KEENE, N.H. 一 The North Shore Navigators made a comeback effort with runs in each of the last two innings, but a five-run sixth was the difference as the Keene SwampBats earned a 6-4 win in Wednesday night’s New England Collegiate Baseball League game at Alumni Field.

North Shore slipped to 1-1 in the early season, while Keene picked up the victory in its season opener.

Shortstop Reece Moroney (Rhode Island) and left fielder Jesse Jaconski (Penn State) had two hits apiece to lead the North Shore offense, which had a 9-7 advantage in the hit column. Moroney also drove in two runs, while catcher Ryan MacDougall (Dayton) scored twice.

Delivering the second straight strong outing by a Navs starter, left-hander Will Jones (Northeastern) left with a 2-1 lead after striking out five across five innings of three-hit, one-run ball.

North Shore was unable to bring a first-inning run across after center fielder Ryan Gerety (Northeastern) ripped a hustle double down the right-field line and Moroney followed with a single, but plated a go-ahead run in the second. Moroney knocked a bases-loaded, two-out single to left, scoring MacDougall following a one-out walk that opened the scoring rally.

Some sparkling defense kept the Navs’ lead to just one, including first baseman Victor Izquierdo’s (Navy) diving stop to take a likely multi-RBI hit away from right fielder Alex Luccini (UMass Lowell) down the line to end the second. Five Navs were stranded on base over the first two frames.

Jones picked up where he left off in the early going, retiring the first six batters he faced before getting out of a two-on, none-out jam in the third. With two in scoring position, the left-hander from South Hamilton completely escaped trouble by striking out shortstop Nicholas Romano (FAU) to end the inning.

The North Shore pitching staff was finally cracked for its first run with two outs in the fifth as second baseman Alex Alicea (Louisville) knocked a hit-and-run single through a hole on the left side to score right fielder Ripken Reese (Kent State) with the game-tying run.

In the sixth, the Navs jumped right back ahead as Jaconski knocked a two-out single up the middle. Third baseman Tim McGuire (Sacred Heart) hit a leadoff single and advanced into scoring position on first baseman Andrew Bianco’s (Seton Hall) sacrifice bunt.

The game immediately turned in Keene’s favor after Jones was relieved, as the first six SwampBats reached base and five scored to begin an eventual 10-batter sixth. Left fielder Brett House (Mississippi State) highlighted the frame with a no-doubt, three-run homer to center that put the hosts ahead before Izquierdo’s two-run single past a drawn-in infield padded the lead.

North Shore’s comeback effort came in the form of runs in both the eighth and ninth innings. The first of those frames began with MacDougall singling and scoring on Moroney’s grounder with one out.

Designated hitter Matt Chatelle (Merrimack) ripped a leadoff double into the right-field corner to begin the ninth. The returning NECBL All-Star advanced to third a McGuire grounder and scored on a wild pitch, but Isaac Williams (Jacksonville) bounced back to finish a five-out save behind winning pitcher Nicholas Timpanelli (Charleston Southern).

Cole Mascott (Northwestern) took the loss for North Shore, which was able to remain in striking distance on the strength of great back-end bullpen work. Sachem Ramos (Michigan) struck out the side in the eighth, while Gloucester’s Zach Morris (Rhode Island) fanned two in a one-hit ninth.

The Navs are scheduled to continue their first road trip of the summer on Thursday with a visit to South Kingstown, R.I., to face the Coastal Division rival Ocean State Waves. First pitch from Old Mountain Field is set for 6:30 p.m.