BEDFORD — The drama and intensity in the Friday night showdown of two undefeated Division I boys' soccer teams undoubtedly had many of the 600 spectators drooling for a rematch.

Bedford earned a grueling 1-0 victory over Londonderry thanks to Erik Martel's hard-fought goal in a physically intense and evenly played match where the division's top defense blanked the division's most prolific offense.

Martel, a University of New Hampshire-bound talent who was double- and triple-teamed whenever he tried to advance the ball, jumped ahead of his two marks to secure a deflection and strike a breakaway goal in the 56th minute.

He made two touches trying to gain control of a high-bouncing ball while closing in on Londonderry keeper Bobby Krause, who came out to cut off Martel's route about 15 yards out.

“I knew if I put the ball down he might get to it, so I just chipped over him,” said Martel, who consistently plowed forward despite the physical play. Oftentimes he ended up on the ground.

“I was so up for this game, nothing was going to bother me,” said Martel. He and 11 senior classmates are eager to prove their mettle in the large school division after claiming the Division II championship last season.

“Erik has a lot of courage. He's a brave lad. He gets up and goes after it again,” said Bedford coach Stuart Pepper. “We have even more respect for Londonderry now that we've played them.

The win was the Bulldogs' (10-0) seventh consecutive shutout, coming against an 11-1 Lancers squad that entered play averaging four goals a game. Bedford defender Robert Flynn, with considerable help from Nolan Villeneuve and Matthew Popham, contained Rob Hart, Londonderry's breakaway artist and leading scorer (16 goals).

Dylan Holland and Alex Hall managed to get a few through passes to Hart, but the defense created roadblocks.

“Londonderry is a good team and (Hart's) a great player,” said Flynn. “He made his runs perfectly. The only way to stop him was to work together with great communication. And Erik came through with the goal.”

Londonderry managed 10 shots to Bedford's eight. Bulldogs keeper Taylor Wallace recorded seven saves, diving to stop freshman Nate Gaw's blast in the second minute of play. The other shots were generated from 20 yards out.

Bedford generated only three scoring chances in the first half. All came off set pieces when Marco Ibanez, Casey Schehl and Villeneuve watched shots veer wide right.

“It took a while for us to get settled down,” said Martel. “This was a big game.”

Both teams sustained longer offensive possessions in the second half but had troubles generating many open looks. Londonderry was missing a top defender. Tom Beedham suffered a concussion during Thursday's practice and attended the game in street clothes. And midfielder Austin Lockwood left the game in the first half with a leg injury and left to get an X-ray.

“Bedford is a good team. I hope we'll see them again,” said Holland. “We lost sure, but this was just a regular season game, good for bragging rights and maybe tourney seeding. The next time we meet is when it will count.”

AT BEDFORD
Bedford 1, Londonderry 0
Londonderry (11-1) 0 - 0 -- 0
Beford (10-0) 0 - 1 -- 1
Goals: B - Erik Martel 55:38
Saves: L - Bobby Krause 3; B - Taylor Wallace 7

eemmerling@unionleader.com

BOYS SOCCER RESULTS
At AMHERST
Souhegan 1, St. Thomas 1
St. Thomas (5-4-2) 1 - 0 –1
Souhegan (5-4-3) 0 - 1 – 1
Goal: ST-John Nartiff (un.) 28:00; S - Sam Leedy (Reed Larson) 69:00
Saves: ST - Jack Quinn 5; S - Brendan Dix 7

At LEBANON
Lebanon 1, Pembroke 0
Pembroke (7-4) 0 - 1 – 1
Lebanon (9-1-2) 0 - 0 – 0
Goals: L - Martin Gradijan (un.) 75:00
Saves: L - Will Sanborn 6, P - Alex Trujillo 8

At MANCHESTER
Central 1, Bishop Guertin 0
BG (3-5-1) 0 - 0 – 0
Central (9-3-1) 0 - 1 –1
Goal: C - Selim Salihovic (Chad Bowden) 52:00
Saves: BG - Dave Swallow 9; C - Noah Edmunds 2

At NASHUA
Dover 2, South 1
Dover (2-7-3) 1 - 1 – 2
South (0-12) 0 - 1 – 1
Goals: D - Will Lapign (n/a) 0:49; S - Hugh Phillis (Oisin McKenna) 60:30; D - Aaron Esparza (n/a) 69:12
Saves: S - Alex Lowe 19; D - n/a

At NEWMARKET
Derryfield 2, Newmarket 0
Derryfield (11-1) 1 - 1 – 2
Newmarket (8-3) 0 - 0 – 0
Goals: D - Austin Hammer (Griffin Phaneuf) 4:00; D - Everett Simon (Hammer) 60:00
Saves: D - Lucas McCabe 7; N - Cameron Stevens 12

At MANCHESTER
Manchester West 8, Milford 1
Milford (1-10-1) 0 - 1 – 1
West (4-7) 5 - 3 – 8
Goals: M - Connor Gosselin (Aaron Ladeau) 78:30; W - Thiago Carvalho (Ryan Askham) 4:58; Carvalho (Zack Lorthi) 9:05; Askham (Promise Kpee) 24:33; Kpee (Lorthi) 25:21; Kpee (Adam Phaneuf) 38:30; Askham (Lucas Schlickman) 47:07; Luan Sanches (Carvalho) 54:10; Askham (Schlickman) 63:12
Saves: M - 16; W - Andrew Laphrise 10

At GOFFSTOWN
Goffstown 3, Coe-Brown 0
Coe-Brown (6-6) 0 - 0 – 0
Goffstown (6-4) 2 - 1 – 3
Goals: Liam Moloney (Mike Simons) 5:00; Simons (Ryan Sharby) 22:00; Riley Ellis 65:00
Saves: G - Henry Seidel 5; CB - Bo Pingree 8