Pine Bush Pushed Middletown. How Will It Show Up Against Newburgh?

Friday result: Newburgh Free Academy 48, Pine Bush 13. The Goldbacks improved to 5–1; Pine Bush is 1–5. Newburgh visits Middletown next Friday at 6 p.m., while Pine Bush visits Kingston at 7 p.m.

Read our early Newburgh–Middletown comparison →

Original pregame analysis

Pine Bush made Middletown work last Friday. This Friday, the Bushmen get another chance to show they can compete with the top of Class AA.

Newburgh arrives at Pine Bush on October 9 at 6 p.m. with a 4–1 record and four straight wins. Pine Bush is 1–4 after a 28–13 loss to Middletown. Last year, Newburgh won this matchup 56–6.

That gives Friday a clear question: how much closer can Pine Bush make this game, and can it do enough to win?

One point in 2024. Fifty points in 2025.

Newburgh’s 56–6 win last year was a 50-point margin. But the 2024 meeting at Pine Bush finished 27–26. Those are two very different examples of what this matchup can become.

That is why I want to see how Pine Bush shows up. I liked the fight against Middletown. But Newburgh has been very scary against Section IX opponents this season. Can Pine Bush keep this closer to the 2024 kind of game, or will the Goldbacks make another statement?

The numbers show the challenge

Through five games, before Week 5. Averages are points per game; totals include non-league games.

Over Newburgh’s four-game winning streak, the Goldbacks have averaged 39.75 points while allowing 6.25. Pine Bush has to interrupt that pattern. A good offensive series means much more if the defense can follow it with a stop.

The record needs context—and the defense needs an answer

Pine Bush has scored 34 against John Jay, 34 against Warwick and 28 against Washingtonville. The offense has shown it can put points on the board.

The Bushmen have also allowed 181 points through five games. Their lone win came against Warwick. Lourdes scored 53 against them; Washingtonville scored 42. The difficult part of Friday’s assignment is making enough stops to give the offense a realistic chance.

Our concern is what happens between the good stretches. Can Pine Bush avoid giving up consecutive scoring drives? Can it get off the field after an offensive possession ends without points? A strong start only helps if the Bushmen can build on it.

Newburgh has earned the warning label

Since losing 35–28 to Curtis, the Goldbacks have beaten Warwick 42–6, Washingtonville 48–12, Cornwall 31–0 and Monroe-Woodbury 38–7. Across those four wins, they have outscored opponents 159–25.

Pine Bush cannot count on a slow start from Newburgh. It needs possessions that produce field position or points, and a defense that makes the Goldbacks work the length of the field.

We will watch the first response to adversity. If Newburgh scores, does Pine Bush answer? If the Bushmen fall behind by two scores, can they stop the next drive and keep their offense involved? That is where Friday can reveal whether their encouraging stretches are becoming a complete performance.

A chance to change the AA conversation

A Pine Bush win would put the Bushmen 1–1 in division play and do the same to Newburgh. It would also give Pine Bush a major result before games with Kingston, Valley Central and Monroe-Woodbury.

For Newburgh, this comes before next week’s trip to Middletown. The Goldbacks have a chance to arrive there on a five-game winning streak, but Pine Bush stands in the way.

Coach I’s pick: Newburgh. I am going with the Goldbacks. They have been too convincing against sectional opponents to ignore. But I want to see Pine Bush carry its competitive stretches into a full game. Can the Bushmen make Newburgh earn this for four quarters, or do the Goldbacks deliver one more statement before heading to Middletown next week?

Follow Friday’s games → · See Coach I’s Week 5 picks →

Results and schedules checked October 8, 2026: Pine Bush schedule · Newburgh schedule · 2025 result. Matchup analysis is KOT845 editorial opinion.