The Eagles Camden Burns used three carries to find the endzone on the opening drive of the game Friday night as it foreshadowed the things to come for Chesnee as they defeated Ninety-Six 63-35 for homecoming on Friday night.
"It was good to see us execute offensively," said Chesnee head coach Clay Lewis. "We still have some things we need to clean up in other areas of the game." The opening drive performance by Burns was capped off with a touchdown run from forty-four yards out to give the Eagles an early 7-0 lead. After Ninety-Six was stopped on their first drive of the game on a KJ Valentine interception, his second consecutive game with a interception, the Eagles offense went back to work. A big run by Bryson Thompson to start the drive followed by a twenty-three yard pass from senior quarterback Nyquille O'Fair to Matthew Froemel set up Burns for his second touchdown run in as many Chesnee drives, this time from two yards out putting Chesnee up 14-0. The Wildcats responded with a two play drive that was capped off by a thirty-eight yard touchdown pass from quarterback Payne Davis to Justyn Gonzalez on a wheel route down the left sideline to cut the Chesnee lead to 14-7 with just under eight minutes left in the first quarter. Chesnee's offense got back to work on the next drive with a long eighty yard drive as all the plays came on the ground with the longest being a forty-one yard touchdown run by Bryson Thompson down the left sideline to give the Eagles a two score lead once again. Ninety-Six hit back with another big play as Davis hit Matthew Deal in stride down the right sideline for am eighty-one yard score that put the Chesnee lead at 21-14 midway through the first quarter. The Eagles proved they don't only score with the running game on their next possession as they used a quick strike of their own when O'Fair needed only one play to find Bryson Thompson for a fifty-seven yard touchdown through the air to double the Chesnee lead to 28-14 and end a flurry of first quarter scores. After several costly penalties by Chesnee on the next possession for Ninety-Six, the Wildcats used a fourteen play drive finished off by a Davis one yard run to make it a one possession game with just under ten minutes left in the second quarter. Chesnee's ground game once again responded as the Eagles used a five play sixty-one yard scoring drive, capped off by a twenty-six yard scoring run by O'Fair, to give the Eagles a 35-21 halftime lead and a margin the Wildcats weren't able to claw back from the rest of the game. The Chesnee defense opened the third quarter with a big fourth down stop and turned the ball back over to the Chesnee offense that needed just three plays to add to the Chesnee lead as Bryson Thompson raced in from sixty-nine yards out to put the Eagles up by three scores just past the midway point of the third quarter. Ninety-Six responded with a seven play drive that featured a thirty yard pass from Davis to Michael Cat and ended with am eight yard Cato run to put the Eagles lead at 42-28. On the ensuing Chesnee possession, a big fifteen yard run by Praise Edrington helped set the Eagles up for a twenty-nine yard touchdown pass from O'Fair to Cole Hoskyns that saw him catch the ball between two defenders after a pinpoint throw by O'Fair. Camden Burns put the game away on the next two possessions as he picked off a Wildcat pass and returned it to the Ninety-Six forty-four yard line before he scored his third rushing touchdown on the very first play of scrimmage from forty four yards out to give Chesnee a 56-28 lead. "I was just in the right spot at the right time," said Burns. "The lineman were doing a great job of blocking and they created a big hole for me to run through." On the next Chesnee possession the Eagles got a big fourteen yard run from Trevor Blankenship to setup a twenty yard Michael Paslawski touchdown run to give Chesnee a 63-28 point lead. The Wildcats got another score with just over ninety seconds left as Jeremiah Wells-Martin scored from twenty-five yards out to make it 63-35 in favor of Chesnee. Chesnee's rushing attack had a huge night as the rolled up 448 of the team's 634 total yards on the ground Friday night. Bryson Thompson had a huge night as he had seven carries for 171 yards on the ground and two touchdowns with one catch for fifty-seven yards and a touchdown. "I couldn't have done it without the offensive line," said Thompson. "They were blocking great tonight." Camden Burns continued his excellent season as he carried the ball for a 165 yards and three touchdowns on Friday night. Nyquille O'Fair had a perfect five-for-five night through the air for 144 yards to go along with a pair of touchdowns while also running for sixty yards on three carries and adding a touchdown run. Colby Davis and Corey Seay led the Eagles with seven tackles each with Davis having two tackles for loss. Cole Hoskyns and Blake Wilson also had solid nights with five and a half tackles each with Hoskyns adding two tackles for loss. The football team wasn't the only players to come away with a win on Friday night as Savannah Williams was named the 2020 Chesnee Homecoming Queen and the Eagles volleyball team also won a playoff match against Landrum earlier in the day. The Eagles will be back at home next week as the host Woodruff in the regular season finale. On Friday afternoon the Chesnee volleyball team started the Eagles homecoming festivities with a 3-0 victory over Landrum to punch their ticket to the Upper State championship game.
