Booker, Broome Win OT Thriller Over Chesnee

SPARTANBURG | [player_tooltip player_id='1592026' first='Tyqwon' last='Booker'] put on a show on Friday, powering Broome's rushing attack with 219 yards on 21 carries.   The last three were the most important.   Booker scored on a three-yard run in overtime, and Broome survived a two-point conversion attempt on the last play of the game to take a 35-34 thriller over Chesnee.   "I knew there was nobody gonna stop me right there," Booker said. "I knew I had to be the person to go do it. Something just told me that I was gonna get it, so I did it."   That it came down to a last gasp was a surprise. Broome steadily pulled away to a 28-12 lead in a first half that featured a bunch of fireworks on both sides of the ball. Booker was a big part of that, rushing for 185 yards and touchdowns of 1 and 32 yards on 13 carries. His work came on both hard-nosed runs between the tackles and huge chunks of yardage, usually after contact.   There was plenty of offensive firepower to go around for the Centurions. [player_tooltip player_id='1592321' first='Jameson' last='Dearybury'] was particularly efficient in the first half, completing 8-of-10 passes and rushing for a 16-yard touchdown. [player_tooltip player_id='1819506' first='Devon' last='Brown'] added a 7-yard score for Broome.   Broome also got a big game from [player_tooltip player_id='1676737' first='Asher' last='Littlejohn'], who did a little bit of everything. He finished with two carries for 33 yards, a catch for two yards, and was tasked all night with defending [player_tooltip player_id='1732649' first='Braylon' last='Blanton'], Chesnee's biggest downfield threat. He did that well, limiting Blanton to three catches for 43 yards, the bulk of it on a 33-yard gain in the first half. He also nabbed an interception that helped turn the tide in the first half.   Not bad for a guy who converted from defensive back to linebacker, and then had to go back.   "They moved me to corner (from linebacker) to play him," Littlejohn said. "I had to bring it back from last year. It was third and long, he ran an out and I knew it wasn't really gonna be an out. He turned it up and I was just kind of in his hip pocket and I went up and found the ball."   "That was the plan going in, to put him on 1 (Blanton)," Broome coach Lynn Fleming said. "He's a very athletic kid, and the plan was to put Asher on him and limit what he did. Asher did a great job, and then had to turn around and play offense, too. We try to spell him some on offense, but he's one of those who's got to go."   Chesnee did have some success on the ground in the first half, particularly behind QB [player_tooltip player_id='1809232' first='Evan-Reece' last='Lawter']. He had 57 yards on eight carries, including a five-yard touchdown. [player_tooltip player_id='1820171' first='Kale' last='Thrift'] added 47 yards and a 25-yard score on a beautiful counter play right behind [player_tooltip player_id='1822683' first='Nolan' last='Fusaro'] and Benji Lazarin-Chavez.   And that was it until the end. Both defenses were very much bend-but-don't-break in a very weird third quarter that saw both teams drive nearly the length of the field only to be turned away. Chesnee's [player_tooltip player_id='1822679' first='Kai' last='Copeland'] made a ton of big plays, and [player_tooltip player_id='1672857' first='Blake' last='Cochran'] had a vicious hit that broke up a late pass that would've given the Centurions a chance at a game-winner in regulation. Broome countered with a ton of big plays of their own. Littlejohn chased down Cochran on a 70-yard gain that would've scored otherwise, keeping the Eagles out of the end zone on that possession. [player_tooltip player_id='1819503' first='Nick' last='Morgan'] was everywhere for Broome, making double-digit tackles. Booker played some defense himself, notching a tackle for loss and a sack. [player_tooltip player_id='1818385' first='Ricky' last='McCollough'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1615627' first='Kelvin' last='Crook'] led the way up front on both sides of the ball for Broome, who played so many guys both ways that Fleming said the Centurions couldn't get too worried about the Eagles' comeback.   "These guys are pretty level-headed," he said. "But most of them play both sides of the ball, so you really don't even have time to look at them. They just have to go out and line up again. They depend on each other, and they did a good job of that tonight."   The Eagles late heroics started thanks to the defense, as [player_tooltip player_id='1822676' first='Carson' last='Gossett'] pounced on a fumble and Lawter scored on the ensuing drive from six yards out, then converted a crucial two-point conversion to make it 28-20. Chesnee got the ball back and Lawter led a textbook two-minute drive, firing a 13-yard touchdown to Max Cantrell, then bulldozed in with another two-pointer to tie the game.   Broome had a chance to drive a win, but Cochran's big hit and good pressure by [player_tooltip player_id='1820170' first='James' last='Spivey'] on the last play of regulation sent it to overtime. The Centurions went backwards, but a good run by Dearybury and a crucial penalty set up Booker's TD run. Lawter scored on Chesnee's first play, the Eagles rolled the dice and went for two, and Morgan's pressure forced an incompletion for Broome's win.   Fleming said it's just another example of the kind of games the two teams routinely turn out.   "It's always fun when these two get together," he said. "No matter which side of it you end up on, it's always exciting."

SPARTANBURG | Tyqwon Booker Tyqwon Booker 6'0" | 160 lbs | RB/LB Broome | 2026 State SC put on a show on Friday, powering Broome's rushing attack with 219 yards on 21 carries.