DIVISION III CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
No. 1 Souhegan vs. No. 2 Portsmouth

•When and where: Saturday (1 p.m.) at Souhegan High School in Amherst.
•Team records: Second-seeded Portsmouth is 9-1 overall, 8-1 in Division III. Top-seeded Souhegan is 10-0 overall, 9-0 in Division III.
•Regular-season result: Souhegan won, 28-21, in Portsmouth.
•Noteworthy: This is Portsmouth's second trip to the championship game since the program moved from Division II to Division III after the 2005 season. Plymouth beat Portsmouth, 35-20, in the 2006 Division III title game. ... The Clippers advanced by beating third-seeded Milford, 14-13, in the semifinals. Souhegan trounced fourth-seeded Goffstown, 42-18, in the semifinals. ... Souhegan built a 28-0 lead midway through the third quarter in its regular-season victory over Portsmouth. The Clippers roared back and made it a 28-21 game on Mike Fransoso's 31-yard touchdown pass to Mike Montville with 5:25 to play. Fransoso completed 29 of 50 passes for 267 yards and two touchdowns in that game. He also had a TD pass negated because he crossed the line of scrimmage before releasing the ball. His 50 pass attempts in that contest established a school record. ... Montville also set a school record in that game by catching 17 passes. Junior split end Nate Jones had six receptions for 74 yards. ... Souhegan also had success through the air in the regular-season matchup between these teams. Quarterback D.J. Petropulos completed 12 of 20 passes for 220 yards and two touchdowns. Both TD passes went to split end Ben Stallman. Petropulos has thrown for 1,350 yards and 16 touchdowns (six interceptions) this season. ... Souhegan's Steve Jellison, a 6-foot-3, 240-pound fullback/linebacker, didn't play in the regular-season game against Portsmouth. Jellison will enter Saturday's contest with 1,025 yards rushing and 22 touchdowns. Jellison's brother, Sean, is a running back at UNH. ... Souhegan won its only state title in 2004. Portsmouth's last state championship came in 1981, when it beat Salem, 14-7, to win the Division I title.