Rebels outlasts Chester in a second half shootout to win on Senior Night

PROSPERITY, S.C. — The Rebels gave their fans every penny worth of the price of admission on Friday night after pulling off the upset win in a game that came down to the wire. Mid-Carolina(4-5, 2-1 region 3-AA) defeats Chester(6-4, 3-1 region 3-AA) 38-35 with a late game touchdown drive at home on Senior Night.

The Mid-Carolina fans filled the stands on a cool and chilly fall night to see their Rebels one last time at home for the 2025 football season on Friday, Oct. 24th. The Rebels entered the contest as the underdog and looking to pull off the upset against the top-seeded Chester Cyclones in region 3-AA. Chester entered the contest looking to close out the regular season with a win and the region 3-AA title.

Chester took the opening kickoff back 70-plus yards and their first drive started on the Rebels’ 10-yard line. Cyclones junior running back Caleb Feaster scored three plays on the ground for his first rushing touchdown of the night. The visitors got off to a great start and took an early 7-0 lead.

Mid-Carolina got off to a terrible start and picked up a false start penalty on their first offensive play of the game. The drive went straight downhill after that and they were forced to punt. The Rebels’ offense couldn’t shake off the slow start and were held scoreless in the opening quarter.

The second quarter began with the Cyclones’ offense driving down the field using their rushing attack. Chester took a two score lead after their starting quarterback called his own number inside of the red zone for a rushing touchdown. They took a 14-0 lead early in the second quarter.

Mid-Carolina’s offense finally entered the chat and got things going in the early parts of the second quarter behind their rushing attack and a few penalties from Chester to help prolong a long scoring drive. Wyatt Mazza scored his first rushing touchdown of the evening from 10-yards out to finally put the Rebels on the scoreboard.

Chester had a good drive going in an attempt to answer the Rebels but it stalled. Then, they tried to get cute and run a fake on a fourth down punt attempt, but Mid-Carolina stuffed them and started their next offensive near mid-field.

Mid-Carolina took advantage of the momentum swing, and went deep into their bag of tricks. Ryker Woolstenhulme received the halfback toss and then pulls up for a pass. The ball was a little under thrown, but it was no problem for Cash Knight who made the adjustment and a nice move to pick up extra yards. Mazza took the direct snap into the end zone for his second rushing touchdown a few plays later. The Rebels missed the extra point to tie the game, but still only trailed by one point, 14-13, late in the second quarter.

The Cyclones had another long return on the kickoff to set themselves up in scoring position right before the half ended. They did just that and punched it home behind another rushing touchdown from Feaster. Chester would take a 21-13 lead into halftime.

Mid-Carolina received the opening kick after the half and they went on a drive that last nearly six minutes. Knight had another big catch using the same halfback pass play. It went for nearly 63-yards this time and he put the Rebels on the doorsteps of the end zone at the three-yard line. Mazza would complete the hat trick and score his third rushing touchdown of the night. The Rebels would be successful on the two-point conversion attempt to tie the game at 21-21.

Feaster would match Mazza’s third rushing touchdown with his third of the night on the very next drive to give Chester the lead back. They would now lead 28-21 with about five minutes left in the third quarter.

The Rebels were far from done and their offense was just heating up because they would get a quick touchdown just a few plays later. Senior starting quarterback Davis Ruff found Jaquon McKinney over the middle for a short gain and he would do the rest by taking it the distance for a 79-yard touchdown reception to tie the game at 28-28.

The offensive fireworks would slow down a bit at the end of the third quarter, and the two teams would be tied 28-28 going into the fourth quarter.

The Rebels would begin the fourth quarter driving the ball down the field, but the drive stalled near the red zone. They had to settle for a 20-yard field goal, but would get their first lead of the game, 31-28.

The lead would be short lived for the home team because Chester would immediately answer on their next offensive drive. They used their rushing attack to drive right down the field and score. They would reclaim the lead, 35-31, with about three minutes left to play in the game.

The Rebels got the ball the back and needed a touchdown to win it. Oh, and they would have to do it without Mazza after he went down with a left ankle sprain in the previous defensive series. No problem though because Woolstenhulme would step up. Ruff lead the offense right down the field to put them inside the red zone with about 30 seconds left. He took what the defense gave him and kept finding his targets for short completions that began to add up.

Ruff then had his best completion of the night when he found Woolstenhulme, who was lined up in the slot, down the middle of the field for the go ahead touchdown reception. Ruff threw a dime over the defender’s head who was playing great man coverage on the play.

Chester would get one more shot, but they would have to go the distance of the field. The Rebels learned their lesson and didn’t kick it directly to the Cyclones kick returner. The visitors had two good runs to put them near mid-field, but that would be all they got because the Rebels defense stayed discipline on the last play and had everything covered down field to prevent any hailmary attempt. The student section and Mid-Carolina sidelines went wild after pulling off the comeback.

“This was an awesome game and this is how it is supposed to be in high school football. I can’t say enough great things about everyone on this team. They have been resilient all year long. We been preaching to them to keep grinding because it is going to pay off and finally it did,” said Rebels’ head coach Chris Arnoult.

Mazza had over 100 rushing yards along with three rushing touchdowns, Knight had three receptions for 93 yards on the night, and Woolstenhulme had over 100 all-purpose yards along with one receiving touchdown.

Mid-Carolina will travel to Eau Claire for their final regular season game. They could claim a share of the region 3-AA title with a road win next Friday. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m.