North, Souhegan claim titles

By rbrown
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Updated: November 21, 2020

Recaps from Saturday’s Division I and Division II championship games …

DIVISION I
North 49, Goffstown 21

BEDFORD — Nashua North scored on its first four offensive possessions, added two defensive touchdowns and returned a kickoff for a TD in its 49-21 triumph at Bedford High School.

North received three touchdowns from quarterback/defensive back Curtis Harris-Lopez, two from slot receiver/defensive back Jayden Espinal and two more from running back/defensive back Issac Smith.

Harris-Lopez opened the scoring when he returned an interception 47 yards for a touchdown on Goffstown’s opening possession, added a 63-yard TD run later in the first quarter and a 2-yard TD run late in the second quarter. He finished the game with 118 yards on 13 carries.

The victory capped an unbeaten season for North (7-0), which entered the game as the No. 1 team in the Union Leader Power Poll. Goffstown (8-1) began the day ranked No. 2.

Goffstown cut North’s lead to 21-14 in the second quarter, but Smith returned the ensuing kickoff 66 yards for a score.

Smith found the end zone from 9 yards away on North’s first possession of the second half. Then Goffstown fumbled on its first second-half possession, Espinal scooped up the ball and returned it 29 yards for a score. Espinal also scored on a 6-yard run in the second quarter. North led 21-7 after one quarter and 35-14 at halftime.

Goffstown’s Jeremy Henult caught two TD passes from his brother Goffstown QB Jarrett Henault, who scored his eam’s other TD on a 1-yard run. Goffstown running back Zach Picard gained 124 yards on 24 carries.

DIVISION II
Souhegan 26, Plymouth 21

AMHERST — Riley Lawhorn scored on a 70-yard run with 4:01 remaining in the game to give Souhegan (9-0) a 26-21 victory on its home field.

Lawhorn’s TD run came less than two minutes after Plymouth took a one-point lead. Joe D’Ambruoso’s 5-yard TD run plus Will Fogarty’s point-after kick handed the Bobcats (7-1) a 21-20 lead with 5:29 to play.

Souhegan led 20-6 at halftime and after three quarters, but Plymouth pulled within a touchdown when quarterback Cody Bannon punctuated a 14-play drive with a 1-yard TD run. Bannon had two TDs in the loss. He opened the scoring with a 19-yard TD run with 5:58 remaining in the first quarter.

Souhegan scored the next 20 points: Lawhorn’s 68-yard TD run plus his extra point tied the game, 7-7; Mitch Hauser helped the Sabers take a 14-7 lead by scoring on a 13-yard run with 11:17 remaining in the first half; and quarterback Austin Jain connected with Luke Manning for a 28-yard TD pass with 7:56 left in the half.

It was the sixth time the Souhegan and Plymouth programs have met in a championship game. Plymouth won the previous five.

Souhegan’schampionship since 2010, when it beat Portsmouth for the Division III title.