The Portland Sea Dogs opened their second homestand of the season on the 25th anniversary of their inaugural game at Hadlock Field.

As was the case in 1994, they came up short against a Double-A affiliate of the New York Yankees.

The Dogs couldn’t protect an early lead and lost 3-1 to the visiting Trenton Thunder on a damp and dreary Thursday night.

The Sea Dogs, who arrived back in town at 2:30 Thursday morning following a 2-4 road trip to New Jersey and Pennsylvania, dropped to 3-8 on the young season. Trenton is 9-4.

The Sea Dogs managed a few bright spots amid the misty drizzle. First baseman Josh Tobias made a diving stop to his right to steal a hit. Reliever Jordan Weems fanned seven of the 15 batters he faced. Outfielder Keith Curcio followed Wednesday’s four-hit performance with two more Thursday, including a run-scoring double in the fourth.

Singles by Tate Matheny and Joseph Monge preceded Curcio’s timely hit and gave the Dogs a 1-0 lead. Trenton responded with two runs in the fifth following the ejection of Portland pitching coach Paul Abbott, whose vocal displeasure from the dugout of ball-and-strike calls earned him a long walk to the clubhouse in right field.

A bunt single by Paul Hendrix, a wall-scraping double by Wendell Rijo and a two-out RBI single by Rashad Crawford put the Thunder on top. Trenton added an insurance run in the eighth with help from one of three throwing errors by Sea Dogs infielders.

NOTES: To celebrate the 25th anniversary, the Sea Dogs handed out commemorative hats to the first 500 fans, only a few dozen of whom stuck around for the duration. The paid attendance was announced as 3,102. The series continues Friday and Saturday. No Eastern League games are scheduled for Easter Sunday.