"We were out of routine with homecoming and playing on a Friday instead of a Thursday but we found a way to settle in and play," said Chesnee head coach Katie Jolley. "We were a little nervous or anxious but we figured it out and just played." Chesnee was in a little unfamiliar territory early on Friday as they fell behind 6-2 to the visiting Cardinals before tying the at 14-14 after two straight kills by senior AC Yelton and an ace serve from Shenandoah Bishop. Both teams were tied at 16-16 before Chesnee went on a 9-3 run that was finished off by a nice service run from senior Ali Scruggs including an ace serve on the next to last point of the set to win 25-19. The second set was very similar for the Eagles as they trailed 7-1 before battling back in the set to tie the match at 10-10. The rally to tie the set saw some strong play around the net by Karlee Swaney and a number of kills by AC Yelton including a kill off an amazing assist by Holly Hines, as Hines made a great setup pass to Yelton as she was facing away from the net and heading towards the stands. The strong play around the net continued for the Eagles as they got kills from Kaitlyn Barrett and Jessa Beach before finishing off the set with two strong serves from Hines including an ace serve that dropped just inside the line on the right back corner of the Cardinals side of the court to capture another 25-19 set win. In the third set both teams went back and forth early as they were tied a 9-9 before Chesnee went on a 16-5 run that was largely fueled by the strong play of Yelton and Beach. AC Yelton and Jessa Beach both combined for eleven points in the set off either a kill or block at the net including two blocks by Beach in the final three points to capture a 25-14 set win and claim the victory in the match. "Those two are our senior leaders and they came up big tonight," said Jolley. "Jessa was a little frustrated with her hits early but began to find her spots and got rolling. Their blocking along with the blocks from Ali Scruggs were huge tonight." The dominance of the Eagles front line was well seen in the numbers as AC Yelton led the team with nineteen kills and was followed closely behind by Kaitlyn Barrett who registered eleven kills with twenty digs. Jessa Beach led the team with three blocks just ahead of Ali Scruggs who finished the night with two blocks along with picking up two ace serves. The Eagles were led in assists by Holly Hines who finished the night with thirty-four assists. Chesnee will now turn their attention to the Upper State championship where they will host North Central who defeated St. Joseph's on Thursday night. The Eagles said they are looking forward to this opportunity. "We don't know a lot about North Central just yet but if you make it to Upper State you must have a really good team," said Jolley. "We're excited about the situation and we're just going to play our best." Chesnee went to the Hackler Golf Course in Conway on Monday to compete for a state championship and came away Tuesday with a second place finish in the 3A/2A/1A girls golf state championship match.
The Eagles shot a team score of 634 finishing just behind Gilbert, the eventual state champions, who shot a team score of 626. "Coming away with a second place finish against that level of competition is a pretty good accomplishment," said Chesnee head coach Kyle Scruggs. "We got down seven shots on the first day to Gilbert and then on the front seven today we fell behind to twenty-seven but then came on strong on the back nine to get it back to eight. Gilbert just got hot early and we just couldn't make up the ground because they stayed hot the whole tournament." Chesnee junior golfer Sydney Roberts finished second runner-up after shooting a two day total of 138 (73, 65) and was joined on the All-State team by fellow Eagles player Isabella Britt who shot a two day total of 149 (69, 80). "Sydney shot a sixty-five today which just continues a great season for her as her scoring average this season is around a 70.9" said Scruggs. "She has either won or been in the playoff for numerous tournaments this season." While the state championship tournament ends the season for the Eagles they are already looking to be back next season even with the loss of seniors Isabella Britt, Paige Scruggs, and Becca Watson. "When you graduate three seniors you have to think you'll take a hit but I believe we'll still be very competitive next year," said Scruggs. "When you're returning a player like Sydney Roberts it'll be key for the leadership of our younger girls. I think we have some really good players coming back next year in freshmen Olivia Roberts, Addy Parker, and Olivia Shields along with junior Mallory Hayes and eighth grader Abigail Watson. We'll take the next few months off and then we'll start getting ready for next year." In the 5A state championship tournament at Lexington Country Club the Boiling Springs Bulldogs came away with a sixth place finish in the two day state championship tournament. The Bulldogs finished the tournament with a team score of 695 and trailed fifth place Wando by just eight shots. Lexington won the 5A state championship at their home course after outshooting second place Blythewood by thirty-two shots. Boiling Springs senior Mary Katheryn Talledo was named to the All-State team after shooting a two day total of 149. Chesnee volleyball started the 2A playoffs with a strong outing on Tuesday afternoon as they defeated Saluda 3-0 keeping the visiting team in single digits in both the final two sets.
