Hershberger sets record, Campbell gets win over Gilford in D3 football semis

LITCHFIELD - It was inevitable that Scott Hershberger was going to make history in Saturday’s Division III semifinal, it was only a matter of when. He ended the suspense in one play.

Hershberger entered Saturday’s game just 16 yards shy of the all-time state rushing record and ripped a 57-yard touchdown run on his first carry of the game, the second play from scrimmage. Hershberger finished with 187 yards and two touchdowns on 16 carries, plus an interception on defense, to lead No. 1 Campbell to a 50-22 victory over No. 4 Gilford on his home field in Litchfield.

Hershberger, a senior, now has 6,062 career rushing yards, breaking the previous state record of 5,890 held by Sean Jellison, played for Souhegan from 2001-04.

“To be in the history books, it’s good to know that people will know what I did and how hard I’ve worked for this,” Hershberger said. “I didn’t anticipate for it to happen first play.”

He didn’t even know that setting the state record was on the table until about halfway through the season.

“I didn’t know that I was in contention for the (record) until we had four games left and a reporter said something to me,” Hershberger said. “Then, it became a vision. I’ve been shooting for it ever since.”

“I’m very happy for him. He’s worked his butt off over his career,” Campbell coach Glen Costello said. “All the credit goes to him, (when you look at) how many quarters he actually played. There were many games he was done at halftime or the end of the first quarter. He averaged 13 yards per carry this year.”

Campbell won the regular season meeting against Gilford on Oct. 5, 50-14, but the Eagles kept it close early.

After the Cougars took a 6-0 lead less than a minute into the game, Gilford senior running back Noah Harder (two touchdowns and 46 yards on 15 carries) punched in a touchdown from less than a yard out and junior quarterback Mark Uicker kicked the extra point to give the Eagles a 7-6 lead at 5:37 in the first quarter.

Hershberger once again made quick work for Campbell, reaching the end zone in just six plays on the ensuing drive, capped by a 21-yard scoring run and running in the 2-point conversion to make it 14-7 with 2:25 left in the first quarter.

Harder’s 4-yard TD run tied the game, 14-14, with 8:50 left until halftime, but Campbell’s offense was unstoppable, with Braydon White scoring a pair of 1-yard touchdowns in the final 2:36 of the half to give the Cougars a 30-14 halftime lead.

Brody Pinciaro (47 yards and a TD on five carries), Scott’s twin brother, Nick Hershberger (27 yards and a TD on 10 carries) and White (three TDs and 25 yards on nine carries) pounded the ball on the ground, while quarterback Mikey Grace went 4 for 5 with 86 passing yards (47 yards to Nick Hershberger and 39 yards to White on two catches each).

Gilford also moved the ball well offensively in the first half, scoring on two of its three first-half possessions behind Uicker (7 for 11, 115 passing yards, two interceptions) and Harder, who was one of five Gilford receivers with a catch.

The Eagles had the ball to open the second half, but the first drive ended with an interception to Scott Hershberger, who returned it about 50 yards, setting up White’s third 1-yard score to make it 38-14 with 3:20 left in the third.

Gilford only had one more play from offense in the third quarter. A miscommunication on a kickoff return allowed Campbell’s Jayden Ucello to recover the ball on Gilford’s 26, and Uicker threw another interception on the final play of the third quarter.

Nick Hershberger scored from the 1 with seven seconds left in the third and Pinciaro scored with 9:56 left in the game to extend Campbell’s lead to 50-14.

Lukas Diaz ran the ball in from the 4 and Harder’s 2-point conversion was Gilford’s final touchdown with less than three minutes remaining in the game.

The Campbell team and fans celebrated Scott Hershberger’s rushing record with a short ceremony after the game, but acknowledged that his real prize was earning the right to play another week. The Cougars will play No. 3 Inter-Lakes/Moultonborough (9-1), who upset No. 2 Monadnock, 14-8, in the other semifinal.

“Getting a state rushing record is great personally, but playing with my friends and playing with my teammates who I’ve grown up with my entire life is even better,” Hershberger said. “Getting another chance to play with them feels so much better.”

This is Campbell’s third consecutive D3 title game appearance. The Cougars hope to exorcize some demons when they play at Souhegan High School on Saturday, the site of last year’s 42-12 championship loss to Trinity. Campbell won the 2022 title with a 16-14 win over Trinity.