Chester Community School District 139

CHS begins week of Homecoming 2024 activities (post 1 of 2) Monday was “Follow Your Dreams Day”; Tuesday featured “Tangled Hair Day”, Powder Puff Football game, and Bon Fire & Pep Rally. BY JIM BEERS Monday through Saturday, September 16-21, is Chester High School Homecoming Week. The CHS Student Council and “HIVE” Pep Club have been busy planning and implementing lots of fun-filled activities for each day of the week. This year’s theme is titled, “Tangled” and everything is based or centered on the Disney movie, “Tangled”. Monday September 16 was “Follow Your Dreams Day” when students dressed in apparel that fit their dream career. Tuesday September 17 was action-packed with a dress-up day titled, “Tangled Hair Day”. On this day students wore their hair as if they didn’t really cared what it looked like. In addition students and staff were encouraged to wear their custom made class T-shirts. Class colors included, Carolina Blue for freshmen; Cherry Red for sophomores; Heather Radiant Orchid for juniors; and Azalea for seniors. Staff had traditional orange shirts. Tuesday afternoon at 5:15 P.M. was the annual Homecoming Powder Puff Football games which featured the freshmen, sophomore, junior, and senior girls in a three-game tournament to determine who would be the 2024 Homecoming Powder Puff Champion. Games had just 10-minute halves and the girls played on just half of the field. The tournament was set up with the seniors playing the freshmen in Game 1. Game 2 featured the juniors vs the sophomores. The winners of those two semi-final games faced off in Game 3 to determine the champion. Game 1 had the Azalea Team (seniors) facing the Carolina Blue Team (freshmen). The seniors busted two back-to-back touchdowns in the opening minutes. The first TD scored six points and a two-point conversion for eight points. The second earned six points, but the extra point attempt failed and the seniors led, 14-0 at the half. The freshmen turned the ball over on downs on their first possession. The seniors scored a third time with 6:00 left in the game and the seniors extended their lead to 20-0. The freshmen turned the ball over on downs on their next possession and the seniors used that opportunity to score yet a fourth touchdown with just .15 remaining in the game. The extra-point attempt failed and the seniors led, 26-0 to end the game and advance to the Championship game. The freshmen team was eliminated. Game 2 featured the Heather Radiant Orchid Team (juniors) vs the Cherry Red Team (sophomores). This game was long-and-drawn out, with neither team able to establish either a running game or passing game. At halftime the score was tied, 0-0.

CHS 2024 HOMECOMING WEEK: Tuesday: Tangled Hair Tuesday (tangle your crazy hair like you just don't care and wear a homecoming shirt) Homecoming Class T-Shirts available for pickup first thing this morning from the Soda Stand in Colbert Gym. Powder Puff Game TONIGHT 5:15pm W.O. Smith Field with Bonfire to follow game

CHS 2024 HOMECOMING DAY: Tangled Spirit Homecoming Day Wednesday, September 18th, 2024 Student Activities Float Building Hallway Decorating Window Painting Flag Football T-Shirt Painting Rapunzel Hair Braiding Homecoming Trivia Throwback Homecoming Pictures Paper Lantern Construction Sidewalk Chalk Art Tower Building Club Plywood Painting & Decorating Class Banner Construction Homecoming Game Poster Construction Reading/Study Hall No Opt-Out or Workforce on Wednesday, September 18th, 2024 CCSI Students must notify the main office if they intend to attend CCSI or CHS on Wednesday, 18th, 2024.

CHS 2024 POWDER PUFF GAME & BONFIRE: 2024 Homecoming Powder Puff Game Tuesday, September 17th, 2024 at 5:15pm W.O. Smith Field (Bonfire to follow after game)

CHS 2024 HOMECOMING DANCE INFO: Homecoming Dance Saturday, September 21st, 2024 7:00pm-10:30pm King Coronation 9:00pm Doors open to the public 8:45pm Purchasing Homecoming Dance Tickets Tickets will be sold Wednesday, September 11th, through Thursday, September 19th, during A and C lunches ONLY. *No tickets will be sold at the door Saturday night at the dance, nor Friday September 20th. To bring an outside CHS guest to the dance, students must have paperwork filled out in the office prior to Thursday, September 19th. In order to purchase a ticket, students must have a breathalyzer form on file in the Student Services office. Students who do not have a breathalyzer form on file need to visit Mrs. Tindall in the Student Services office.