"It was a great way to start off the playoffs as the girls really came out swinging tonight," said Chesnee head coach Katie Jolley. "They put some good hits on balls along with putting together some good service runs and just showed they were ready for the playoffs." The first set was the most competitive of the match as Saluda trailed only 19-10 before the Eagles went on a 6-1 run to capture the set 25-11. In the second set the Eagles fell behind 3-1 before going on a 13-0 run that included a kill by senior Jessa Beach to the middle of the court tied the match at 3-3 and a spike kill to the left side by senior AC Yelton capped the run to put Chesnee ahead 14-3. The play by Chesnee's front line, including Beach and Yelton, helped pave the way for the Eagles on Tuesday night. Yelton finished the night with seventeen kills and five digs while Beach got four kills and two blocks. "Jessa and AC are so tall and can jump so high they're intimidating at the net," said Jolley. "With the passes they were making and how Jessa put it back down you could just see the shock on the other team's players with how hard she hit. Those two and our whole frontline are just tremendous and do a great job at blocking and hitting." The Eagles finished off the second set with more strong play along with the front line to go along with some great serving as they captured the set 25-7. Chesnee had many ace serves in the match and junior Kaitlyn Barrett led the way with seven ace serves including two back-to-back serves in the second set to go along with her four kills and twelve digs. "We made some great serves tonight including Kaitlyn Barrett who hit some shots into gaps that makes it really hard for the other team to communicate and see who is supposed to get that ball," said Jolley. "Holly Hines also had some impressive serves and the whole team just did a great job of being aggressive with their serves and getting points that way." In the third set Chesnee fell behind 1-0 but from there on out it was all Eagles. Saluda got their last point of the match when they made the score 11-3 before Yelton spiked the ball for Chesnee to make the score 12-3, starting a 14-0 run to win the set 25-3 and to take the victory in the match. Holly Hines led the Eagles in assists with twenty-three while Ali Scruggs added to the impressive night by the front line with five kills of her own. Chesnee will now host Landrum on Thursday in the second round of the 2A playoffs after Landrum defeated Liberty 3-1 on Tuesday night. Chesnee won the battle of the Eagles on Friday night as they pulled out a 31-20 road win in West Columbia, SC against the Airport Eagles.
