PORTSMOUTH — No one saw this coming.

In a high school football game that featured what many thought were two of the best teams in Division III, Portsmouth met little resistance Saturday and pounded Goffstown, 56-22.

Portsmouth spotted Goffstown an early 10-0 lead, but led 14-10 after one quarter, 35-10 at the half and 49-22 entering the fourth.

“We prepared very, very hard for Goffstown,” Portsmouth coach Bill Murphy said. “The staff knew what they had to do, and had a great game plan on both sides of the ball. They really coached up their players, but I don’t think any one of us expected us to do that well.”

How did Portsmouth do it? One of the keys was the defensive job the Clippers did on Goffstown quarterback Connor Benjamin.

Although he ran for two touchdowns, Benjamin was held to 64 yards on 13 carries. He completed 6 of 19 passes for 87 yards and a TD, but was intercepted three times.

What made the defensive performance even more impressive was the fact that the Clippers were without Jack Mackey, the team’s top defensive back. Murphy said Mackey will likely miss the remainder of the season with a knee injury.

“We kept (Benjamin) pretty much in check the whole game,” Portsmouth defensive lineman Ricky Holt said. “He’s a really good player. He’s a big, strong kid. His legs are bigger than mine. I have to hand it to our guys. We played really good defense.”

The victory improved Portsmouth’s record to 3-1 overall, and 2-1 in Division III.

The Portsmouth offense received four touchdown passes from junior quarterback Nate McFarland, who also had a 17-yard TD run. Senior wide receiver Colin MacDonald was on the receiving end of three of those TD passes. In addition, Jack Young had a 59-yard TD catch.

“They’re better than us up front,” Goffstown coach Justin Hufft said. “They’re bigger than us, they’re stronger than us, and they’re faster than us. Defense has been a (problem) for us all year, and we have to fix it.”

The loss dropped Goffstown’s record to 2-3 overall, and 2-1 in Division III.

“We came in with a lot of respect for Goffstown,” Murphy said. “They have some real good skill players. I still think they’ll be a playoff team — maybe one of the top two teams.”

Portsmouth also received a 3-yard touchdown run from senior running back Dillon Crosby, a 3-yard TD run from sophomore running back Mike Toar and a 6-yard TD run from junior quarterback/slot back Donovan Phanor.

“It was certainly our best offensive performance of the season,” Murphy said. “We’re progressing, which is what you want to see.”

Hufft said in his eyes Portsmouth and Souhegan appear to be superior to any other team in the division.

“I think so,” he said. “Milford has looked real impressive to me, so I’d like to see how they match up with some of these teams. We’re somewhere in the middle. We’re not ready for these type of teams, obviously.”