Brickle, Musitano combine for 6 TDs in Fleetwood rout of Boone

By Chris Deantonio Last updated Oct 28, 2023

2023 Berks football coverage presented by

Utilities Employees Credit Union

By Chris DeAntonio — MikeDragoSports.com correspondent

Fleetwood senior running back Czion Brickle is closing the season in a real rush.

Last week, he set a school record for rushing yards in a single game and tied the school record for points.

He followed that up Friday night at Birdsboro with a three-touchdown performance in a 42-0 Lancaster-Lebanon Section 3 victory over Daniel Boone.

The win was largely propelled by Brickle and Mason Musitano, who matched Brickle’s scores with three of his own — all on passes from quarterback Jack Riffle.

The win figures to qualify the Tigers (2-4, 5-5) for a spot in the Eastern Conference Class 4A championship game.

“We’re trying to build a program,” said Fleetwood coach Steve Pangburn. “That doesn’t happen overnight. It’s a process. A few weeks ago, these guys could have mailed it in, but we made sure we were going to cross the finish line with pride.”

Brickle started the scoring early, finding the end zone on Fleetwood’s opening drive with a 51-yard run. He also scored on runs of 37 and 6 yards in the second quarter.

“Czion is special,” said Pangburn. “He’s the kind of back that if we just keep feeding him, he’ll find the crease.”

Brickle finished with 162 yards on 19 rushing attempts. He also caught one pass for 13 yards.

After back-to-back weeks of huge performances, with playoff implications on the line, Brickle’s play is a big indication of how his team is focused on earning another game, and playing its best late in the season.

“It feels good,” said Brickle. “Especially for my team and my line. We’ve got some good blockers out there. I just wanted to win the game so this won’t be my last game.”

Brickle wasn’t the only Fleetwood running back who had success, as his backfield teammate Jason Petion carried the ball seven times for 60 yards.

Fleetwood’s dominant running performance helped open the passing game for Riffle in the second half, when he with Musitano for three touchdowns.

Musitano scored on 9-, 13-, and 15-yard catches. He finished with seven receptions for 129 yards.

Riffle completed 7-of-9 pass attempts for 102 yards.

Musitano and Riffle have played football together for a long time, and Riffle said it was special to have a game like this on the last night of the regular season, with playoffs on the line.

“It means your season was a success,” he said. “(Musitano) was special; everyone was special for us tonight.”

Fleetwood’s defense was tough all night, limiting the Blazers (0-6, 1-9) on the ground and sacking Dean Rotter three times in the second half. Rotter completed 4-of-18 pass attempts for 59 yards. The Blazers biggest offensive play came one a diving, one handed catch for 25 yards by receiver Anthony High.

	1	2	3	4	Final
Fleetwood	7	14	14	7	42
Daniel Boone	0	0	0	0	0

Scoring summary

1	Fleetwood	Brickle, 51 run (Maurek kick)	8:45
2	Fleetwood	Brickle, 37 run (Maurek kick)	3:56
2	Fleetwood	Brickle, 6 run (Maurek kick)	0:37
3	Fleetwood	Musitano, 9 pass from Riffle (Maurek kick)	9:45
3	Fleetwood	Musitano, 13 pass from Riffle (Maurek kick)	2:14
4	Fleetwood	Musitano, 15 pass from Riffle (Maurek kick)	6:50

Team statistics

	Fleetwood	Daniel Boone
First downs	15	4
Rushes-yards	32-230	23-12
Passing yards	142	59
Total yards	372	71
Passes	8-12-0	4-18-0
Fumbles-lost	1-1	1-0
Punts-average	3-30.7	8-31.9
Penalties-yards	3-30	7-70

Individual statistics

RUSHING

Fleetwood: Brickle 19-162, Petition 7-60, McFarland 3-24, Kummerer 1-1, Riffle 1-(-6), Team 1-(-11).

Daniel Boone: Rotter 7-22, Moyer 10-16, Heffner 1-0, Lacey 1-0, DiGiacomo 1-(-2), Team 3-(-24).

PASSING

Fleetwood: Riffle 7-9-0-102, McFarland 1-1-0-40, Adams 0-2-0-0.

Daniel Boone: Rotter 4-18-0-59.

RECEIVING

Fleetwood: Musitano 7-129, Brickle 1-13.

Daniel Boone: DiGiacomo 2-18, High 1-25, Moyer 1-16.

MISSED FIELD GOALS

Fleetwood: Maurek 57.