Thomas Mattice ruined Michael Dutchover’s homecoming Friday night.

One of Mattice’s punches opened a nasty cut above Dutchover’s left eye in the eighth round, which caused a ringside physician to recommend a stoppage in their lightweight fight. Referee Robert Velez halted their scheduled 10-rounder at 1:33 of the eighth round at La Hacienda Center in Midland, Texas, Dutchover’s hometown.

Dutchover suffered his first defeat (13-1, 10 KOs) in the main event of Showtime’s “ShoBox: The New Generation” tripleheader.

Cleveland’s Mattice (15-1-1, 11 KOs) looked much better in this fight than in his “ShoBox” bout February 1. The 29-year-old Mattice lost an eight-round unanimous decision to Will Madera (14-0-3, 7 KOs) that night in Rochester, New York.

The Mattice-Dutchover fight was highly competitive prior to the stoppage. The 21-year-old Dutchover got off to a fast start, but a determined Mattice imposed his will on the younger prospect during the middle rounds.

Dutchover went past the sixth round for the first time in his three-year pro career.

Mattice caught Dutchover with a counter left about 40 seconds into the eighth round. Soon thereafter, Dutchover suffered a cut over his left eye.

Dutchover went after Mattice’s body in the seventh round. Mattice wasn’t as active in those three minutes as he had been in the previous round.

Dutchover and Mattice continued to fight at a rapid pace during a sixth round that was very competitive.

Mattice kept pressuring Dutchover at the start of the fifth round. Dutchover drilled him with overhand right just prior to the midway mark of the fifth round, but Mattice quickly came back to land a hard right hand of his own.

Mattice also landed a straight right hand in the final 10 seconds of that fifth round.

Dutchover connected with several right hands during the fourth round, but he couldn’t keep Mattice from coming forward for the first two minutes of it. Mattice landed two left hooks in the final minute of what was a solid fourth round for him.

Dutchover and Mattice both landed hard shots during an action-packed third round.

Dutchover landed a right to the body and quickly followed with a sneaky right uppercut just before the halfway point of the second round. An overhand right by Dutchover connected about 25 seconds into the second round.

Dutchover snapped back Mattice’s head with a left hand just before the second round ended.

Mattice blocked most of Dutchover’s punches in the first round with his arms and gloves.

Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.