New Bedford, Mass. — The Upper Valley Nighthawks’ offense was coming. Nick Cenatiempo could feel it. The problem was, it was too little too late.

The Nighthawks scored three runs in the eighth inning, responding to a three-run surge from the New Bedford Bay Sox. But it wasn’t enough as Upper Valley’s three-game win streak ended with a 4-3 road loss, splitting the home-and-home series with the inter-divisional Bay Sox. The Nighthawks fell to 3-2.

“That pitcher (New Bedford pitcher Sam Nepiarsky) was good. He was really good,” Cenatiempo said. “I thought he was tough on us. They were coming off of a skid, they wanted to play well and they did. … It was one of those nights where it’s hard to get things going.”

New Bedford (1-3) won its first game of the season.

Troy University’s Houston Mabray pitched seven innings for Upper Valley, giving up two earned runs on five hits and one walk, recording four strikeouts. Dakota Edwards, after struggling in his Nighthawks debut on Saturday, entered the game in the seventh inning, recording three strikeouts and allowing one hit and one run in two innings.

“He did excellent,” Cenatiempo said of Mabray, who took the loss. “He gave up that solo shot (home run to Andrew Penner leading off the seventh), but he did a really nice job. He may have given up a walk or so that kind of hurt us, but when it’s 1-0 heading into the seventh, that’s baseball.”

Nepiarsky held the Nighthawks offense in check through 6 innings, scattering five hits and recording three strikeouts and one walk. Upper Valley’s offense, which has been able to jump ahead early in each of its wins this season, was able to work only after Nepiarsky was retired.

Cenatiempo, with infielders Matt Maul and Grayson Byrd still dealing with back injuries, continued to shuffle his lineup. Hanson scored a run and was 0-for-3 in the leadoff spot. Grayson Padgett was 2-for-4 with a run scored.

A.J. Walden, one day after getting his first hit of the season, a walk-off RBI vs. New Bedford on Tuesday, added two hits as the designated hitter. Catcher James Morisano, with a chance to tie the game with two outs in the seventh inning, popped up to left field to end Upper Valley’s most productive inning.

“We’re experimenting, still,” Cenatiempo said. “This was game five. We still have to find our lineup, see who fits where, see who we got. … We shifted some guys around today, and we’ll keep doing it until we find some answers.”

South Carolina Lancaster’s Cordes Baker will make his Nighthawks debut tonight against Winnipesaukee (3-3). Upper Valley defeated the Muskrats 7-2 on Sunday.

— Josh Weinreb

Boys Soccer Lebanon Cent. Supply 5 Hartford Jrs. 1

Meriden — Five different Lebanon Central Supply players found the back of the net on Wednesday night in a season-opening win over Hartford Juniors in a Division IV New Hampshire Soccer Conference game.

Luke Sandman scored twice, while Jacob Peress and Mack Walton added single tallies to help Central Supply to a 4-0 halftime lead. After Patrick Maglone scored on a 45-yard direct kick to put Hartford on the board in the 60th minute, Julian Stott and Owen Johnstone responded for Lebanon to account for the final score.

Erik Spaulding (one save) and Davis Cole (two saves) split time in the Central Supply goal. The clubs’ younger teams meet this evening at the Plainfield School in a Division V matchup.

Jr. Legion Baseball Lebanon 7, Hartford 1

White River Junction — Lebanon pitchers Derek Griffin, Trey Parker and Cedric Elkouh combined to allow one hit over seven innings as Post 22 defeated Post 84.

Griffin pitched three no-hit innings and struck out two, Parker allowed one hit and whiffed two and Elkouh zero hits and two strikeoutd.

At the plate, Griffin had three hits and Trey Parker two for Lebanon, which blew the game open with a five-run sixth inning.