"I tell the kids that the best team wins 100% of the time not the best individuals,” said Chesnee head coach Clay Lewis. “When we play together as a group and we execute we do pretty good." Chesnee opened up the scoring on their second possession of the game as Nyquille O'Fair scored on a quarterback sneak to give Chesnee a 7-0 lead with just over two minutes to go in the first quarter. The drive was sparked by a big sixteen yard pass from O'Fair to Cole Hoskyns on third down where Hoskyns made a beautiful one handed snag to secure the first down. Airport responded on the ensuing drive as Tyler Dasher found Immanuel Bovain on a wheel route for a thirty yard score to tie it up at seven midway through the second quarter. On the ensuing drive Chesnee responded as Camden Burns punched it in from five yards out to give Chesnee the lead again at 14-7 midway through the second quarter. Bryson Thompson helped spark the drive with thirty-nine yards rushing. After a few exchanges of possession, Chesnee got the ball back at their own thirty-five yard line with just under ninety seconds left in the half. The Eagles needed just five plays as O'Fair found KJ Valentine in the end zone from five yards out to give Chesnee a 21-7 halftime lead. "It felt great to make the big plays with the support of my teammates,” said Valentine. “It was a great feeling to catch my first touchdown of the season." On the opening possession of the third quarter Airport's Tyler Dasher found Layne Turner for a thirteen yard gain but the Chesnee defense stiffened and forced Airport to punt four plays later. Chesnee built on their lead on the ensuing possession as O'Fair punched it in from one yard out for his second touchdown of the night. Valentine had a big nine yard reception on the drive to set Chesnee up with a first and goal situation from the Airport two yard line. Airport responded to the Eagles score with a long drive sparked by big runs from Immanuel Bovain and a couple of Chesnee penalties. Chesnee denied Airport of points on the drive through as Lorenzo Duren picked off an Airport pass in the end zone to end the scoring threat. Chesnee hit a big play immediately after the turnover as O'Fair ran for a fifty-one yard gain to set the Eagles up at the Airport twenty-nine yard line. Chesnee settled for an Ian Harris forty yard field goal to give them a 31-7 lead with under thirty seconds to go in third quarter. The Eagles defense once again forced a turnover as KJ Valentine picked off a pass that was deflected by Blake Wilson. Airport forceed a turnover of their own two plays later and immediately scored on an eighty-seven yard run by Immanuel Bovain. The Airport defense came up big again as they forced a three and out and after a couple of Chesnee penalties on the ensuing drive capped it off with a six yard touchdown pass from Tyler Dasher to Landon Smith. After Airport missed the point after attempt it put the Chesnee lead at 31-20. The Airport onside attempt went outbounds at the Chesnee forty-five and was the last time Airport touched the ball as Chesnee ate up the final five minutes and fifty seconds of playing time with a nine play drive that ended at the Airport nine yard line with Chesnee kneeling in the victory formation. Chesnee had a great night on the ground as they grinded out three hundred twenty-two yards and had four rushers over fifty yards. The A-Backs had a big night as starters Praise Edrington and Bryson Thompson combined for one hundred and twenty-six yards rushing on fourteen carries. "I had good blocking from my teammates up front and good blocking on the outside from our receivers,” said Edrington. “I came to Chesnee not too long ago and these boys have pulled me in like family." Senior signal caller Nyquille O'Fair had a well balanced night as he completed six of seven passes for sixty-three yards and a score along with running it twelve times for eighty-six yards and two scores. "He's a great quarterback,” said Valentine about O’Fair. “I really look up to him. I told him to throw it to my back should and he put it right on target and that allowed me to get the touchdown." Dylan Bennett led the Eagles defensively with five and a half tackles and two of those were tackles for loss Chesnee had a long trip down I-26 before the contest and Coach Lewis was pleased with how his team started out of the gate after the long trip. "We are trying to get better each week, and they did a good job of preparing this week,” said Lewis. “No matter where we play or when we play I expect our guys to give 110% effort." Chesnee will face Ninety-six next week at Chesnee as the school celebrates homecoming. In an early afternoon matchup the Chesnee volleyball finished their regular season strong as they defeated Broome 3-0 on Wednesday to end the regular season with an undefeated record as they prepare for the upcoming 2A playoffs.