CHS 2024 HOMECOMING INFO: Jackets 'Tangle' Up with the Bulldogs at Homecoming 2024!" Join Chester High School in celebrating our "Tangled" themed 2024 Homecoming at some of our upcoming events. Chester High School students who desire to attend the Saturday, 9/21, dance should follow instructions posted here, in their Google Classrooms, daily announcements, and other visible postings throughout the school building. Come, let down your hair and support your Chester YellowJackets!

CHS 2024 HOMECOMING DRESS-UP DAYS: Tangled Spirit Week Mon.: Follow your Dreams (dress up as your future career) Tues.: Tangled Hair Tuesday (tangle your crazy hair like you just don't care and wear a homecoming shirt) Weds.: At Last I See the Light (light up your outfit, wearable tree light, glow sticks, flash lights, etc.) Thurs.: Conceal Yourself Like a Chameleon (camouflage yourself to blend in with your environment) Fri.: Find Your Jacket Pride (dress up in Orange & Black Yellowjacket Spiritwear) See attached graphic

No. 9 Chester wins at Freeburg, 31-14, to improve to 3-0 (post 3 of 3) Al-Jassim uses 228-yard passing game to score 4 touchdowns; Landeros caps off scoring with 27-yard field goal BY JIM BEERS Facing 2-and-3 Tray Peters ran for a first and ten. A failed run and an incomplete put the Jackets facing 3-and-8 at the 2:50 mark. On the next play, Al-Jassim found an open senior tight end, Brenden Malley, for a 13-yard pass and touchdown. Karim Landeros remained perfect for the night on his extra-point kicks (4) and the Jackets extended their lead to 28-13 with 2:46 remaining in the third quarter. The period ended with Nate Maes and Tino Rafael making great defensive plays to hold the Midgets scoreless as the clock ran out with Freeburg facing 2-amd-9 and Chester leading, 28-14. Freeburg started the 4 th Quarter with the ball on the 50- yard line facing 2-and-9. The CHS defense held them to 4-and-2 at which time the Midgets went for it. The Jackets defense held them again, forcing a turnover on downs. The YellowJackets then returned the favor and turned the ball over on downs giving the ball back to Freeburg. The Midgets achieved back-to-back first downs and proceeded to fumble the ball with Chester’s Devante Palacio recovering the ball. The Jackets took the ball and got back-to-back first downs on runs by Korbin Jany and Tray Peters. Ethan Colvis ran for five yards followed by Zain Al-Jassim running for another first down. Runs by Colvis and Jany got the ball to the 10 yard line. Facing 4-and-4, Karim Landeros kicked a 27-yard field goal for three points. Chester extended its lead to 31-14 with 1:19 left to play. The Jackets held the Midgets the final 1:05 of the game to seal the deal for the win. Chester won, 31-14. In the win, Chester’s Zain Al-Jassim completed 9-of-19 passes for 228 yards and four touchdowns. CHS ran 51 plays. FHS ran 54 plays. The Jackets had 346 yards, 228 passing and 118 rushing. Freeburg had a total of 179 yards, all on the ground. CHS was 5-of-11 on third downs (45%). FHS was 6-of-13 on third down (46%). Chester had 1 turnover, a fumble. FHS had two turnovers, both fumbles. The YellowJacket defense was great against the Midgets with 27 solo tackles and 46 tackle assists. Senior Cayden Brunkhorst was the top defender with 4 solo tackles and 3 tackle assists. Head Coach, Billy Belton said, “I thought the defense played great all night long! Coach Eggemeyer did a great job with the game play.” “Devante had a big day with two touchdowns. Taking the second lay of th game to the house was awesome. He is a special player!” “We talked all week about how the toughest team would win. Freeburg runs a very hard offense to defend. I thought our D-line did a great job vs a bigger O-line. Coach Mueller and Coach Riggio have done a great job with our lines.” “Playing hose bigger schools is always hard, but our boys played extremely hard all four quarters. I live the way the offense finished with that last drive taking a ton of time off the clock and then finished with three points. That was very impressive.” “This was a great team win and I’m so proud of the boys! They played so hard!” Chester will host Sparta Friday September 20 for Homecoming 2024. That will be the Jacket’s first Cahokia Conference, Illinois Division game of the season. The Jackets stand at 3-0 so far this season overall.

