By Roger Brown
MaxPreps.com
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No one is enjoying life in Division III this season more than Portsmouth tailback Rod Walker.
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Walker, a 6-1, 180-pound senior, scored four touchdowns to lead Portsmouth to a 35-14 victory over Pembroke Academy Friday. The Clippers, who dropped from Division II to Division III following the 2005 season, are off to their first 2-0 start since 1991.
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"No. 24 (Walker) is a playmaker," Pembroke Academy coach Rick Doell said. "If you give him a crack he's going to burn you."
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Walker has six touchdowns in Portsmouth's two games. He's carried the ball 35 times for 298 yards this season.
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"We're obviously very fortunate to have him," Portsmouth coach Bill Murphy said. "He's an outstanding talent."
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The Portsmouth/Pembroke Academy game was scoreless late in the first half, but Walker scored three of his four touchdowns before the second quarter ended. He returned a punt 39 yards for a score with 2:19 to play in the half, scored on a 50-yard run with 1:31 remaining, and caught a 41-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Ben Smith with six seconds left.
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Walker added a 67-yard touchdown run midway through the third quarter, which helped increase Portsmouth's lead to 28-0. He wasn't used in the fourth quarter and finished the game with 170 yards on 13 carries.
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The loss dropped Pembroke's record to 0-2.
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"We were pretty sloppy in the first quarter," Walker said. "I think that punt return gave us a little spark and got us rolling. I trusted my blocks and just ran as hard as I could. Every game we win is a confidence-builder."
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Although it has been a Division III team by enrollment since 2004, Portsmouth petitioned to remain in Division II for the 2004 and 2005 seasons. After the Clippers went 1-9 in 2004 and 2-8 in 2005, the school decided to give Division III a try.
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Portsmouth entered this season with four victories in the last four years.
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"I expect to be playing in the championship game this year," Walker said.
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Other noteworthy results from the football season's second week:
Pinkerton Academy (2-0) gained sole possession of first place in Division I by beating Manchester Central 34-0. The Astros, who won the Division I title last year, haven't allowed a point this season.
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Bishop Guertin stretched its winning streak to 26 games by beating Goffstown 30-0. BG has won the last two Division II championships.
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Souhegan and Plymouth joined Portsmouth atop the Division III standings by improving to 2-0. Souhegan beat Merrimack Valley 21-14, and Plymouth handled Kingswood 47-0.
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Laconia knocked off defending Division IV champion Hanover 28-27. Hanover was among the favorites to win the Division IV championship again this year, but opened the season with back-to-back losses.
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Tailback Nate Jones scored four touchdowns to help Franklin improve its Division V record to 2-0 with a 50-6 triumph over Epping. Jones has 649 all-purpose yards (381 rushing) this season.
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Boys Soccer: Concord Loses Key Player
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The news wasn't all good for the Concord boys soccer team when it opened the Class L season with a 6-1 victory over Salem.
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Junior striker Messanvi Aboussa scored two goals against Salem before he had to leave the game after being kicked in the thigh while chasing a loose ball. Early the next morning Aboussa was having surgery to stop internal bleeding.
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Aboussa, who helped Concord win the Class L championship last year, may miss the rest of the season.
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Cross Country: Pinkerton, Hanover Top Rankings
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The Pinkerton Academy boys and Hanover girls were listed as the No. 1 teams in the state when the season's first cross country rankings were released last week.
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Pinkerton was followed Mascenic, Keene, Concord, Manchester Central, Con-Val, Merrimack, Londonderry, Oyster River and Hopkinton.
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The top 10 girls teams included Manchester West, Manchester Central, Manchester Memorial, Pinkerton, Souhegan, Keene, Hopkinton, Concord and Bishop Guertin.