> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.nh-highschoolsports.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Pinkerton makes early lead stand to beat Bedford in D1 football semifinals (video) - URL: https://www.nh-highschoolsports.com/pinkerton-makes-early-lead-stand-to-beat-bedford-in-d1-football-semifinals-video/ - Published: 2024-11-23T16:00:35.000Z - Updated: 2024-11-23T16:00:35.000Z - Description: BEDFORD - When the Pinkerton Academy football team played Bedford High School in the regular season, Matt Morrison was on the field for just seven plays. Fellow senior Jamie Isaac missed the game entirely, as both dealt with injuries that caused them to sit out for parts of this season. In Friday ni - Author: Joe Marchilena - Tags: Division I, Bedford, football, Pinkerton, playoffs, slider, #wp, #wp-post, #Import 2026-08-18 04:44 BEDFORD - When the Pinkerton Academy football team played Bedford High School in the regular season, Matt Morrison was on the field for just seven plays. Fellow senior Jamie Isaac missed the game entirely, as both dealt with injuries that caused them to sit out for parts of this season. In Friday night's Division I semifinal, both were back and it showed. Morrison had three touchdowns, including a 50-yard scoring run to put the game out of reach in the fourth quarter, and Isaac had the Astros' other score, as No. 4 Pinkerton took an early lead and held off No. 1 Bedford for a 27-13 win. The Astros (10-2) move on to the D1 title game for the first time since 2018, where they will face either No. 3 Londonderry or No. 2 Exeter, who play in the other semifinal on Saturday. Pinkerton's win also snaps the Bulldogs' 26-game winning streak, which stretched back to the start of the playoffs in 2022. "This was a big game for me ... to be able to make an impact this time more than last time," Morrison said. "It was almost a revenge game, to play the full game, complete it and come out with a victory." Morrison, who broke a finger on his left hand early in the regular-season meeting, finished with 135 yards and two touchdowns on 24 carries and added a 32-yard interception return for a touchdown that gave the Astros a 21-0 lead with 5.8 seconds left in the first quarter. Isaac added 71 yards on eight carries, including a 53-yard touchdown run on Pinkerton's first possession. "Everybody talks about Matt and Jamie and their offensive capabilities, but they are rock solid in our secondary," Pinkerton coach Brian O'Reilly said. "That’s our No. 1 and No. 2 guy in the secondary and I wouldn’t trade them for anybody. That’s what we really needed. The kids came through." Pinkerton's defense held Bedford (10-1) to just 48 yards on offense in the first half and the Bulldogs were scoreless at the break for the first time in 23 games. Brody Helton had 130 yards and two touchdowns on 18 carries to lead Bedford but the rest of the Bulldogs' offense had just 71 yards. Jack Maye was 2 of 8 passing for 9 yards and an interception while rushing for 27 yards on six carries and Noah Cassamassino had 24 yards on four carries to go with a 3-yard reception. It was a big difference from when the teams met the first time, when Bedford pass for over two hundred yards and came back from a two-touchdown deficit in the first quarter. "They just kind of said we’re going to put our athletes on your athletes and we couldn’t separate," Bedford coach Zach Matthews said. "We got a lot of man coverage and we weren’t getting people open the way we’ve had people open. The throws were more difficult and their athletes did an outstanding job in coverage." After Isaac's touchdown to cap the game's first possession, Bedford ended up starting its first drive from its own 7-yard line after a holding call on the kickoff return. A false start helped lead to a three-and-out and Helton was forced to punt from his own end zone. The pick took an Astros bounce, giving Pinkerton a first down at Bedford's 28\. It looked like the Bulldogs might escape unscathed, but on fourth-and-12, Aiden McDonald found Anthony Caruso for a 22-yard gain to the Bedford 8. Four plays later, Morrison scored on fourth-and-goal from the 1 to make it 14-0 Pinkerton with 1:07 left in the first quarter. It was the same spot the teams were in the last time around, but Morrison would make it worse for Bedford seconds later. Maye tried to get a pass to Bennett Matthews, the coach's son, on second down and Morrison jumped the route, returning the interception for a 21-0 lead. "My guy ran a hitch and I just kind of sat on it and the quarterback was under pressure, so he threw it my way," Morrison said. "When you can get up three scores on a team off a turnover like that, really quick, it brings a lot of momentum to your side and it’s hard for a team to climb out of that hole." Bedford had rallied from a two-score deficit three times already this season, but three scores proved to be too much. Helton's touchdown runs both came in the third quarter, the second of which was a 55-yard run as time expired to cut Pinkerton's lead to 21-13 with 12 minutes to play. But Morrison's 50-yard touchdown run on the Astros' ensuing possession sealed the deal. "You can’t spot a good football team 21 points and expect to bail yourself out," Zach Matthews said. "I was proud of the second half, but the first half, we had trouble adjusting to their speed offensively and defensively. "It was just like we were a step slow, we were a step late, we were missing some tackles. I think three times we had them in fourth down situations, where we need to get off the field and we couldn’t get off the field. They took it to us, they deserved to win." Pinkerton now makes its first final appearance since losing back-to-back title games in 2017-18\. The Astros will be looking for the 19th championship in program history, but their first since 2014. "No matter who it is, it’s a championship game," O'Reilly said. "For us, this is what we shoot for, now we’ve got to get it done. We’re going to have our hands full. We’re healthy and we’ve got our people."