No. 9 Chester wins at Freeburg, 31-14, to improve to 3-0 (post 2 of 3) Al-Jassim uses 228-yard passing game to score 4 touchdowns; Landeros caps off scoring with 27-yard field goal BY JIM BEERS Freeburg had the ball on 46 yard line to start the second quarter. On the first play, Chester’s Nate Maes had a great quarterback sack to begin the defensive effort. Freeburg was called for holding and the Midgets had to turn the ball over to Chester on downs. Chester had the ball for just six plays when they had to turn the ball over to Freeburg on downs after they faced 4-and-7 at the 8:29. CHS attempted a “trickery play” in which Tray Peters ended up with the ball from a quick pass, but his knee touched the ground to end the play. Freeburg took over on their own 42 yard line. Freeburg had the ball for 4 minutes before they were forced to punt by the YellowJacket defense. During that great effort Karin Landeros and Jarden Brunkhorst had fantastic tackles and Nate Maes and Kolton Jany sacker the Freeburg quarterback to force the Midgets to punt with 4:18 left in the half. The YellowJackets only had the ball for 63 seconds and four plays before they were forced to punt by the Freeburg defense. Freeburg then had the ball for four plays and 90 seconds after which the YellowJacket defense forced them to punt for the third time in the half. Chester had the ball on the Freeburg 42 yard line to start the possession with 1:34 remaining in the first half. The possession began with a Chester illegal procedure penalty and back-to-back incomplete passes. Things did not look good for CHS. On the next play Zain Al-Jassim found Chester’s Justin Hayman, a senior wide receiver, and Hayman ran to the Freeburg 37 yard line. On the next play, Al-Jassim passed to junior Ethan Colvis who ran for a 37-yard touchdown with 58.9 seconds on the clock. Karim Landeros kicked his third successful extra point of the game and the YellowJackets extended their lead to 21-7. Chester’s defense held the Midgets for the final 58.0 seconds with a great pass break-up by Lincon Schroeder and another by sophomore Alex Blechle. Chester led, 21-7 at halftime. Freeburg received the ball to start the second half. To kick-off the 3rd quarter the Midgets orchestrated a 9-play drive that resulted in a touchdown by AJ Vahlkamp on a 1-yard run at the 6:17 mark. Dane Olmstead’s extra-point kick was good and the Midgets pulled within seven points, 21-14. During that drive Chester’s Alex Blechle made a great tackle on Freeburg’s Weston Jarvis throwing him for a 4-yard loss. Nate Maes also made a good stop on an AJ Vahlkamp run that prevented a first down. Chester was held to 4-and-out on its next possession forcing a punt. Freeburg fumbled the ball on the return and Chester’s Zain Al-Jassim recovered the ball on the Midget’s 15 yard line with 4:32 to play in the third period.

