TaShawn Palacio breaks school receiving touchdown record with 11th touchdown pass reception; McCartney scores two touchdowns
By Jim Beers
CHESTER – Friday October 10 was the 2025 Chester High School Homecoming game and the State Ranked No. 17 Chester YellowJackets hosted the undefeated Dupo Tigers in a hard fought contest. CHS came into the game with an overall record of 5-1 and a Cahokia Conference record of 3-0. Chester plays in IHSA Class 2A football. Dupo, who plays in IHSA Class 1A, came into the game undefeated with an overall record of 6-0 and a Cahokia Conference record of 3-0.
The game was played in front of a packed W.O. Smith Field at CHS, complete with nine former CHS classes that were there for class reunions, as well as many people there to witness the crowning of the 2025 CHS Homecoming Queen.
The Tigers and YellowJackets had what is often referred to as a tale of two halves. Chester dominated the entire first half, outscoring Dupo 21-7 in the first half, and Dupo outscored the Jackets in the second half 30-17 in the final 16 minutes.
The Jacket defense was fierce in the first half. Dupo didn’t even get a first down until the 10:18 mark of the second quarter. They got two more 1st and tens in their fourth possession deep into the second quarter. Chester, on the other hand, earned 11 first downs in the first half.
Chester received to start the game. Fifteen plays and four first downs later, the Jackets scored the first touchdown of the game at the 4:20 mark of the first quarter. Trey McCartney caught a Tray Peters 13-yard pass to score six points. Chester’s kicker, Karim Landeros, a junior, kicked the extra-point and the Jackets drew first blood, 7-0.
The Orange Crush Defense held Dupo to 4-and-out on their first possession and Chester got the ball back with 3:27 left to play in the first quarter. The Jackets had the ball for nine plays, achieving two first downs, but were also penalized for a block-in-the-back. Chester faced 4-and-18 and were forced to give the ball back to the Tigers. The Jacket defense once again held Dupo to 4-and-out to end the first quarter with Chester leading, 7-0.
Chester had the ball to begin the second quarter. Trey McCartney, Ethan Colvis and Alex Blechle had big plays to earn two more first downs and get the ball to Dupo’s 11 yard line. On the 6th play from scrimmage, CHS quarterback, Tray Peters, scored on an 11-yard quarterback keeper. Landeros kicked the extra point and Chester led, 14-0, with 10:33 to play in the second quarter.
On Dupo’s third possession, they did get their first, 1st and ten, but Chester’s defense once again forced a Tiger’s punt. Dupo returned the favor on Chester’s next possession after sacking the Chester quarterback and making CHS face 4-and 14. Chester was then called for its second block-in-the-back penalty. Chester had to turn the ball back to Dupo with 6:41 to play in the half.
The Tigers had the ball for seven plays and two first-and-tens when Chester’s Derrius Shoemate intercepted a Deagan Prater pass to end the Tiger’s run with 3:10 left in the quarter.
On Chester’s next possession, Tray Peters ran for eight yards, the Jackets earned a pair of first downs and on the fifth play from scrimmage, Chester’s TaShawn Palacio, a 6’0”, 190 Lb. wide receiver caught a 34-yard Tray Peters pass and scored the YellowJacket’s third touchdown of the first half. Karim Landeros kicked the extra point and Chester led, 21-0 at the 1:29 mark.
The Palacio receiving touchdown was very nice and gave Chester a huge, 21-0 lead, however, that touchdown broke the Chester High School record for receiving touchdowns. Coming into the Homecoming game, there were three Chester receivers, two former, Jim Howie and Keith Kiner, and one current player, TaShawn Palacio, who tied the record for most receiving touchdowns at 10.
With Palacio’s receiving TD, he broke that record and is now the current leader with 11 receiving touchdowns. He is only a junior and has two more regular-season games left, and hopefully at least one playoff game left to play.
With 58-seconds remaining in the half, Chester kicked off to Dupo. On the first play from scrimmage, Tiger quarterback, Deagan Prater, hit Brady Portell with a pass for a 65-yard touchdown. It was Dupo’s first score of the game at the 46.3 mark. The extra-point was good and the Tigers trailed by 14 points, 21-7.
With 46.3 on the clock Chester took the Dupo kickoff and went to work. Tray Peters orchestrated three first downs in the time left on the clock, but as the horn sounded to end the first half, Chester led, 21-7.
The third quarter would see both teams get two scores apiece. Dupo would score 14 points and Chester would score 10 points.
