Last November, Chester beat Dover 42-6 for the Section IX Class C championship.
Friday night, they meet again.
The uniforms are the same. The classifications are not.
Chester moved into Class D for 2026. Dover remains in Class C. But the recent history between the programs makes this one of the most interesting cross-class games on the Week 3 board.
Friday, September 25 · 7:00 PM · Dover High School
Open the Chester–Dover Game Center →
Chester has won five straight preserved meetings
KOT845’s available series shows Chester winning the last five meetings with Dover:
- 2025 championship — Chester 42, Dover 6
- 2025 regular season — Chester 28, Dover 25
- 2024 championship — Chester 43, Dover 12
- 2024 regular season — Chester 41, Dover 14
- 2023 — Chester 55, Dover 6
Dover’s last preserved win came in 2012, 50-36.
Open the Chester–Dover series in KOT845 History Watch →
Dover enters unbeaten
Dover is 2-0 and No. 17 in the current KOT845 Power 40.
The Dragons opened by beating defending Class B champion Saugerties 31-7, then beat previously unbeaten Spackenkill 29-9.
They are averaging 30.0 points per game and allowing only 8.0.
That is a +22.0 average scoring margin.
Head coach Christian Jones has Dover entering this rematch with its strongest current-season profile in years.
Chester finally broke through last week
Chester is 1-2 and No. 16 in the Power 40.
The Hambletonians lost 21-10 at Tuckahoe and 12-7 to Marlboro before beating New Paltz 35-13.
The record is worse than Dover’s.
The recent history is much better.
Head coach Ryan Stover brings the reigning sectional champion into a game against the program Chester beat twice last season.
This is almost a direct rankings sorter
No. 16 Chester.
No. 17 Dover.
They are sitting next to each other for a reason.
Dover has the better 2026 résumé.
Chester has the better head-to-head history.
Friday gives both arguments a direct test.
What Dover can change
A Dover win would do more than make the Dragons 3-0.
It would end a five-game preserved losing streak to Chester and add another quality victory after Saugerties and Spackenkill.
It would also remove the biggest historical argument keeping Chester one spot ahead right now.
What Chester can protect
Chester does not need to prove it was better than Dover last year.
The scoreboard already did that twice.
The Hambletonians need to prove that the 1-2 start has more to do with schedule strength than a real drop-off.
Beating unbeaten Dover would do exactly that.
The championship rematch comes early
This is not a playoff game.
It is not even a same-class matchup anymore.
But the memory of 42-6 is only ten months old.
Dover gets another shot.
Chester gets another chance to remind the section who won the trophy.
No. 16 versus No. 17. The reigning champion versus the unbeaten challenger. Friday sorts something out.
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