Shawsheen Valley Tech brings a 33-game winning streak to Andover on Friday, Oct. 30, when the Rams face Greater Lawrence Tech at 6 p.m.
It is one of the longest active streaks in high school football nationally. Shawsheen (6-0) extended it to 33 on Oct. 16 with a 29-0 shutout of Whittier Tech of Haverhill, a game in which the Rams held the Wildcats to minus-2 yards of total offense in the first half, the Tewksbury Town Crier reported.
Whittier ran just 13 plays before halftime and punted four times.
"Some things we did really well, but some things we have to clean up because we're moving on to the really hard part of the schedule," Shawsheen coach Al Costabile said after the win.
Junior quarterback Daniel Faria scored the game's first touchdown on a fourth-down, 1-yard run early in the second quarter. Junior Nathan Smith set up two scores with punt returns of 35 and 44 yards. Junior Cameron Banda, returning from injury, added two rushing touchdowns, including a 6-yard run and a 5-yard run. Senior Quinn Carbone punched in a 2-yard score to open the second half, capping a 56-yard drive that converted twice on fourth down.
In six games this fall, Shawsheen has outscored opponents 152-39.
The Stateline Sports Network's weekly tracker lists the Rams' streak among the nation's longest. Carl Albert of Midwest City, Oklahoma leads the country at 61 consecutive wins. Nine programs sit ahead of Shawsheen, with the next-closest at 35 (Quince Orchard of Gaithersburg, Maryland).
Greater Lawrence (5-2) enters the matchup with momentum of its own. The Reggies beat Northeast Tech 34-28 in overtime on Oct. 23, according to the Andover Townsman. One of Greater Lawrence's two losses was a 28-20 defeat against Wakefield of the Middlesex League, per the Town Crier.
Kickoff is 6 p.m. Friday at Greater Lawrence's Andover field.
