Devern Hansack was superb coming off the disabled list. Jason Lane came up big one night after having been ejected.

Hansack and Lane carried Pawtucket to a 3-1 victory over Scranton/Wilkes-Barre last night at McCoy Stadium, squaring their best-of-five Governor’s Cup playoff series at one game apiece.

After an easy Yankees victory in the opener, this one had more playoff tension as well as all kinds of twists and turns that made it entertaining.

The biggest involved Hansack. He was taken out of the game after six innings with a no-hitter going. The right-hander, who was 6-10 in the regular season, was on a pitch count. He had been on the disabled list because of a forearm contusion on his pitching arm. He made on appearance Saturday after coming off the DL, throwing 37 pitches in two innings.

Because he had gone 12 days before that without pitching, he was restricted to 75-80 pitches last night. He made them count.

“It was a phenomenal outing,” said Pawtucket manager Ron Johnson. “Six innings and he no-hits the best team in the league. . . He dominated.”

Hansack struck out eight, seven swinging, and walked two.

As it was, Johnson almost took him out after 5 2/3 innings when he reached 74 pitches. The next Yankees hitter was Juan Miranda, a lefty who hits .195 against southpaws, .330 against righties. Johnson had lefty Jon Switzer warmed and ready to face Miranda. Before he went to the mound, though, pitching coach Rich Sauveur had a suggestion.

“Rich said before you make the motion to the bullpen, see what he feels like,” Johnson related. Hansack talked Johnson into staying in for one more batter, saying he felt great and would strike out Miranda. As it was, he worked the count full and then Miranda ripped a hard shot up the first-base line.

First baseman Gil Velazquez made a diving stab and flipped to Hansack covering for the out. That brought Hansack to 80 pitches and Johnson would not allow any more.

“To me, you become a bad employee if you lose your head and all of a sudden he’s going 95, 100 pitches,” Johnson said. “He had done enough.”

The latest in what seems like a never-ending line of Red Sox pitching prospects will make his Triple-A debut tonight under highly unusual circumstances.

Adam Mills, only 15 months into his pro career, will get the start for Pawtucket as the PawSox play Game Three of the opening round against Scranton/Wilkes-Barre at PNC Field in Moosic, Pa.

Mills makes only one promise –– that he will work quickly.

“I’m mostly a ground-ball pitcher, not many strikeouts,” Mills said. “I more have command stuff. I’m a control guy, keep the ball down. I don’t throw 95 (mph), but I’ve got movement on my pitches and I mix it up a lot.”

He works fast for a reason.

“It keeps the defense involved in the game. For a guy like me that uses the defense a lot, it’s kind of a key thing to do,” Mills said.

Mills, 23, who is from Maryland, has moved rapidly through the Boston system. The 6-foot, 195-pound right-hander was selected in the eighth round in last year’s draft. He pitched in the Atlantic 10, for Charlotte, where he was the school’s all-time victory leader with 30. He had a sensational senior season, with a 1.01 earned-run average and was one of the three finalists for the Roger Clemens Award as the top pitcher in college baseball.

He pitched in Lowell after signing. He began this year with Lancaster, in the Class-A California League. He went 7-4 and was promoted to Portland. He made 11 starts with the Seadogs. His record was unimpressive, at 0-5, but his numbers were solid, including a 4.00 ERA. He only allowed two home runs in 63 innings.

“It’s very unexpected,” he said of jumping three levels in one year. “I didn’t know what to expect. I assumed I’d start in Greenville (Boston’s lower Class A team), hopefully work hard and get to Lancaster. But I’d rather have it this way.”

The Portland Sea Dogs are in a win-or-it's-over situation after losing a three-run lead and falling 4-3 to the Trenton Thunder in Game 2 of their Eastern League playoff series Thursday night at Waterfront Park.

The teams will meet tonight at Hadlock Field. If Portland, trailing 2-0 in the best-of-five series, wins tonight, Game 4 will be played Saturday at Hadlock. If a fifth game is necessary, it will be played Sunday at Trenton.

Clay Buchholz was cruising with a 3-0 lead for the Sea Dogs until the sixth inning when he allowed a three-run homer to Austin Jackson. The Thunder then scored again in the eighth.

Using his curve and fastball, Buchholz set down the first eight men before Kevin Russo doubled with two outs in the third.

The Sea Dogs took the lead in the fourth. With two outs, Jeff Marquez of Trenton walked Josh Reddick and Mark Wagner. Mickey Hall doubled to deep right field and Reddick and Wagner scored easily, but Hall was thrown out trying to stretch it to a triple.

In the fifth, Jorge Jimenez of Portland led off with a deep fly to right. Edwar Gonzalez of the Thunder had the ball bounce off his glove for a double.

Ryan Khoury, a late addition to the Sea Dogs' lineup when shortstop Argenis Diaz experienced back spasms during batting practice, popped up to the pitcher on a failed bunt, but Zach Daeges then scored Jimenez with his third hit of the game to make it 3-0.

In the bottom of the sixth, Buchholz gave up back-to-back singles to start the inning before Jackson crushed a 2-2 pitch over the left-field wall.

"Even in the sixth inning I felt good," said Buchholz. "I gave up a little bleeder and a ground ball in the hole. The curve that Jackson hit, I don't see anybody sitting on a curveball like that. He's in good company; the only other person that's ever done that to me is Jim Thome."

Three runs in the final two innings lifted the Lowell Spinners to a 3-2 victory on the against the Oneonta Tigers.

Peter Hissey (2-for-5, RBI, stolen base) scored on Mitch Dening's triple in the eighth inning, and Kade Keowen (1-for-2, RBI) and Hissey both smacked RBI singles in the top of the ninth to give Lowell the come-from-behind victory.

Dening finished with three hits, and catcher Tim Federowicz had a hit, two walks, and his 10th stolen base of the season. Federowicz led off the ninth inning with a walk, and he scored the game-tying run.

Lowell bounced back from a 14-6 loss the night before to the Tigers

Oneonta scored two unearned runs in the bottom of the first inning. An error by second baseman Jon Hee, and a hit batter with two runners on base set up a two-run inning for the Tigers.

Bryan Pounds two-run single provided all of Oneonta's scoring.

Spinners starting pitcher Hunter Strickland tossed five innings, allowing four hits and the two runs. He also recorded five strikeouts.