 RBI. Peter Keblinsky (University of Southern Maine) also drove in a run.
Nigel Cross (Wentworth Institute of Technology) took the loss, allowing 8 runs in 2.2 innings. Matthew Donovan (Roger Williams) and Dimitri Skourides (Brandeis) each provided solid middle relief, combining for 2.2 scoreless innings.
The Silver Knights fall to 7-9 as the Bravehearts improve to 9-6. Nashua returns home Monday night to host the Westfield Starfires at Historic Holman Stadium at 6:03 pm
