Pinkerton football returns with convincing win over Windham (video)

WINDHAM - It was a difficult week of preparation on the offensive side of the ball for the Pinkerton Academy football team.

Going against a Windham team that looked like it would be able to take away the Astros' inside running game, and do it in a different way, Pinkerton had to take whatever the Jaguars gave them.

With Windham clogging up the middle, Pinkerton went outside, getting a big day from junior running back Jacob Albert and from its defense in a 33-6 win over the Jaguars in the Division I opener for both teams.

Albert finished with 158 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries and scored the Astros' first touchdown of the year on a 26-yard reception from quarterback Nathan Campos. Jack Mackiernan also had two touchdown on the ground, including one right before halftime that gave Pinkerton (1-0) a 20-0 lead and gave them a boost of momentum.

"This was a frustrating game to prepare for offensively because of all the stunting that goes on," Astros coach Brian O'Reilly said. "It really handcuffed us into what we were going to do, which was essentially just run outside and off tackle. We weren’t running at all between tackles, which is our game, that’s what we do.

"We scored 33 points, that’s fine. I’m happy we got the win, we got away without some injuries and we’re in good shape."

The Astros outgained the Jaguars (0-1) 329-210, with 88 of Windham's yards coming on a 19-play drive to end the game.

Quarterback Josh Sweeney led Windham by going 14 of 32 passing for 147 yards with a touchdown and three interceptions. The score came on the final play of the game, when Sweeney connected with Jake Micciche for a 3-yard touchdown that got the Jaguars on the board.

While Pinkerton's offense had some trouble finding the end zone in the first half, the defense was keeping Windham in check. Both teams turned the ball over twice in the opening half, the Astros held the Jaguars to just four first downs, three of which came on the opening drive, and just 42 yards.

"Against a team that knows what they’re doing, you’ve got make big things happen early or it’s going to be tough," Windham coach Jack Byrne said. "We’re still putting pieces together. There are going to be growing pains."

The biggest one came late in the first half. Pinkerton went on a 10-play, 46-yard drive that took up 3:07 and ended with a 7-yard touchdown run by Albert to make it 14-0 with 3:05 to go until halftime.

But on Windham's second play of the next possession, Sweeney was picked off by Anthony Terrenzio, who returned the ball to the Jaguars' 13-yard line. Two plays later, Mackiernan scored from 2 yards out and the Astros carried a 20-0 lead into the break.

"The book says to take try to take it to the half, but at the same time, what’s our best chance to beat them?" Byrne said. "It’s play our game with a balanced offense, with a quarterback that I have a lot of confidence in and receivers and pass protection that I have confidence in. It’s tough to not just keep going. We have to take risks. I have no regrets about that one."

With Pinkerton getting the ball to start the second half, it felt like a big momentum swing to O'Reilly.

"Those were big because we were dominating on offense and we weren’t getting scores," the coach said. "It was 7-0, and even when it was 14-0, I remember looking up and thinking this should not be 14-0. But because it is, that last touchdown before halftime was certainly a backbreaker for them."

But Pinkerton went three-and-out to start the second half and Windham looked like it grabbed momentum when Sweeney connected with Bryan Desmarais (five catches, 92 yards) for a 44-yard reception to the Astros' 13. But the Jaguars could only pick up a couple of yards and Adam Burke's 25-yard field goal attempt was no good.

Three plays later, Albert raced 75 yards for his third touchdown of the day to give Pinkerton a 27-0 lead and all the momentum back.

"We had good blocking on the edge (Saturday) and that’s what really helped us, I could tell," Albert said. "I was able to get around the edge pretty easily. Good blocking. Defense really stepped up. Few interceptions from our linebackers and one of our corners. That was good, too."