No. 9 Chester wins at Freeburg, 31-14, to improve to 3-0 (post 1 of 3) Al-Jassim uses 228-yard passing game to score 4 touchdowns; Landeros caps off scoring with 27-yard field goal BY JIM BEERS The Chester YellowJackets traveled to Freeburg, Illinois Friday September 13 to challenge the Midgets in a non-conference game. In spite of it being the notorious and scary “FRIDAY the 13 th ” and the fact that Freeburg has an average enrollment of 750 students (compared to Chester’s 323 students), the YellowJackets walked away with a great 31-14 victory to remain undefeated at 3-0. The Jackets were ranked No.9 this week by the Associated Press in IHSA Division 2A Football rankings. YellowJacket quarterback, Zain Al-Jassim, a senior, orchestrated a 228-yard passing game which netted four touchdowns for CHS in the win over Freeburg. Devante Palacio, Chester’s senior, record-breaking wide receiver, caught five passes for 121 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Ethan Colvis, a junior, caught 1 pass for a touchdown and 37 yards, and senior Brenden Malley caught 1 pass for 13 yards and Chester’s fourth touchdown. Sophomore kicker Karim Landeros kicked a 27-yard field goal and 4 extra-points to top off the scoring, and contribute to the victory. Chester also added 118 rushing yards, led by senior Kolton Jany (74) and Ethan Colvis (26). Also contributing to the rushing stats were Zain Al-Jassim (8), Tray Peters (8), and Justin Hayman (2). Freeburg won the coin toss and elected to kick off to Chester to start the game. A touchback on the kickoff brought the ball to the 20-yard line to open play. On Chester’s first play from scrimmage Kolton Jany ran 12 yards for a first down. On the next play, quarterback Zain Al-Jassim hit Devante Palacio with a pass and Palacio proceeded to run for a 69-yard touchdown. Karim Landeros kicked the extra-point and the YellowJackets led, 7-0 just 19-seconds into the game. Karim Landeros kicked the ball to the 35 yard line on the kickoff and the Midgets began their effort to upset the YellowJackets. The Chester defense had other ideas and held the Midgets to four-and out forcing a Freeburg punt. Chester took the punt their own 22 yard line. On the first play from scrimmage, the Jackets fumbled on a lateral pass attempt and Freeburg’s Lewis recovered the loose ball on the 18 yard line for a 4-yard Chester loss. Freeburg took over at Chester’s 18 yard line. YellowJacket Tino Rafael stopped the Midget’s first run attempt with only a 1-yard gain. AJ Vahlkamp then ran for 8 yards after which he scored a 4-yard touchdown at the 7:14 mark. Dane Olmstead kicked the extra-point and the Midgets tied the game, 7-7, for what looked as if it might turn into a real barn-burner. On Freeburg’s kickoff the ball went into the end zone for a touchback. That put the ball on the 20-yard line to start the Jacket’s second possession. Zain Al-Jassim passed to Devante Palacio for a first down on the first play. A Midget holding penalty gave the Jackets another first down with 6:18 left to play in the first quarter. Three plays later Kolton Jany caught a pass for another Chester first down and two plays later, Palacio caught his second touchdown pass of the night, this time a 33-yard gem. Landeros was good on his second extra-point attempt and Chester led, 14-7 at the 4:06 mark. On the kickoff Chester’s Karim Landeros gave the Midgets a rolling, bouncing ball that was loose for a while before Adler Schulz recovered the ball at the Freeburg 25 yard line. A swarm of YellowJackets stopped the first Midget run attempt. Chester’s Tray Peters stopped a good Weston Jarvis run at the 31 yard line with 2:03 to play in the opening frame. John Higgins and AJ Vahlkamp had good efforts to get a Freeburg first down at the Chester 41 yard line. On the next play, Freeburg was called for a chop-block penalty taking the ball back 10 yards. The quarter ended with the Midgets facing 3-and-7 as the clock ran out. Chester led, 14-7 at the end of the first quarter. Photo 1 Cayden Brunkhorst CHS senior, Cayden Brunkhorst (3) led the Jackets on defense Friday September 13 with 4 solo tackles and 3 tackle assists. The Jackets defense was key in the 31-14, win at Freeburg helping Chester to improve to an overall record of 3-0. Jim Beers Photo PHOTO 2 Brenden Malley Brenden Malley (18), a 6'5", 210 Lb. , YellowJacket tight end, caught a 13-yard pass from CHS quarterback Zain Al-Jassim at the 2:50 mark of the 3rd quarter Friday September 13th at Freeburg. Malley, a senior, then proceeded to score Chester's fourth-and-final touchdown of the evening to extend Chester's lead to 27-14. Karim Landeros then kicked his fourth extra-point of the game to give the YellowJackets a 28-14 lead. Malley took last season off to concentrate on his CHS Golf game, but returned this year bigger-and-better to become a key factor in the YellowJacket lineup. Jim Beers Photo

