Hanover shuts out Linn in sectionals, sets up rematch with Axtell for state title berth

HANOVER, Kan. - It took slightly longer to complete than their first two games did, but the result was no less impressive: Hanover (11-0) dominated school district rivals Linn (7-4) 50-0 in the sectional round of the 2025 KSHSAA 8-Player DII bracket on Friday night, setting up an enthralling rematch with Axtell next week with a trip to the state championship game at stake. 

Linn was one of three teams that hung in long enough to avoid losing by mercy rule over the course of Hanover's undefeated season so far (Hanover prevailed 52-12 in the regular season finale, never leading by enough to trigger the 45-point margin for the mercy rule) and the Bulldogs were dominant in their two playoff wins (against Wakefield and Lebo), winning both of them via mercy rule.

But on Friday night, Hanover made sure those two trends were extinguished while extending one streak of their own: Hanover hasn't lost to Linn in football since 2005 after this latest lopsided win. Hanover has won each of its first three postseason games via the mercy rule; even though Linn forced them to play a second half for the first time in three games, that second half lasted only a couple of minutes before the Wildcats finally ended the game on a virtual walk-off touchdown pass from Kadrick Cohorst to Brody Sedlacek with exactly nine minutes remaining on the scoreboard in the third quarter. 

There has been no better word to describe Hanover's postseason run to this point than efficient, and the Wildcats mercilessly claimed another victim in that regard in Friday's sectional round. Hanover scored touchdowns on all eight of their possessions, an outing that's impossible to improve upon. Meanwhile, the defense and special teams were excellent as well: nearly every one of Hunter Kiekhaefer's kicks ended in touchbacks, and the Wildcats permitted Linn to record only a half dozen first downs in the game while forcing three turnovers.

And all those turnovers were converted quickly into points by the Hanover offense. Cohorst was involved in four touchdowns when these teams met in the regular season, and he totalled five scores on this occasion as a follow-up. He ran for the first two scores of the night before Alec Jueneman got on the board with a three-yard run to give Hanover a 22-0 lead after the first quarter. One play after a fumble recovery near midfield, Cohorst delivered a strike downfield to Kiekhaefer for six, and minutes later, Cohorst dashed home from 47 yards out to make it 38-0. 

One more takeaway courtesy of Lanxden Stallbaumer set the Wildcats up in prime territory to do even more damage. A few plays later, Cooper Bruna rumbled ten yards for the score to extend the lead to 44-0 with less than half a minute to play. With next to no time left, all Hanover needed to do to end the game early was convert the two-point play. But Linn's Maverik Klima came up with the huge stop, a one-on-one tackle of Braylon Meyn a few yards short of paydirt, to foil the attempt and send the game into a second half. 

For the first time this postseason, Hanover had to go through the motions of a halftime break. That one stop gave Linn a fighting chance, but the Bulldogs would need a stop on every drive following to have a shot to rally back. On the flipside, the Wildcats received the second-half kickoff, and needed only one score to put the game to bed - and that's exactly what they did when Cohorst found Sedlacek wide open over the middle to put Hanover at the half-century mark and seal up the 50-0 win, and with it, a spot in the bracket's final four. 

Awaiting the Wildcats there will once again be Axtell, which also earned a mercy rule victory, 60-14, over bracket upstarts Frankfort. Hanover defeated Axtell to end the Eagles' long winning streak in the second to last game of the regular season; now, the two hated rivals will meet again, this time with a spot in the state championship game at stake. You can listen to the game next Friday night live and for free on Ol' Red 99.5 in Southeast Nebraska and Northeast Kansas, and online anywhere for free. 

LINN (7-4)            0 : 0 | 0 | 0 | x

HANOVER (11-0) 50: 22 | 22 | 8 | x