Raiders savor ultimate win 
With victory over Leominster, FHS looking at perfect season
  Friday, November 27, 1998

  By Dave Nordman
  Sports Editor

FITCHBURG -- Dustin LeBlanc is not the type of person
who shows a lot of emotion. At 5 feet, 9 inches, and nearly
200 pounds, the bruising Fitchburg High fullback is tough as
nails.

But as the senior stood by himself in the south end zone of
Crocker Field Thursday afternoon, tears began to well in his
eyes as his voice cracked with every word.

"This was it. This is what it's all about," LeBlanc said,
doing his best to put in perspective his team's 21-7 victory
over Thanksgiving rival Leomin-ster. "It doesn't get any
better than this."

LeBlanc scored a pair of touchdowns as the Red Raiders
defeated the Blue Devils in the 115th meeting between the
two schools. "The Game," as it is commonly referred to, is
one of the longest continuous high school football rivalries
in the country.

With an 11-0 record and one game remaining, Fitchburg has
the opportunity to complete just the second unbeaten and
untied season in the school's illustrious football
history.  A win in the Central-Western Mass. Division 1 Super
Bowl at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 5, at WPI in Worcester,
would earn this year's team a spot along side the perfect
Fitchburg squads of 1895 and 1933.

"I wasn't even thinking about next week," LeBlanc said about
his preparation for the Turkey Day game with Leominster. 
"This was the game. If we didn't win this, next week 
wouldn't have mattered."

Indeed. If the Blue Devils (8-2) had won as they did a year
ago, they would have earned a spot in the Division 1 Super
Bowl.  However, LHS earned a spot in the Division 1A Super
Bowl. The Blue Devils face Holyoke at 9:45 a.m. Saturday,
Dec. 5, at Springfield College.

"Next week, we're going to come out, and we're going to
battle," LeBlanc said, "and we're going to win. We've come
too far to stop now."

The victory also earned Fitchburg the prestigious Mid-Wach A
title and, most important, evened the all-time series
between the Red Raiders and Blue Devils at 53-53-9.

"Next week's game is the Super Bowl, but nothing compares to
this," said FHS coach Ray Cosenza. "Nothing we do from here
on in compares to this. I'm just so proud of the kids. 
They've worked so hard."

Thursday's win was keyed by a veteran senior class, which
includes Dave Masciarelli. The Fitchburg-Leominster rivalry
is nothing new to the Red Raiders' quarterback, whose
father, Richard Masciarelli, played the same position in the
1971 holiday classic for the Blue Devils.

That's correct. The elder Masciarelli, who is now vice
principal of Fitchburg High School, was known in his playing
days as "The Masher." He lined up behind the center for
Leominster in the 88th contest between the two schools.

Dad, who would go on to star at Assumption College, in
Worcester, completed seven of 21 passes in that game, but
his 6-2 Blue Devils fell to the 3-4-1 Red Raiders, 12-7,
before an overflow crowd of 8,200 at Doyle Field.

"Yeah, we kid each other about it. We throw punches back and
forth," the younger Masciarelli said after Thursday's win.
"But he had a rough time in his Thanksgiving Day game, so I
don't bring that up that much."

As for his game, the younger Masciarelli played well,
splitting time with sophomore Jason Twomley.

"I don't know what will top this," Masciarelli said. "But
we're not done yet. We've got another big one next week, and
we want to finish it all the way through."

In addition to Masciarelli, Thursday's game also marked the
final Crocker Field appearances for 12 other FHS seniors.

"Last year, we came in with the same excitement, and we just
couldn't get the job done," said senior wide receiver Tom
Snow. "This year, we were a little bit more enthused, and we
just went out and won it."

The Red Raiders set lofty goals for themselves this season,
but fulfilling such high expectations is often easier said
than done.

"It's just an unbelievable feeling," said senior tackle,
Keith Leavitt. "Even we didn't expect to be in this
situation, but we've worked so hard and we've earned it.

"This team's good about staying focused," continued Leavitt,
a 6-foot-8, 285 pound Division 1 college prospect. "This
team won't let down after an emotional win. We'll take our
break and enjoy this, and then we'll come back and get ready
to go."

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