This is a great way to honor a retired employee of Chester Community Unit School District No 139. Scan the QR code with a phones camera to pull up our online form.

CHS FOOTBALL CANCELATION: Due to a scheduling conflict with Freeburg, tonight's Freshmen Football game has been canceled with reschedule TBA.

911 Tribute at CHS Pictured are the new flag poles that were recently installed at W.O. Smith Field at Chester High School. Jeremy Blechle, Principal at CHS said, "Today at CHS we remember 9-11 at Chester High School. One of the main reasons we pushed for the three flag poles at W.O. Smith Field to honor and give tribute for special days like today." The three poles at W.O. Smith Field typically display the American Flag on the highest pole in the middle with the State of Illinois Flag on one side and the Chester YellowJacket Flag on the opposite side. On special occasions such as 9-11, Veteran's Day. Memorial Day. 4th of July, etc., Blechle displays American Flags on all three poles. In addition, to start the day off right at CHS, Steve Colonel and the CHS Swing Choir, "Sound Affect" sang the national anthem, "The Star Spangled Banner" over the school ,PA system. Blechle then gave a brief personal account of his recollection of learning of the 9-11 attacks and his reaction to the horrible happenings of the morning of September 11, 2001 when the jets struck the twin towers in New York, the Pentagon, and Flight 93 crashed in Pennsylvania. Following Blechle's reflection, there was a 23-second moment of silence in which students and staff could honor those who lost their lives in this tragedy. Finally, Blechle provided several video clips that teachers could use in their classes to discuss 9-11 and help students understand the huge impact that 9-11 had on all lives of U.S. Citizens. Jim Beers Photo

Lady Jackets host Lady Bulldogs in 9-hole match Rylie Myers is Medalist and leads Lady Jackets to win! BY JIM BEERS The Chester High School Lady Jackets hosted the Sparta Lady Bulldogs to a 9-Hole match Tuesday September 10 at the Chester Country Club Course. It was a warm but breezy afternoon with sunny skies and very dry conditions. The teams warmed up and teed-off at precisely 4:00 p.m. with eight of Chester’s Lady Jacket golfers in attendance and just three Sparta golfers able to report for the match. Coach Meg Schnoeker was up-beat and happy to get her girls on the course. Sparta Head Coach, Jennifer Carter, said, “Well, these are my girls. I only have three this year, but they love to play and I love coaching them. They are doing well and improving every day.” The Lady YellowJackets fielded a full team. There are nine golfers on the Lady Jacket squad. Eight were available for the match. Six finished the 9-hole event. CHS recorded a team score of 212 strokes. Junior Rylie Myers led the Jackets with a round of 46 strokes. She was also the medalist for the match. Chester’s other finishers included junior Macy Bert (52), senior Rylie Conley (57), freshman Mallorie Homan (57), junior Riley Lochhead (60), and junior Jessie Stumpe (61). Junior Addison Gottschammer and sophomore Monica Anaya did not finish the match. Sparta was led by senior Hannah Stine who shot 52. Sophomore Loughlyn Kurtz recorded a 9-hole score of 54. Freshman Alyssa Shubert had a match with 58 strokes. The Lady Jackets will compete again Thursday September 12 at Red Bud. Tee-off time will be 4:00 P.M. Photo 1 Riley Lochhead chips Chester High School Lady Jacket golfer, Riley Lochhead, takes a chip shot to get on the green at Chester Country Club Tuesday September 10. For the 9-hole match Lochhead, a junior, had a score of 60, 5th for CHS. Jim Beers Photo Photo 2 Rylie Myers Rylie Myers, a Lady Jacket golfer for Chester High School was the Medalist with the lowest score of 46 strokes in the match Tuesday September 10. The match that hosted the Sparta Lady Bulldogs, was a 9-hole match in which Chester had a team score of 212. Sparta had only three golfers which did not qualify for a team score. Myers is a junior at CHS and is one of the top Lady Jackets competitors. Jim Beers Photo Photo 3 Jessica Stumpe sand pit CHS junior Jessie Stumpe works hard to get out of a sand pit at the Chester Country Club Tuesday September 10. The Chester High School Lady Jackets were hosting the Sparta Lady Bulldogs. For the 9-hole match Stumpe finished 6th for Chester with her round of 61 strokes. Jim Beers Photo

