Telegraph photo by TOM KING Nashua Silver Knights infielder Noah Lucier drew the attention of Knights manager B.J. Neverett a year ago in a high school tournament game in Brockton.

NASHUA – It’s a familiar baseball story.

Scouts will tell you they’ve gone to a game to watch one player, and end up discovering another.

For Nashua Silver Knights manager B.J. Neverett, that was almost the case when he first saw infielder Noah Lucier of Sandown play.

“The funny story about him is I had never seen him play,” Neverett said. “Then last year we went down to Brockton, and we were waiting for one of the Super Eight tournament games to finish.

“He was the shortstop for (Lawrence) Central Catholic, and they were playing B.C. High. We were watching and probably saw about five innings. And I said, ‘Wow, this kid at shortstop is really good.’ But I lost track of him.”

That is, however, until Stonehill College baseball coach Pat Boen called Neverett and said “Hey, I’ve got a guy who lives right near you and needs a spot. Have you got a spot for this kid?”

At the time, the Silver Knights were missing players with injuries, etc. So Neverett said sure, he’d be willing to give Lucier a 10-day contract.

Then Neverett took a look at the Stonehill roster on line and it clicked.

“Central Catholic, freshman, that’s the kid I saw in Brockton,” Neverett said he realized. “We like him, he’s done a nice job.”

Lucier has been in and out of the lineup as the Knights try to encourage him to go the other way. They also like his defense, as he’s spent some time at third, short and second. “He’s a very above average fielder,” Neverett said.

Neverett liked the fact Lucier started all year at shortstop for Stonehill and hit a respectable .281 with five extra base hits and 15 RBIs in 29 games while starting at shortstop.

“At the beginning of the year I was struggling a little at the plate, but then I started getting back to the basics,” Lucier said. “The average just jumped and I won the spot.”

He’s been trying to do the same thing here; things have gone up and down. He’s trying not to try to drive the ball deep but go for base hits, currently hitting .277 (fifth on the team) in 25 games going into Monday night’s game at Holman Stadium vs. Bristol. He was a 300 meter runner in track at Central Catholic so he has some speed and usually hits atop the lineup, one or two.

In the field, Lucier says he’s most comfortable up the middle, but can play third and actually played third in youth baseball in Sandown.

Lucier also played in the highly regarded Youngsville Junior Baseball League in Manchester for a lot of years, referred there by a coach who coached him with the Junior Spinners program. He also had a family friend refer him to Central Catholic, as he wanted a good academic school with good baseball.

That was the same case with Stonehill. “It gave me an opportunity to get a good education and play baseball at the next level,” he said. “Coach Bowen’s a great guy, gave me an opportunity to play as a freshman. He’s just a fair guy, and that’s what I loved about it.”

Lucier found out quickly that the game pace and the time commitment was a lot different in college. “But everything about it was fun,” Lucier said. “Honestly, anywhere you play these days it’s about adapting to the environment and jelling with the team.”

Lucier jelled right away with the Silver Knights, and the off-field time with his teammates – travel, locker room – proved valuable. “We’re all here for the summer, you might as well get close to each other and enjoy the time here,” he said.

Lucier said that facing some of the Division I arms in the FCBL has been difficult,but he tries not to “overthink it.”

He’s studying marketing, and Lucier wants to eventually work in sales. He’s been trying to sell himself at various levels of baseball for years, and doesn’t want that trend to change. So before he enters the real world, he’d love a shot at continuing to play ball.

“That’s definitely a dream to play at the next level,” Lucier said. “We’ll see where it takes us from here. Got to keep working, keep getting better every year, and let the chips fall where they may.”

Besides, you just never know who’s watching.

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The Silver Knights named Northeastern outfielder Jared Dupere (Amesbury, Mass.) as their Player of the Week after he went 4 for 5 with four RBIs in the July 3 15-2 rout of Worcester. Dupere went into Monday night hitting .268 but leding the Knights in homers (six) and RBIs (21).

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Schedule update: This Sunday’s visit by league-leading Pittsfield will be doubleheader beginning at 3 p.m. (both games seven innings)…

Also,this past Saturday’s rainout vs. Brockton will be made up as part of a doubleheader on Wednesday, July 31, beginning at noon. Those will be the next -to-last regular season home games as the last one is set for Thursday night August 1 vs. North Shore.

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