BILLERICA, MA — The excitement and anticipation leading up to homecoming celebrations at Shawsheen Regional Technical High School could be felt throughout the entire school last week, and with good reason.
On a crisp “pumpkin and spice” autumn evening the Shawsheen Rams varsity football team took the field against their opponents from Essex Tech for the inaugural game on the brand-new football facility and outdoor athletic complex. For the players, especially the seniors playing on an undefeated team to the coaches and fans, the game played under the lights on Friday, Oct. 14 marked the beginning of a new era for student athletics at Shawsheen Tech.
Several members of the team were eager to express their thoughts on what this new sports complex means to them and their teammates.
Senior and captain Chris Ferrari spoke for the whole team when he said, “We are all excited about the new field not just for ourselves but also for our fans. I know the new field and stands will attract more people and make it a lot more fun for everyone.”
Senior defensive tackle and captain Nate Tebigwayo made a very poignant point with his reflections, “The new field really matters to everyone on the team. I feel it’s a gift, recognition of our effort and hard work.” Nate went on to say that he is very excited over the fact that, in his words, “We are creating history, we will be playing the first game on this great new field.”
Sean Hynes, also a senior and captain, echoed the sentiments of his teammates commenting, “It’s great to feel the whole school behind us. All of this excitement will help build momentum going into the playoffs.”
The district leadership seems to anticipate the feelings of the student athletes. Superintendent Timothy Broadrick, when asked his thoughts on what the new football and track facilities would mean to Shawsheen athletes, said simply, “In short, it would mean facilities worthy of the efforts of all of our athletes. These facilities will reward the efforts of our many teams, both boys and girls teams, who play a wide variety of outdoor sports.”
Perhaps the most excited member of the Shawsheen athletic community is its irrepressible leader, Athletic Director and Head Football Coach Al Costabile. When asked what he thought the new facilities would mean for current and future athletes, Al said, “This new facility means a lot to all of our athletes because it gives them a chance to compete in a top notch state-of-the-art facility. All of our teams that play outdoors will benefit from these new facilities and this includes our football teams, boys and girls soccer, cross-country and track, baseball, boys and girls softball, boys and girls lacrosse as well as our tennis team.” Mr. Costabile went on to say, “These new facilities in their entirety, including the new more comfortable facilities for our fans, instills great pride in our athletes and coaches alike. The fact that fans now get to enjoy nighttime sports is a big plus for our program. And for our coaches the state-of-the-art training facilities allow us to maximize coaching contact time with all the kids.”
With the opportunity to reflect a bit more on the excitement of the evening ahead, Coach Costabile continued, “Speaking personally I feel very fortunate to be at this school at this moment in time when I realize just how much enjoyment we can look forward to for the student body and all of our athletes along with their families and friends.”
When told of his athletic director’s enthusiasm for this moment in Shawsheen storied history, Superintendent Broadrick expressed his deep gratitude for the “extraordinary work done by so many people here at Shawsheen, especially Al.” . Broadrick then went on to point out that, “Capital planning has long been a priority in this district. A few years ago former superintendent Charles Lyons and members of the School Committee assess the conditions of our outdoor athletic facilities. The results of this analysis were a three phased athletic complex development plan that was presented to the School Committee in October 2015 and the bond for that phase which includes the new football facility was approved in November of that year.”
Several local political leaders, including Representative Lombardo from Billerica, Senator Ken Donnelly and Representative Ken Gordon worked hard to identify and secure approval for state funds to support the three-phased outdoor athletic facilities development plan. It is anticipated that these facilities will serve as an asset to the communities in the district particularly for summer activities.
The superintendent then turned the conversation from the excitement of the moment to the future and what might lie ahead. “The Committee and I and other members of my planning staff will not only continue development efforts toward the goal of having one of the finest outdoor athletic facilities in the Commonwealth, our capital planning process is focused on other areas of school improvement and modernization. This project, when all three phases are finished, will fully upgrade all outdoors athletic facilities. This will position the district to look at its next best opportunities for improvement or expansion of the campus. As long as demand for admission continues to exceed the high school’s capacity, as it has for at least the last decade, the district might consider ways to increase the number of students it can serve.”
As the echoes of the enthusiastic student pep rally faded into the wooded terrain and as twilight brought closer kickoff time at the new football facility, it seemed that the great excitement expressed by the seniors on this year’s squad will indeed be passed on to future generations of students attending Shawsheen Tech. And the excitement continued, as Shawsheen Tech won their home opener, 21-14.
(NOTE: The above press release & photos are from Russell Eckel, Community Services Coordinator at Shawsheen Tech.)
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