YellowJackets improve to 2-0 with 56-6 romp over Pinckneyville (post 3 of 3) BY JIM BEERS On the kickoff, CHS recovered a loose ball, and had possession for six minutes until they turned the ball over to Pinckneyville on downs. The Panthers had the ball to close the game, but the Jackets defense held them scoreless as time ran out. Chester won, 56-6, to improve to 2-0 on the early 2024 season. The YellowJackets used nine touchdowns to win the game with two touchdowns apiece from Kolton Jany and Brenden Malley and single TD’s from Zain Al-Jassim, Cayden Brunkhorst, Devante Palacio, Gene Bicket and Alex Blechle. In the win, Chester ran 48 plays and Pinckneyville ran 42. The Jackets accumulated a total of 372 yards (265 passing & 107 rushing), while Pinckneyville recorded 127 yards (63 passing & 64 rushing). CHS achieved 13 first downs vs the Panther’s nine. Chester forced 6 Pinckneyville turnovers, 3 fumbles and 3 interceptions. Chester had NO turnovers. The Jackets had 10 penalties and Pinckneyville committed seven penalties. CHS was 2-of 4 on 4 th downs (50%) and 3-of-7 on 3 rd downs (43%). The Panthers were 0-0 on 4 th downs (0%) and 3-of-8 on 3 rd downs (38%). Chester’s Zain Al-Jassim completed 12-of-19 passes for 265 yards and 4 touchdowns. Chester ran for a total of 107 yards behind the efforts of Kolton Jany (6-for-50 yards and 1 TD); Tray Peters (2-for-16 yards); Ethan Colvis (5-for-15 yards); Gene Bicket (2-for-13 yards and 1 TD); D. Palacio (9); T. Palacio (7); Schroeder (2); Armenta (2); Blechle (1); and Al-Jassim (-6 and 1 TD). Kolton Jany caught 4 passes for 121 yards and 1 TD; Devante Palacio caught 4 passes for 93 yards and 93 yards; Brenden Malley caught 2 passes for 37 yards and 2 TD’s; Lannin Caron caught 1 pass for 13 yards; and Jack Heffernan caught 1 pass for 1 yard. On defense the Jackets had 17 solo tackles with Ethan Colvis (4), Alex Blechle (2), Brenden Malley (2), and Alex Williamson (2) leading the way. CHDS also recorded 30 tackle assists with Nate Maes (4), Alex Williamson (4), Denis Vasquez (3), and Brenden Malley (3) leading the way. Coach Billy Belton said, “It was a great team win! We played well on all three phases of the game, offense, defense and special teams. Cayden Brunkhorst had a great defensive tackle and a pick-6. Special teams had a punt return for an Alex Blechle TD.” “On offense our skill guys really stepped up. Brenden Malley had two touchdowns and Devante Palacio and Kolton Jany both had receiving TD’s. Zain Al-Jassim played extremely well! He accounted for five of our touchdowns. Gene Bicket had a rushing TD.” “Our defense played really well! I felt like we were flying around and causing problems for Pinckneyville. We forced six turnovers, 3 fumbles and 3 interceptions! I am very proud of the boys. The played extremely hard for all 4 quarters!” Chester will travel to Freeburg this Friday September 13 to take on the Midgets of the Cahokia Conference, Mississippi Division. Kickoff is at 7:00 P.M.

