NASHUA – Concord Post 21 acquired the Comeback Kids nickname while claiming the New Hampshire American Legion state championship title Tuesday night, beating Goffstown twice at Nashua's Holman Stadium.

Concord forced a championship-round doubleheader, coming from behind to beat previously unbeaten Goffstown, 7-4, in the first game of the eight-team, double elimination tourney.

They won the second game in the same fashion, erasing a two-run deficit for a 6-4 victory.

As in the championship round's first game, Goffstown took an early two-run lead. Reese Easton singled, swiped second and trotted home when Connor Shaw hammered a double to center. Shaw scored on Ryan Beal's RBI hit with two outs in the bottom of the third.

And, the lead disappeared, just like the earlier game as Concord made Goffstown pay for its defensive miscues.

Ben Bengston reached on an error and scored on Pat Cannon's two-out double in the fifth, which was just a precursor to the seventh. They drew five walks and took advantage of two two-out errors to score four runs without the benefit of a hit, and went ahead 5-2.

In Game 1, Post 21 forced a winner-take-all finale to the American Legion state baseball tournament with a spirited comeback victory.

Trailing by three runs after Goffstown Post 16 catcher Ryan Beal struck the first homer of the tournament – a fifth-inning solo shot landing well behind the 307-foot marker painted on the brick wall down the left field line – Concord forged two consecutive rallies.

Post 21, fielding players from two teams that won scholastic titles in June, took advantage of an error and two wild pitches to tally three unearned runs and knotted the score in the bottom of the frame. Dillon Emerson and Braden Smith each delivered two-out RBI singles.

A pair of two-strike hits sparked a four-run rally in the bottom of the sixth, chasing Goffstown starter Ryan Smith, who whiffed eight batters through five, and giving Concord a reason to believe. Pat Cannon fouled three two-strike pitches before sending a seeing-eye single through the left side of the infield to plate Sam McManus.

David Drouin followed suit, fouling a nasty two-strike offering before lining a single to right-center while Matt McCormack and Cannon cruised home. An out later Kenny Hart converted the first pitch sent his way into a RBI single.

Reliever Autrey Gates set the stage for Concord's comeback. The soon-to-be Pembroke senior entered the game with two outs in the bottom of the third. Goffstown led 2-0 and had the bases loaded. Gates induced an infield groundout. Thereafter he handcuffed a team that entered the game owning a .318 team batting average.

Gates earned the win, allowing two hits in six inning of work, striking out four and walking one. He allowed the homer and a seventh-inning run produced by a throwing error.

eemmerling@unionleader.com

Game 1

Concord 7, Goffstown 4

Goffstown (4-1) 200-010-100—4-7-2

Concord (4-1) 000-034-00X—7-12-2

Ryan Smith (LP) and Ryan Beal; Eddie Dionne, Autrey Gates (WP, 3) and Braden Smith.