The Tigers received the opening kickoff to start the second half. It took just two first downs and a total of five plays and Dupo picked up where they left off at the end of the second quarter with a second touchdown. Deagan Prater connected with wide receiver Brrayden Esterlein for a 62-yard touchdown. Chester defended the extra-point kick, but with 10:15 left to play in the third quarter, Chester led by just eight points, 21-13.
Chester started its next possession with a 15-yard personal foul. The Jackets then orchestrated two first downs in an eight-play drive to score its fourth touchdown of the game. CHS scored on a 1-yard run by junior wide receiver Zane Eggemeyer. Landeros kicked the extra-point and CHS extended its lead to 15 points, 28-13, at the 7:12 mark of the 3rd quarter.
The Jacket defense stood firm on Dupo’s next possession and held the Tigers to 4-and-out. In that stand, Trey McCartney, Zane Eggemeyer and Karim Landeros sacked Dupo’s quarterback to put an end to their possession.
Chester had the ball for just four plays on its next possession with Tray Peters being closely guarded. On the third play from scrimmage Peters slipped on the wet grass and lost seven yards. Facing 4-and 12, the Jackets called on Karim Landeros to kick a 34-yard field goal. Landeros was successful and earned Chester three more points to further extend its lead to 18 points, 31-13, with 2:47 left in the 3rd quarter.
Just when it appeared as if Chester had good control of the game, Dupo’s Brady Portell took the next Chester kickoff for a 92-yard trip into touchdown land at the 2:29 mark. The 2-point conversion was successful and once again, the Tigers got within striking distance to trail by only 10 points, 31-21. That’s how the third quarter would end!
The 4th quarter would turn out to be a wild ride with three possessions for both teams, but Chester would only score once for a touchdown and extra point. Dupo would add a total of 16 points. Two points would come from a safety, eight points would come from a touchdown and a two-point conversion, and the final six points would come from a touchdown.
Dupo had the ball to start off the 4th quarter. Their possession was marred with two penalties for five yards each. On the fifth play from scrimmage Chester’s Tray Peters halted the possession with a pass interception, turning the ball over to the YellowJackets at the 4-yard line and 10:16 to play in the game.
On the Jacket’s next possession, CHS only ran one play with the Jackets being called for a penalty. Dupo defended the Jackets tackling the Jackets in the end zone for a safety. That added two points on the Tiger’s point total and narrowed Chester’s lead to eight points, 31-23. Chester also had to kick off to Dupo for another Dupo possession at the 10:02 mark.
On Dupo’s possession, the Tigers were called for a false start. Chester was called for a personal foul. Dupo was called for holding. Dupo had an incomplete pass, and Dupo was called AGAIN for holding. Facing 3-and-15, Dupo’s Deegan Prater attempted another pass. This pass was intercepted by Tray Peters, his second interception in as many possessions. That turnover gave the ball back to Chester with 8:20 to play in the game and Chester leading, 31-23.
On Chester’s next possession, the YellowJackets were held to 4-and-out. Dupo had the ball for five plays, including back-to-back first downs with passes to Brady Portell. On the 6th play, Dupo scored a touchdown at the 4:51 mark. The 2-point conversion was good and the Tigers tied the game, 31-31.
At this point things were getting worrisome for Chester fans and Dupo fans were energized and confident. On Chester’s next possession, which started at the 4:51 mark, Alex Blechle got the Jackets started with a great kickoff return.
On Chester’s second play from scrimmage, Blechle was horse-collared and Dupo was penalized for 15 yards. Peters then ran for 8-yards and Colvis ran for a first down with 2:18 to play in the game. A successful pass to Trey McCartney took the ball to the Dupo 16 yard line and 1:27 left in the game.
Ethan Colvis ran for another first down, and on the final play of the possession, Tray Peters found Trey McCartney for a 13-yard touchdown with only 53.6 seconds left on the clock. Karim Landeros kicked the extra point and the Jackets led, 38-31. All seemed great in YellowJacket Country!
No one dreamed that Dupo could make a comeback with only 53.6 seconds remaining on the clock. Boy were they wrong!
Dupo ran the kickoff to the 38 yard line (52.3). Deegan Prater’s pass on the first play from scrimmage was defended by the YellowJacket defense (43.4). Deegan then completed his second pass for a first down (32.3). That pass took the ball to the 49 yard line. With 22.3 seconds left to play, Deagan connected with wide receiver Carter Lumpkins who ran the ball to the Chester 6 yard line (.07). Dupo then called a timeout.