"I can't say enough about how hard these girls have worked and it's just been amazing," said Chesnee head coach Katie Jolley. "Every game this group comes out to win and that's their goal each night which so far they have accomplished." With the early start it took the Eagles a few points to get going in the first set as Broome only trailed 4-3 but from that point on it was all Eagles as Chesnee junior Kyleigh Thompson picked up the final point when her kill bounced off a Broome defender's arm to pick up a 25-14 win in the first set. In the second set the Eagles jumped out to a quick 6-0 lead behind a six point service run by junior Holly Hines to go along with two big back-to-back blocks later in the set by Thompson and sophomore Olivia Richey to give Chesnee a 25-7 win in the second set. The consistency of their serves is something that the Eagles have put a focus on this season and helped them to get this point in the season. "I've told them when they're serving aggressively it makes it tough on the other team and the service has been key to our success as well," said Jolley. "They're being aggressive and finding the wholes in the other teams defense and it's been great to watch. They've served well in key moments and even when our hitting hasn't been great they've found ways to get points." After the Centurions were able to tie the game at 4-4 early in the third set the front line of the Eagles took control of the match including two impressive back-to-back spike kills by junior Kaitlyn Barrett to the middle of the Broome defense which were just two of her nine kills in the match. Another impressive service run by an Eagles player this time senior Shenandoah Bishop took the Chesnee lead from six points to eleven before senior AC Yelton spiked the ball to give the Eagles a 25-14 set win and the victory in the match. The strong play by the Chesnee front line has been a key in many of their victories this season and Wednesday afternoon was no different. "Our frontline has helped out our backrow by taking out a good portion of the court," said Jolley. "Ali and Jessa in the middle along with Olivia tonight getting touches on the blocks to go along with AC, Katelyn, Karlee, and Holly are reaching above the net and getting touches. It really makes it difficult and aggravating for opposing hitters." Chesnee was led on Wednesday night by AC Yelton who had seventeen kills, five digs, and four ace serves. Shenandoah Bishop led the Eagles in serving aces as she recorded five to go along with eleven digs. Holly Hines and Brie Smith both had good games with assists as Hines recorded seventeen and Smith had eleven of her own. With the win the Eagles wrap up their regular season and will now turn their focus to the 2A playoffs that start next week as Chesnee will host Saluda on Tuesday night. The Eagles are feeling good about the way they are playing as they enter the playoffs. "Our goal all season has been to play our best when we take the court," said Jolley. "When this team plays their best they're hard to beat. When we're playing our best we're moving, talking, hitting, at the net, and serving well and it's hard to stop everything and they can do everything." The Chesnee volleyball celebrated senior night by picking up a 3-0 win over county rival Woodruff on Tuesday night.
"We wanted to play good teams to get ready for the playoffs and Woodruff has a great program that is usually at the top of their region," said Chesnee head coach Katie Jolley. "It was great to see where we stand and what we need to work on." One of Chesnee's seniors Shenandoah Bishop says the team is happy with their start but still have goals to accomplish this season. "It means a lot to get off to a great start," said Bishop. "We have won back to back region titles and the great thing is that we aren't satisfied after winning the region. We work hard every single day at practice with the goal of winning a state championship." In the first set the Eagles had to rally from an early 2-0 deficit but closed the set with authority as they finished on a 15-5 run to win the set 25-10. They controlled the second set from start to finish including a 15-3 run to close out the set with a 25-12 win. Chesnee kept control in the final set and cruised to a 25-15 win to close out the set and win the match. The Eagles celebrated five seniors on Tuesday night as they honored Shenandoah Bishop, AC Yelton, Jessa Beach, Ali Scruggs, and Karlee Swaney. Coach Jolley says that all players have been key to the Eagles for different reasons. "Shenandoah is the fun loving one," said Jolley. "She has done a great job this year playing libero and has taken on a position she wasn't necessarily used to but has ran with it. Ali has done a great job in the middle where she has been huge for us including playing well again tonight. Jessa is a huge asset as she slams the ball into the ground at the net and has had several big blocks for us this season." "AC is our verbal leader," said Jolley. "She does a great job on the outside. She is very smart and does a great job seeing the court. Karlee has come up big this year on the right side. She played well on the right side last year but this year she has played with a fire under her because it is her senior year." On the court one thing that had really stood out about the Eagle's play has been the communication on the court by this team. "We constantly talk about how they have to communicate who goes where on the court and who is going to get what ball," said Jolley. "That's what make great teams is they that talk and communicate. We are doing a great job of talking and listening this year." Chesnee was led offensively by AC Yelton who had an impressive twenty-five kills along with nine digs and four aces. Katelyn Barrett also had a strong game with eight digs and eight kills while Holly Hines led the way with a team high forty assists. Shenandoah Bishop led the Eagles defensively with eighteen assists and is having a great season after taking for the libero position this year after the Eagle's lost North-South All-Star Shelby Harris to graduation last year. "I realized last year that I would probably be stepping up to the libero position this year so I watched Shelby to pick up on what she did last year," said Bishop. "I have worked hard at practice every single day and have a lot of confidence in myself." The Eagles will host Broome on Wednesday at 5:30 in another matchup of county rivals. Chesnee found some familiar territory on Monday as they repeated as Upper State champions of the South Carolina A,AA, and AAA class with a win at the Southern Oaks golf course in Anderson.
