Knights

Saturday, June 10, 2023

By: Dan Allison | Silver Knights media relations

Besides the gloomy overcast bringing brief rain to Holman Stadium, a six-game losing streak also hung over the heads of the Silver Knights. Saturday’s matchup with the Pittsfield Suns came following a Friday night loss that should have been a victory. Self-imposed errors cost Nashua a game very much in hand, as Saturday brought more of the same. Once holding a 5-0 lead, the Knights fell 8-5 for their seventh straight loss.

Another day of highs and lows for the Knights showed their potential while also showing their faults. Nashua jumped out to a quick 5-0 lead that included a four-run second inning. New England’s Luca Giallongo posted a two-RBI single to highlight the second, with a quick start being right what the Knights needed.

Colby’s Thomas Rioux had his best outing of the 2023 campaign, throwing four scoreless innings in the no-decision.

Things were looking up for Nashua before they hit the top of the fifth, where the crumble began. After Rioux’s great start, the Knights' bullpen could not keep the momentum going as Pittsfield posted eight unanswered runs in the remaining five frames. Four of the five arms that came in gave up an earned run on the night, turning a comfortable Silver Knight lead into a big setback.

Along with struggles on the mound, the once-hot offense quickly went cold. Nashua was shutout in the next seven innings following the second, showing shades of the offense that fell 9-1 to New Britain just nights ago.

Down three headed into the ninth, Giallongo and Eastern Nazarene’s Shane McNamara both got aboard to bring the tying run to the plate. As a speck of hope remained within the Holman grounds, Nashua would go down quietly with another zero in the ninth for an 8-5 final.

Now dropping seven straight, the Knights will head back down to eastern Connecticut as they seek their third win. Nashua and the Sea Unicorns are slated for a 4:00 PM first pitch on Sunday.