Manchester Verizon Center

Nashua North wins a wild one in Div. I final

MANCHESTER — Nashua North claimed its first-ever championship with a wild and unpredictable 11-6 win over Concord late Saturday afternoon at Northeast Delta Dental Stadium.

The game, which was sandwiched between each school's commencement, involved 28 hits, 36 baserunners and one rhubarb generating in an ejection of one player from each squad.

It doesn't figure that small ball and defense would play prominently in a game featuring that kind of fire power, but top-seeded Nashua North (19-4) bunted five times, plating three runs on suicide squeeze plays to erase an early three-run deficit, and withstood repeated comeback bids from the sixth-seeded Crimson Tide (14-8).

Seven Concord seniors donned mortar boards and gowns in a ceremony preceding the game. Nine North seniors left shortly after the game in order to collect diplomas at a 6 p.m ceremony at nearby Verizon Wireless Center.

“We would have never won this game without the leadership of our nine seniors,” North coach Will Henderson said. “Credit Concord for not letting this be a pretty win. I mean that in a positive way. They are a tough bunch that (can hit) and make you work for everything.”

Eight of nine Concord starters boasted batting averages over .300. The hitters went to work early, stranding three runners in the first before combining six singles and a sacrifice bunt for three runs in the second.

Pat Cannon, Ed Dionne and Graham McIntire contributed RBI singles. The rally was cut short when center fielder Keon Jenkins threw out a runner at the plate.

Concord jumped ahead in an early-season 13-7 win over North and starter Kyle Turner early in the regular season. North's defense provided some Concord some assistance back then.

“We knew three runs wasn't going to be enough to beat us. We had no doubt we weren't going to lose,” said North senior shortstop Brandon Karkhanis who made two defensive plays and scored twice.

Two Concord errors contributed to North's six-run third in which 12 Titans came to the plate. Karkhanis and Adam Leith each put down run-scoring squeeze bunts. Matt Fortin and Cam Duval added run-scoring singles while Joe Breen walked and Mike Muise was hit by a pitch to with the bases loaded.

Fortin collected three hits and drove in three runs on the game.

'American Idols Live!' 2011 concert schedule

‘American Idol’ season 10 has kept its viewership and put FOX at the top of the ratings each week. Soon, the Top 11 contestants – Casey Abrams, Naima Adedapo, Lauren Alaina, James Durbin, Stefano Langone, Jacob Lusk, Scotty McCreery, Paul McDonald, Thia Megia, Haley Reinhart, and Pia Toscano – will embark upon their biggest thrill yet: the American Idols Live! tour.

  6 Maverik Center (West Valley City, Utah)   8 Comcast Arena at Everett Events Center (Everett, Wash.)   9 Rose Garden (Portland, Ore.) 11 Power Balance Pavilion (Sacramento, Ca.) 12 The Oracle Arena (Oakland, Ca.) 13 HP Pavilion at San Jose (San Jose, Ca.) 15 Nokia Theatre LA Live (Los Angeles, Ca.) 16 Citizens Business Bank Arena (Ontario, Ca.) 17 US Airways Arena (Phoenix, Ariz.) 19 Cox Convention Center (Oklahoma, Okla.) 20 Verizon Theater at Grand Prairie (Grand Prairie, Texas) 21 Reliant Arena (Houston, Texas) 22 Lakefront Arena (New Orleans, La.) 24 Amway Center (Orlando, Fla.) 26 Arena at Gwinnett Center (Duluth, Ga.) 27 RBC Center (Raleigh, N.C.) 28 Time Warner Cable Arena (Charlotte, N.C.) 30 Bridgestone Arena (Nashville, Tenn.) 31 Scottrade Center (St. Louis, Mo.)   2 Sprint Center (Kansas City, Mo.)   3 Target Center (Minneapolis, Minn.)   4 Bradley Center (Milwaukee, Wis.)   6 Allstate Arena (Rosemont, Ill.)   7 Joe Louis Arena (Detroit, Mich.)   9 Schottenstein Center (Columbus, Ohio) 10 Consol Energy Center (Pittsburgh, Pa.) 11 1st Mariner Arena (Baltimore, Md.) 13 Boardwalk Hall (Atlantic City, N.J.) 14 Prudential Center (Newark, N.J.) 17 Wells Fargo Center (Philadelphia, Pa.) 19 Verizon Center (Washington, D.C.) 20 Richmond Coliseum (Richmond, Va.) 21 Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza (Wilkes-Barre, Pa.) 23 Nassau Coliseum (Long Island, N.Y.) 25 Webster Bank Arena at Harbor Yard (Bridgeport, Conn.) 27 Dunkin’ Donuts Center (Providence, R.I.) 28 Times Union Center (Albany, N.Y.) 30 Cumberland County Civic Center (Portland, Maine) 31 Verizon Wireless Arena (Manchester, N.H.) Pat Ryder is a freelance photojournalist that reports on arts & entertainment. She photographed and reviewed the American Idols Live tour in 2009, as well as two of Adam Lambert's Glam Nation shows in 2010. Pat writes the American Idol column for Examiner.com and contributes entertainment and news stories to various sites.

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