The Eagles won the match by shooting an overall team score of 314 and were led by Sydney Roberts who finished as co-medalist after shooting a tournament low score of 69 on Monday. Chesnee also got a good outing from Isabella Britt who shot a score of 75. The Eagles team didn't have a player shoot a score higher than the 80's, the only team to accomplish that feat, as Paige Scruggs and Addy Parker had their best personal scores on Monday. Chesnee will return to action next Monday and Tuesday at the Hackler Golf Club in Conway, SC to compete in the State Championship tournament. Chesnee finished off a clean sweep of Region II-2A with a 30-12 win over Blacksburg on Friday night as they celebrated all their fall sport senior athletes.
“I am proud of our kids effort," said Chesnee head coach Clay Lewis. "It was a great win for our seniors to get the win on senior night.” Chesnee got off to a fast start as they marched sixty-three yards on four play before capping it off with a Camden Burns one yard score as the drive took just over a minute off the clock. On the ensuing Wildcats drive Jeremiah Foster barreled for a first down but the Eagles shut down the Wildcat attack on the next three plays and forced a punt. The Eagles defense forced a fumble deep in Wildcat territory with just under five minutes to go in the first quarter and capitalized on the good fortune. Senior quarterback Nyquille O'Fair found fellow senior Matthew Froemel for a thirty yard gain through the air down to the Blacksburg one yard line before O'Fair punched it in on the following play to double the Eagles lead. On the next Chesnee possession the Eagles drove deep into Wildcat territory but the Wildcats were able to force a fumble and returned it back to the Chesnee forty-two yard line. At that point the Wildcats went on a seven play drive that saw them on fourth down have Zac Painter find Ty Wilson from six yards out for the score. After a failed two point conversion by the Wildcats it gave the Eagles a 14-6 lead they were able to carry into halftime. The Eagles came out focused to start the second half as the defense forced a three and out before the offense used only five plays to score when Camden Burns punched it in from two yards out to increase Chesnee's lead to 21-6. A few possessions later another Wildcat fumble set the Eagles up in great field position and Chesnee once again took advantage a the drive ended with a twenty-nine yard field off the foot of Ian Harris increasing the Eagles lead to 24-6. Blacksburg answered back a few possessions later on a Chesnee turnover as the Wildcats scored on an eight play drive capped off by a six yard touchdown run by Ty Wilson to put the score at 24-12 in favor of Chesnee after Blacksburg once again failed the two point try. The Eagles responded to Wildcats score as Camden Burns and Adam Parks gained sixty-four of the seventy-one yards on the drive which was finished off by Nyquille O'Fair with a seven yard run to score and give Chesnee a 30-12 lead. Chesnee had another big night offensively as they gained over three hundred yards of total offense. Senior Camden Burns led the way with one hundred and thirty-two yards rushing on fifteen carries with a pair of scores. Senior signal caller Nyquille O'Fair also had a big night as he had fifty-four yards rushing and a pair of scores while completing four out of nine passes for sixty-five yards. Defensively the Eagles once again had a well balanced attack as the Eagles had nineteen different players register a tackle. Seniors Grant Webb and Jacob Ingle led the way with five and a half tackles each while Blake Wilson also added five tackles. "It's the way we practice," said Ingle. "We practice like it is a game situation." Chesnee travels to Airport next Friday night to begin their non-region play. On Thursday night the Chesnee volleyball team finished their region season undefeated after a 3-0 win over Brashier Middle College.
Chesnee was never really challenged on Thursday as they won the first and third sets 25-11 while also winning the second set 25-6. The Eagles didn’t drop a set during the region season making it the second straight season that Chesnee has accomplished that feat. Eagles senior AC Yelton picked up eighteen kills and three ace serves on Thursday night while fellow senior Shenandoah Bishop picked up eight digs while leading the team with four ace serves. Junior Kaitlyn Barrett finished the night with eleven kills and ten digs while fellow junior Holly Hines finished the night with twenty-nine assists and three ace serves. Chesnee will finish up their regular season next week with home matches against Woodruff on Tuesday and Broome on Wednesday. |
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