Following the time out, Dupo quarterback, Deegan Prater, found wide receiver Thinh Staggs in the end zone for a touchdown with only 1.4 seconds on the clock. The score was Chester 38- Dupo 37. The Tigers had to make the crucial decision to kick the extra point to tie the game, or attempt a 2-point conversion for the win.
The Tigers decided to go for the win. On the snap, Deegan Prater attempted a pass to a Tiger receiver, Thinh Scaggs in the end zone. It was extremely close, but Chester’s Tray Peters, who had already played the role of hero in the Tiger’s previous possessions by intercepting back-to-back passes, reached up at the last second and defended the conversion. With 1.4 seconds left to play, Chester maintained its slim, 1-point lead, 38-37.
An on-side kick by Dupo was attempted but not successful, and the YellowJackets escaped with the 1-point win, 38-37. Chester fans erupted in celebration as the previously undefeated Dupo Tigers were handed their first loss of the 2025 season.
In the win the YellowJackets ran a total of 81 lays. Dupo ran 55. Chester racked up a total of 431 yards for the game, 240 passing and 191 rushing. Dupo accumulated 334 yards, 312 passing and 22 rushing. The Jackets earned 25 first downs while the Tigers recorded 14 first downs. CHS was 2-for-11 in 3rd down efficiency (18%) and DHS was 2-for-8 (25%).
Chester had no turnovers in the win while Dupo had three turnovers, all interceptions. The YellowJackets were called for 20 penalties for a total of 247 yards while the Tigers committed seven penalties for 56 yards.
Chester passers attempted a total of 23 passes and connected for 17 of those (74%). Included in that statistic were Tray Peters (16-of-21 for 206 yards and 3 touchdowns (76%); Alex Blechle (1-of-1 for 34 yards and 1 touchdown) 100%, and TaShawn Palacio (0-of-1) 0%.
Dupo’s Deagan Prater completed 16 of 31 passes for 51%, 312 yards and 3 touchdowns. He was also intercepted 3 times.
Chester runners rushed 41 times for a total of 191 yards a one touchdown. Leading the Chester rushing attack was Ethan Colvis who ran 15 times for 118 yards. Tray Peters ran 13 times for a total of 37 yards and Chester’s only rushing touchdown. Alex Blechle ran six times for 27 yards. Zane Eggemeyer ran five times for 13 yards. The rest of the team ran twice for 14 yards.
Dupo rushed 17 times for 22 yards and 1 touchdown. Luke Ellis ran twice for two yards. Deagan Prater ran three times for -13 yards, and the rest of the team ran 12 times for 32 yards and 1 touchdown.
The YellowJacket receiving corps had a good night catching 17 passes for a total of 240 yards and four touchdowns. TaShawn Palacio led the group with 10 receptions for 153 yards and 1 touchdown. That one TD broke the school record for receiving TD’s with 11 career receptions for a touchdown. Trey McCart6ney caught 5 passes for 54 yards and 2 TD’s. Zane Eggemeyer caught two passes for a total of 33 yards and 1 TD.
Dupo had 16 receptions for a total of 312 yards and three touchdowns. Brrayden Esterlein caught 3 passes for 98 yards and 1 TD. Thinh Scaggs caught 8 passes for 86 yards and 1 TD. Brady Portell caught 4 passes for 85 yards and 1 TD.
Chester’s defense was great again against Dupo with 25 solo tackles, 14 tackle assists, 2 quarterback sacks, and 3 tackles for a loss (TFL). Kanon Jany led with 4 solos, 1 assist, 1 sack and 1 TFL. Morgan Miers had 3 solos, 2 assists, 1 sack and 1 TFL. Ethan Colvis recorded 2 solos, and 3 assists. Karim Landeros had 1 solo, 1 assist, and 1 TFL. Trey McCartney, Landen Conder, Danny Worley, Zane Eggemeyer, and Alex Blechle each recorded 2 solo tackles apiece.
Further key Chester defensive contributors included Derrius Shoemate who had 1 interception. Tray Peters had 2 interceptions and the final game-saving play to end the game as he swatted away Dupo quarterback Deegan Prater’s pass that could have won the game for Dupo.
The Tigers recorded 33 solo tackles, 26 tackle assists, 3 quarterback sacks, and 4 tackles for a loss (TFL). They were led by two key players. Shia Owensby had 7 solos, 2 assists, 2 sacks and 4 TFL’s, and Carter Lumpkins had 2 solos, and 2 assists.
Head Coach Billy Belton said, “I am so proud of the boys and how hard they played! They kept fighting and fighting all night long. We knew Dupo was a really good team. They played hard all night. We just kept making plays. Everyone stepped up. It was a great team win!”
