FHS goes toe-to-toe with Boxers
By Rick Eggleston
BROCKTON -- Now for the easy part. Well, kind of. 

While every football coach will tell you that there's no
such thing as an easy opponent, and that any team can beat
you on any given Friday night or Saturday afternoon,
Fitchburg still has to be breathing a small sigh of relief
now that the upper-half of its schedule is complete.

Grueling? You bet. Tough? Sure thing. Easy? Not by any
stretch of the imagination, but in order to be the best, one
must face the best. And for the third time in five weeks
that's just what the gritty Red Raiders did in dropping a
closer-than-it-looked, 24-8, decision Saturday afternoon to
Eastern Mass. strength Brockton at chilly and blustery
Marciano Stadium.

"It's Central Mass. from here on, but we have to be ready,"
said Fitchburg head coach Ray Cosenza. "(Brockton's) a good
team and we still have some great teams left to play. This
gives us something to build on."

Indeed, when you're facing the likes of Xaverian, Everett --
the top-ranked team in the state -- and Brockton,
respectively, to start the season, it can only help you.
And it was the Red Raiders who nearly helped themselves to
an upset of the Boxers, using a smothering defense and some
key plays on special teams to claim a brief 8-7 lead in the
second quarter. This, after the Raiders blanked Brockton
quarterback Vaughn Askew and his potent offense in the first
quarter -- thanks to the outstanding defensive play of Mike
Leger, Ryan Robar, Manny Guerrero, Nate Wilson and Jon
Berthiaume.

"The effort by our team was great," Cosenza said. "We did
some positive things on both sides of the ball."

Brockton head coach Peter Colombo agreed, and watched as his
as troops stumbled out of the gates to turn the ball over on
their opening drive. Backed by bone-jarring tackles from
Leger, Robar and Guerrero, it was Wilson who pounced on a
fumbled handoff by Brockton running back Josh Marsh at the
FHS 24-yard line.

After the Raiders went four-and-out on their first
possession, Marsh (75 yards on 15 carries and two
touchdowns) and the Boxers again drove deep into Fitchburg
territory, where Guerrero came up with another botched
handoff attempt by Askew.

"(Fitchburg) hangs in there with us every time. They didn't
quit and were able to take advantage of our mistakes,"
Colombo said. "We just need to execute and take better care
of the ball."

Guerrero's recovery gave Fitchburg the ball at its own 13,
but three plays later were forced to punt. Brockton returner
Darren Thellen received Matt Fraticelli's punt and ran it 57
yards for a touchdown only to have it called back on a Boxer
penalty, thus preserving the first-quarter shutout as the
final four seconds ticked off the clock.

It didn't last as the Boxers -- highlighted by an Askew
24-yard run to land the ball on the Fitchburg 17 thanks to a
TD-saving tackle by Mike Grenier -- were back in business,
and broke the stalemate on Marsh's 1-yard touchdown
run. Lamar Henry booted the extra point to make it 7-0.

However, the Boxers' lead would be short-lived, as
Fraticelli's ensuing punt landed on the Brockton 1. Two
plays later, Berthiaume charged off the line to wrap up
Marsh in the end zone for a two-point safety.

With Brockton forced to kick off as a result of the play,
the Raiders went to work from the Boxer 40. Faced with
third-and-11 from the Brockton 41, Kimber hit Orlando
Anderson with 34-yard pass up the middle to set up
first-and-goal. Three plays later, Kimber (12 of 20 for 116
yards) zipped a strike to Josh Less for a 5-yard touchdown
and an 8-7 lead with 2:56 to go before the half.

But the Boxers answered right back, as Askew took matters
into his own hands and dashed 57 yards down the left side
for a touchdown. Jamar Greene ran in the conversion and the
Boxers led for good, 15-8.

However, Fitchburg looked to change that, and led by a
Kimber 14-yard pass to Kyle Boudreau and a Fraticelli (15
carries for 56 yards) 10-yard take, promptly marched to the
Brockton 15 as the half expired.

"(Fraticelli) is a strength for us, and having him back is
key," Cosenza said of his junior specialist, who was injured
to the start season. "He's able to bring a lot to the
game. He's a receiver, a rusher and now we've got him back
there punting."

Team defense again rose to the occasion in the second
half. On fourth-and-1 for Brockton, Fitchburg's Chris
Cormier put the brakes on Brockton ball carrier Khalil
James-Offley, forcing the Boxers to turn the ball over on
downs.

But the Raiders offense never seemed to get going, as later
it was the special teams play of Brockton that led to a
safety for the Boxers followed by Marsh's second touchdown
on the day -- a 13-yard scamper with 1:31 left to play.

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