Raiders catch Devils in QB trap
 By John McGuirk
 CORRESPONDENT 

 Raiders 38 Leominster 21

LEOMINSTER -- It wasn't hard to figure out why Fitchburg
manhandled arch-rival Leominster in the teams' 116th meeting
(94th on Thanksgiving) played yesterday at Doyle Field.
 
          The Red Raider coaches discovered something in the
Blue Devils' defense and decided to install a quarterback
trap. Junior quarterback Jason Twomley rushed for a
game-high 205 yards and two touchdowns, including the
game-winner late in the third quarter, as Fitchburg ran over
the Blue Devils, 38-21, before a rain-soaked crowd of more
than 4,500.

          Fitchburg won its last six games after starting
out 1-4. Leominster finished 6-4. The victory also gives
Fitchburg a 54-53-9 series edge in this historic rivalry.

           "We put in the play this week because we felt
(Leominster) is so aggressive on defense," Cosenza said.
"Jason just ran it to perfection. It was the first time
we've run it in five years.  Our offensive line did a great
job up front. Without question, our running game was the
difference."

           "That was not a play they ran a lot during the
year," Leominster coach John Dubzinski said. "I
thought (Twomley) had a great game. We were over pursuing a
little bit and he cut back nicely. The play did surprise us
early. But even later on in the game we didn't do a very
good job defending that play."

          Senior tailback Jason Quinn also had a good day
for Fitchburg, running for 180 yards and a pair of scores on
26 carries.

          Fitchburg's offense scorched Leominster for 424
yards. The Blue Devils, who totaled 70 yards in the first
half, finished with 285.

           "We distributed the ball very well,"
Cosenza said. "We ran inside and outside. I can't say
enough of what we accomplished offensively.  Defensively, we
did a great job shutting down their run."

          The Blue Devils trailed, 14-0, early in the game,
but pulled within 26-21 on Jason Morales' 59-yard TD run to
begin the fourth quarter.  However, Fitchburg, strung
together a 62-yard drive that lasted 6:31 and ended with
Quinn's back-breaking 4-yard scoring run to push the margin
to 11. Quinn notched his second score two minutes later on a
43-yard jaunt.  Saul Sicard's interception set up the score.

          The Red Raiders built a 14-0 lead in the first
quarter and never trailed. On Fitchburg's third play from
scrimmage, Twomley scampered for 63 yards and the score at
10:24.

          Following a Blue Devil punt, Fitchburg drove 68
yards before sophomore fullback Norman Cole busted in from
two yards out. Quinn's conversion run made it 14-0 with 2:26
left.

          Leominster fought back with a sustained drive of
its own. Senior quarterback Paul LeBlanc (7 of 19 for 172
yards, 2 TDs, 1 interception) capped a 73-yard drive with a
29-yard scoring pass to Joe Gallagher at 10:25 of the second
quarter.

          Late in the half, Fitchburg marched to the
Leominster 12.  Twomley was about to spike the ball to stop
the clock. However, at the last moment, Fitchburg offensive
coordinator Paul DiGeronimo signaled in a pass play and
Twomley hit a wide-open Harold Mateo in the right corner of
the end zone to give the Red Raiders a 20-7 halftime
lead. Quinn's 15-yard run on fourth-and-13 kept the drive
alive.

          LeBlanc's 1-yard touchdown run capped off a
54-yard drive to begin the third quarter and brought
Leominster within, 20-14.

          But a Twomley 45-yard trap with 2:51 left in the
quarter padded the Red Raider lead to 26-14.

          "We had confidence in the (trap) play," said
Twomley, who enjoyed his best day as Red Raider quarterback.
"We knew it was working. It was working well in practice
so we thought, 'Let's give it a shot today,' and it worked
well the whole game."

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