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NHIAA Rewind: Week 6

If they don’t call him big-play Jack Maye, maybe they should because Bedford High School’s senior quarterback came through in big situation after big situation during a 28-25 victory over Pinkerton Academy on Friday night.

Maye’s 7-yard touchdown pass to Landon Ellsmore with 1:47 to play handed Bedford (6-0, 5-0 Division I) the lead for good as the Astros (4-2, 3-2) turned the ball over on downs with 1:04 remaining.

“I was rolling out and I had pressure in my face,” Maye said. “Everybody was going right and I saw my guy come back. In the progression he was two (the second option), but I was scrambling and looking for someone to scramble with me.”

The TD was huge, but perhaps just as important was Maye’s 45-yard completion to Peter Suozzo on a third-and-12 play from the Bedford 40-yard line earlier in the scoring drive.

Maye completed 14-of-20 passes for 227 yards and two touchdowns in the win. He was intercepted once. Maye also tossed a 12-yard TD pass to Noah Cassamassino with 3:32 left in the first half. That TD plus the extra point trimmed Pinkerton’s lead to 19-14.

Another key completion came when Maye connected with Bennett Matthews (five receptions for 80 yards) for an 11-yard gain on a fourth-and-six play midway though the third quarter. Two plays later, running back Brody Helton (24 carries, 91 yards) scored his second touchdown on a 3-yard run that helped the Bulldogs take a 22-19 lead.

“Jack continues to amaze me,” Bedford coach Zach Matthews (Bennett’s father) said. “For a first-year starter, this was his first big game. The other games we’ve had have been blowouts, no one is really pressuring him, he’s not having to make throws under pressure in clutch situations.

“Some of the throws he made (Friday), the fourth-down throw, throwing fade balls, I thought he showed a lot of moxie.”

The Astros showed plenty of fight, especially since they began the night without injured halfback/defensive back Jamie Isaac and then lost halfback/running back Matt Morrison to a finger injury following Bedford’s first possession. Morrison ran for 80 yards and a touchdown on two carries before leaving at halftime to have x-rays.

Pinkerton turned to sophomores Ryson Michaud (eight carries, 55 yards, touchdown) and Brady Spellman (eight carries for 34 yards). Spellman’s 3-yard scoring run on Pinkerton’s second possession made it 13-0 Astros with 5:47 left in the first quarter, and Michaud gave the Astros a 25-22 lead on a 7-yard TD run with 7:14 to play.

The Astros also scored on a 50-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Aiden McDonald (3 of 7, 74 yards) to Anthony Caruso. That TD handed the Astros a 19-7 lead with 10:11 remaining in the first half.

“We found ourselves in a little bit of a tough situation,” Pinkerton coach Brian O’Reilly said. “Honestly, offensively we didn’t miss a beat with those sophomores coming in. We were able to move the ball most of the night.

“Two weeks ago we were talking about the speed that we have on this team and our two fastest kids are now out for an extended period of time. I like our chances if we get our people back with speed in the secondary and in the two-minute offense. … This makes us a better team in the long run.”

Bedford, which has won the last two Division I titles, stretched its winning streak to 22 games. Exeter and Nashua South are the only other unbeaten teams in Division I.

“Yeah, we passed the test, but they didn’t have their full arsenal either,” Zach Matthews said. “They’re missing some kids, and that’s not lost on me, and that’s not lost on our kids. We’re thankful to win that game. I think we learned a lot from that experience, but I think there’s a better version of Pinkerton that we didn’t see, and who knows, we might see down the road.”

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Last weekend’s Division II results left seven teams with more than two victories in the division, and six teams at 2-4. Eight teams will make the Division II playoffs.

This weekend’s marquee NHIAA games are in Division II, where Trinity (5-1) will play at Pelham (6-0), and Plymouth (6-0) will play at Souhegan (6-0). Trinity will be attempting to end Pelham’s 47-game winning streak.

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Nothing is official, but with Lebanon not eligible for the playoffs this season – Division II enrollment playing in Division III – it sure looks like this will be the Division III playoff field: Campbell, Inter-Lakes/Moultonborough, Laconia, Somersworth, Gilford, Monadnock, Newport and Stevens.

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Raymond and Mascoma secured Division IV playoff berths with victories last weekend. Hillsboro-Deering (3-2), Franklin (3-2), Bishop Brady (2-3) and Farmington/Nute (2-3) are the schools battling for the two other playoff spots. Don’t expect the Division IV playoff pairings to be finalized until after the Franklin at Bishop Brady game on Nov. 2.

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