YellowJackets improve to 2-0 with 56-6 romp over Pinckneyville (post 2 of 3) BY JIM BEERS Pinckneyville had the ball to start the second half. Facing 4-and-3 on the 37 yard line, the Panthers got a 1 st down on a Chester off-sides penalty which moved the ball to the CHS 48- yard line. On the next play, Panther Tyler McConnell caught a pass for a first down, moving the ball to Chester’s 15 yard line for a first down. Pinckneyville’s star running back, Marshawn Fisher, ran the ball for another first down taking the ball to the 9-yard line. YellowJacket, Ethan Colvis made the stop to prevent a touchdown. A Pinckneyville penalty at the 7:40 mark-moved the ball back 5 yards making it 2-and-14 with 6:57 left in the 3rd quarter. On the next play from scrimmage, Panther, Tyler McConnell caught his second major pass of the series, this time for a 14-yard touchdown. The extra-point kick was no good. PHS was on the score board and trailed Chester by 31 points, 37-6, with 6:46 remaining in the 3 rd quarter. Pinckneyville’s opening possession burned up 4 minutes and four seconds. On the ensuing kickoff, Chester’s Kolton Jany returned the ball to the Pinckneyville 49 yard line. Five plays later, Chester’s Devante Palacio, a senior wide receiver, caught a Zain Al-Jassim pass for a 26-yard TD for Chester’s 7 th touchdown of the game. A 2-point conversion failed, but the Jackets extended their lead to 37 points, 43-6, at the 4:18 mark in the 3 rd quarter. The YellowJacket defense stood tall and firm on Pinckneyville’s next possession. Chester held the Panthers to just one yard on the first play of the series, tackled for a 2-yard loss on the next play, held them with no yardage on the third play and forced a punt on the next play. On the play, the partially-blocked ball took one bounce and sophomore Alex Blechle, a defensive back, was in the right place at the right time. The ball bounced right into Blechle’s arms and he returned the ball 51-yards for yet another Chester touchdown. It was Chester’s 8th. Sophomore Karim Landeros brought his mojo back into his kicking game to kick his second extra-point of the game. The YellowJackets extended their lead to 44 points, 50-6, with just 2:25 left in the 3 rd quarter. On the first play from scrimmage Alex Blechle intercepted a Pinckneyville pass with 27- seconds left in the period end the 3 rd quarter. CHS led, 50-6. Chester had the ball on the 13 yard line to start the 4 th quarter. On the fifth play from scrimmage senior running back, Gene Bicket, took the ball three yards for Chester’s 9 th and final touchdown of the game. Bicket’s TD extended the YellowJacket’s lead to 50 points, 56-6. The 2- point conversion failed.

