In the first round of the 5A Division II football playoffs, the Chapin Eagles fended off a Goose Creek comeback to win 17-16, survive and advance to the next round. 

Chapin led 17-0 and looked to be in complete control of the game. But the Gators outscored the Eagles 16-0 in the second half and had the ball at the end of the game with a chance to win. 

The Eagles offense was stagnant in the second half. A few costly turnovers and close calls allowed Goose Creek to pull itself back into the game. The Gators, trailing by one, got the ball with 1:42 left and needed to drive 90 yards to get into the endzone. 

Goose Creek almost pulled it off, going 80 yards but chewing all the time off the clock. There was no time for a field goal try and on the last play, the ball hit the ground incomplete, sending the Eagles sideline running in celebration. 

“We had a hard time all year long when we turned it over to kind of rebound from it,” Chapin head coach Ryan Cole said. “But our kids hung right in it to the very end. It's something that I'm proud of our kids for doing that.” 

Chapin finished with almost 300 yards of offense but had just 87 yards in the second half. The defense held Goose Creek to 53 yards in the first half but gave up 270 in the second. 

Quarterback Brady Albro finished 13 for 22 with 135 yards and a touchdown. He had some costly turnovers in the second half, including a fumble and interception, which allowed Goose Creek to get back in it.

“Brady is a great player,” Cole said. “I think the thing that hurts him sometimes is he's a huge competitor, so he's going to try and fit balls in windows, where sometimes they don't need to be. But my money's on him all day long to make the good calls.”

Anthony Turnbow led the Eagles’ run game, finishing with 132 yards. He also made plays in the passing game, catching five passes for 38 yards. 

“Anthony's a good athlete. We just had to kind of find a package for him that we could use on offense along with defense,” Cole said. “He's a good running back, he's a good receiver, he's a good returner. So, we have to try and utilize him more in the entire program.”

Defensively, Chapin had a blocked field goal, forced a turnover on downs and grabbed an interception. Luke Becker picked off the Goose Creek quarterback to give Chapin the ball back after its own turnover. The team was unable to get any points off the extra possession after turning the ball over on downs themselves. 

The first quarter was all defense as both teams went scoreless in the opening period. Chapin started with the ball and went three-and-out. 

Goose Creek’s first possession crossed into Chapin territory but ended with a sack after going for it on fourth down. The Eagles gave the ball back not long after by failing their own fourth down attempt in Goose Creek territory. 

“They could go three and give us a problem and they could go four and give us a problem. Those guys are big guys and we knew that coming in. They controlled the line of scrimmage,” Cole said. 

The teams exchanged punts until about three minutes into the second quarter when Chapin finally got on the board. Turnbow took a handoff on the drive's first play and broke free for a 62-yard rush down to the Goose Creek two-yard mark. 

From there, Tanner Short punched it in, and with the extra point, Chapin led 7-0.

On Chapin’s next drive, the team again moved into Goose Creek territory. This time, the drive stalled but the Eagles were close enough for a Will Robinson 29-yard field goal try. He nailed the kick and put his team up 10-0.

Goose Creek punted for the fifth time in the first half on its next drive and gave the ball back to Chapin for a chance to score again with just under two minutes until halftime. 

The Eagles capitalized on the chance and scored a 32-yard touchdown on a connection between Albro and receiver Khalen Bostick. Chapin would go into the breakup 17-0 and had a chance to double up with possession to start the next half.

The second half, however, was an ugly one for Chapin. The Eagles failed to score and had multiple turnovers to almost blow the game away. 

Goose Creek scored 16 points in the second half. The first came near the end of the third quarter to cut the lead to 17-7. 

The Gators scored again early in the fourth off a 22-yard touchdown but missed the extra point to cut the deficit to four. That miss proved to be costly. 

Albro threw an interception on the next drive but it was called back for defensive pass interference. Two plays later, though, Albro’s ball found another Goose Creek defender, and this time there were no flags. 

Goose Creek scored off the untimely turnover but was held to just a field goal. Chapin led by a point with 8:22 left in the game.

The ensuing Chapin drive also ended in an Albro turnover. This time it was ruled he fumbled on a quarterback sneak try and Goose Creek recovered.

Goose Creek was in prime position to take the lead. The Gators started their drive with a 72-yard pass play to get inside the Chapin 10. The drive stalled to fourth down, but the team could still attempt a go-ahead field goal. 

The Gators’ kicker marched onto the field and lined up for a 21-yard try. The Chapin defense had their own plans as they got just enough push on the line to extend and block the try. The Eagles' lead was safe, for now, with just over four minutes left. 

Chapin bled the clock some on its next drive, but with 1:42 left in the game, Goose Creek got the ball back. 

Goose Creek almost pulled it off, moving the ball downfield with ease. But with no timeouts left, the team made it to the 10-yard line and had one final play for the game. Chapin defended the play well and the final pass to the endzone hit the ground and the crowd went wild. 

Chapin’s players rushed the field to congratulate their defense and celebrate a narrow win in the first round of the playoffs. For Cole, it was his first playoff win as head coach. For players like Albro, it was likely the last ever game played in their home stadium. 

“It means a lot to these seniors,” Cole said. “Those kids had a whole coaching change … and I’m really happy for them and proud of them.”

With the win, Chapin advanced to the second round of the 5A Division II bracket. The Eagles will have a short road trip as they travel to face region rival Irmo in a rematch from earlier this season.  The Yellow Jackets defeated the Eagles 55-21 in that game. 

“I'm just glad to have the opportunity to be able to play them. We got to tighten up some things. They're a good football team,” Cole said. “It's a great challenge. We're still playing, so that's what I'm excited about.” 

Round One Area Scoreboard 

Byrnes: 32, Lexington: 11

River Bluff: 36, Mauldin: 6

White Knoll: 42, Lugoff-Elgin: 18

North Augusta: 56, Airport: 0

South Florence: 56, Brookland-Cayce: 20

Gilbert:41, Lower Richland: 20

Waccamaw: 43, Swansea: 23

Batesburg-Leesville: 42, Columbia: 6

Clinton: 56, Pelion: 0

Pinewood Prep: 35, Northside Christian: 21