NHIAA Previews: Division III

By rbrown
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Updated: September 3, 2024

Division III
2024 Preview

Teams in the division: East: Campbell, Epping/Newmarket, Gilford, Inter-Lakes/Moultonborough, Laconia, Sanborn and Somersworth: West: Fall Mountain, Kearsarge, Lebanon, Monadnock, Newport, Stevens

2023 champion: Trinity. The Pionners beat Campbell 42-12 in the Division III championship game.

Top storyline: How will Newport and Somersworth fare after moving up from Division IV?

Players to Watch: Alec Adorno (QB), ILMA; Blayne Belanger (RB/LB) Newport; Aidan Couitt (TE/DE) Newport; Cayden Decato (OL) Newport; Aaron Fellows (QB/DB) Newport; Noah Harder (RB) Gilford; Nick Hershberger (RB/LB) Campbell; Scott Hershberger (RB/LB) Campbell; Gabe Howe (RB/DB) Newport; Tyson Patch (TE) Fall Mountain; Kamden Pollari (OL/DL) Newport; Thomas Rees (FB/LB) Somersworth; Alex St. Pierre (OL/DL) Campbell; Karter Thyne (WR/DB) Stevens, Karson Thyne (QB/DB) Stevens; Braydon White (WR/DB) Campbell; Seth Worrell (RB/LB) Somersworth.

Key game: Somersworth at Campbell (Sept. 27). The Cougars, the team many consider to be the favorite in this division, will meet the Hilltoppers, who won the last three Division IV titles.

Noteworthy: Division III has expanded from 10 to 13 teams, and now has two conferences – East and West. In addition to Newport and Somersworth, Gilford, Laconia, Lebanon and Sanborn are the new teams in the division. Because Lebanon is a Division II program based on its enrollment but is competing in Division III, the Raiders are not eligible for the playoffs this season. … Gilford is no longer a co-op program with Belmont. … ConVal, Kingswood and Trinity are now in Division II. Trinity won last year’s Division III title. … The list of contenders in this division has to start with Campbell, which lost to Trinity in last year’s Divison III championship game. Running back/linebacker Scott Hershberger is among Campbell’s returnees. Hershberger, who made the Yukica Player of the Year Watch List, rushed for 1,673 yards on 132 carries last year. … There are four new head coaches in the division this year: Steve Tremblay (Fall Mountain), Mike Jensen (Kearsarge), Ryan Avery (Monadnock) and Brandt O’Hara (Gilford). This is Avery’s second stint as Monadnock’s head coach. He steered the Huskies to the 2018 Division III championship. … The first-place finisher in each the two conferences will be seeded No. 1 and No. 2 for the playoffs, based on each team’s NHIAA point rating. Of the 11 remaining teams, the six with the highest point rating will also qualify regardless of division. … “I’m excited about the opportunity to play more teams,” Campbell coach Glen Costello said. “I think the division will be a little more equitable with Trinity vacating. I think the pack kind of came together a little more in the middle and there will be better matchups.”

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