YellowJackets improve to 2-0 with 56-6 romp over Pinckneyville (post 1 of 3) BY JIM BEERS (photos by Jim Beers) Seven Chester players score a total of nine touchdowns including Jany (2), Malley (2), Al-Jassim (1), Brunkhorst (1), Palacio (1), Bicket (1), and Blechle (1); Landeros kicks two extra points After defeating the DuQuoin Indians last week by a score of 35-27, at DuQuoin, the Chester YellowJacket’s Football Team beat the Pinckneyville Panthers, 56-6, at W.O. Smith Field at CHS Friday September 6.It was Chester’s home opener to start the 2024 season 2-0. The Panthers won the coin toss and elected to kick off to Chester to open the contest. The Jackets promptly went to work behind the efforts of work-horse Kolton Jany, Chester’s senior running back. Jany ran the ball 5-of-the first 7 plays and got three first downs which took the ball all the way to the Panther’s 8-yard line. Junior running back Ethan Colvis took the ball to the 1-yard line. On the next play, junior Tray Peters scored the Jacket’s first of nine touchdowns at the 8:06 mark. Karim Landeros’ kick missed his mark and Chester led, 6-0. Behind the efforts of the Jacket’s defensive unit, and a pair of Panther false start penalties, Chester forced Pinckneyville to a 4-and-12 situation with the ball on their own 16-yard line. For some reason, the Panthers decided to go for it and failed on a pass play, turning the ball over on downs to Chester at the 4:27 mark. Two plays later, Zain Al-Jassim, Chester’s senior quarterback, took it upon himself to score the Jacket’s second touchdown of the game on a 1-yard quarterback keeper. Karim Landeros’ extra-point attempt missed the mark again and Chester led, 12-0 with just 2:26 left in the first quarter. On Pinckneyville’s next possession, Chester’s Cayden Brunkhorst, a senior defensive back, intercepted a Panther pass and returned it 31-yards for a pick-6 TD. This took place just 12-seconds after Al-Jassim’s TD. CHS attempted a 2-point conversion which failed. Chester led, 18-0 with 2:21 to play in the first period. The Panthers were stopped by Chester’s Alex Williamson on their second play from scrimmage, but managed to get back-to-back first downs before the clock ran out to end the first quarter. CHS led, 18-0. To start the second quarter, Pinckneyville had a 1 st and 10 at their own 31-yard line. On the opening play from scrimmage, Chester’s senior defensive back, Devante Palacio intercepted a Pinckneyville pass just 13-seconds into the period (11:47). Chester took over on the Panther 48-yard line. An Ethan Colvis run and passes to senior wide receiver Jack Heffernan (plus 1) and running back Kolton Jany (plus 44 yards) put the ball at the Panther 2-yard line. Two plays later Kolton Jany ran it in for Chester’s fourth touchdown at the 8:43 mark. Another YellowJacket 2-point conversion failed, but Chester led, 24-0. On Pinckneyville’s next possession, they managed to work the ball to the Chester’s 36 yard line on three first downs. The Jacket defense then went into action and held the Panthers to 4-and-7. For the second time in the first half they decided to go for it on 4 th down. Chester held firm and forced a PHS turnover on downs. With 4:58 to play in the first half, Chester went to work and behind first downs by Kolton Jany and Ethan Colvis, Chester was one again in the Pinckneyville red zone with a 1 st and 10 at the one yard line. On the next play, senior tight end Brenden Malley caught a 9-yard Zain Al-Jassim pass for Chester’s 5 th touchdown. A third YellowJacket 2-point conversion attempt failed, but Chester led, 30-0 at the 3:21 mark. The Jacket defense held Pinckneyville to four downs and forced a Panther punt with just 1:03 to play in the first half. With just 50-seconds on the clock, the YellowJackets had the ball on the Pinckneyville 45-yard line. Four plays later, after a Kolton Jany 21-yard run and first down, Brenden Malley scored Chester’s 6 th touchdown and his second touchdown in three minutes, on a 28-yard touchdown pass from CHS quarterback, Zain Al-Jassim. Karin Landeros came in to kick the extra point. This time his kick was good and Chester extended its lead to 37-0 to end the first half.

CGS & CHS would like to honor and remember this tragic day in our history.

Trophies available for donation this week only! If you are interested or wish to take a look please check in with the office located at the new entrance of the High School during school hours.

CHS HOMECOMING CLASS REUNION TOURS: As CHS Homecoming approaches, Class Reunion groups have the opportunity to tour the facility the morning of the dance. This year the tours will occur Saturday, September 21st starting at 9:00am promptly. As the facility is secure, late arrivals will not have access, so please be on time. If your group would like a tour, please contact the main office, so we know we know who to expect. All groups will enter through the Professor Sharp Cafeteria, doors open at 8:45am, with the tour starting at 9:00am.