“Tray Peters had a great night with 3 passing touchdowns, one rushing touchdown and two interceptions. Plus, he made the game-winning play at the end when he knocked the ball away on Dupo’s 2-point conversion attempt. What a great game!”
Belton continued, “Trey McCartney had a great game too. He got the game started with a fantastic TD catch in the end zone. He also finished the game with the game-winning touchdown. He has played amazing all year long at tight end and defensive end.”
“Ethan Colvis had over 100 yards rushing (118) and played great on defense. TaShawn Palacio had a huge night with 10 catches for 153 yards and one touchdown. That TD broke the school receiving touchdown record, setting a new one at 11 receiving touchdowns. Alex Blechle ran the ball hard and had one passing touchdown. It was just a great team win!”
Coach Belton added, “On defense, Morgan Miers had a good night. Derrius Shoemate had a good game with another big interception. Tray Peters had the two interceptions. What a great win. With that win we clinched a playoff spot and have a chance to win the conference championship next Friday at Red Bud. I’m so proud of the boys!”
Chester improved to an overall record of 6-1 and a Cahokia Conference, Illinois Division record of 4-0. Next Friday October 17 the YellowJackets will travel to Red Bud to close out the 2025 conference season. The following week, Chester returns to W.O. Smith Field at CHS Friday October 24 to host Nashville on Senior Night.
CHS quarterback Tray Peters scores Chester’s second touchdown of the game vs Dupo Friday October 10 at the 10:33 mark of the 2nd quarter. Peters scored on an 11-yard run to extend the YellowJacket lead to 14-0. The Jackets won 38-37. In the win, Peters connected for 16-of-21 passes for 206 yards and three touchdowns. He also made two major Dupo pass interceptions on defense and broke up a pass in the end zone at the buzzer which would have allowed the Tigers to win the game by one point. Jim Beers Photo
TaShawn Palacio, a YellowJacket wide receiver, broke the school record for receiving touchdowns Friday October 10 when he caught a touchdown pass at the 1:29 mark of the 2nd quarter. He scored on a 34-yard pass from quarterback Tray Peters to extend Chester’s lead against the Dupo Tigers to 21-0. Palacio came into the game tied with two other former Chester players, Jim Howie and Keith Kiner, for the record. Each of the three receivers had 10 receiving touchdowns at the time. With Palacio’s receiving TD Friday October 10, Palacio set a new school record of 11 receiving Touchdowns. Jim Beers Photo
Chester running back Ethan Colvis (25) was the YellowJacket’s top rusher Friday October 10 when the Jackets hosted undefeated Dupo at W.O. Smith Field. In the win, Colvis ran 15 times for 118 yards. He also played excellent defense with 2 solo tackles and 3 tackle assists. He has been Chester’s lead rusher throughout the 2025 season. Shown here, Colvis goes up against Dupo defenders Thinh Staggs (0) and Shia Owensby (24) at the 8:15 mark in the first quarter. His run achieved the Jackets their third 1st Down of the game. Jim Beers Photo
The Chester High School YellowJackets take the field Friday October 10 when CHS hosted undefeated Dupo for Homecoming 2025. Chester held on to win, 38-37 in a game that went right up to the 1.4 second mark of the 4th quarter before the final outcome was decided. A Tray Peters deflected 2-point conversion pass kept the Tigers from stealing the one-point win from the YellowJackets. Jim Beers Photo
The Chester High School YellowJackets and the Dupo Tigers line up and meet on the 50-yard line immediately following the conclusion of the 2025 CHS Homecoming game Friday October 10. The game was close and hard-fought by both teams with Chester holding on to win by 1-point, 38-37. The traditional post-game show of sportsmanship is quite a spectacle especially after such a competitive game that went down to the wire with just 1.4 seconds on the clock. Jim Beers Photo
Chester YellowJacket players and Dupo Tiger players meet mid-field for the traditional coin toss prior to the start of the CHS Homecoming game Friday October 10. Chester Captains were Tray Peters (16), Brayden Juenger (53), Jakob Stueve (75), and Ethan Colvis (25). Dupo Captains included Deegan Prater (17), Luke Ellis (25), Cole Hearty (58), and Ethan Nelson (8). They were joined by Billy Belton, Chester Head Coach and the Dupo Head Coach, Zach Klaustermeier. Referees included James Hennessey, Paul Womack, Dennis Armstrong, Jr., Josh Dunderdale, and Jonathan “Tyler” Cain. Dupo Kicked off to start the game and Chester received. Jim Beers Photo