By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
6-Man at Greensburg
The Kansas State High School Activities Association sanctioned 6-man football three years ago with Cunningham winning the first title. With an appearance Saturday, the Wildcats have now appeared in all three state championship games. Despite overcoming a 35-14 halftime lead, the Wildcats missed a crucial 2-point kick late in the game, falling to Weskan 49-48.
"We knew we had a good football team," said Weskan coach Brett Clow. "We knew Cunningham had a great football team. You're just trying find ways to stay in the game. In 6-man, the game is never over. Credit to them for staying in the fight and making it a fight. I'm just so proud of my guys to finish the game."
The Coyotes got a 41-yard touchdown pass from sophomore Karsyn Wright to senior Trexton Allen midway through the third quarter to lead 43-20. Weskan would not score again until, trailing 48-42, Wright broke free for a 30-yard touchdown run with 1:42 remaining. Weskan scored with 3:15 remaining to take a 48-43 lead. Point-after kicks in the 6-man game are worth two points but after a 5-yard penalty, the PAT following the touchdown was blocked.
Wegerer threw for 309 yards and seven touchdowns on 30-of-52 passing for Cunningham. Five of those touchdowns came in the second half.
Wright threw for 97 yards on 4-of-5 passing for Weskan, adding 109 rushing yards on 18 carries.
Weskan caps a perfect 13-0 season. Cunningham, which went 42 days without real action due to forfeits, finishes its season at 11-1.
8-Man, Div. II at Greensburg
Andale still holds the Kansas record for most consecutive wins in the 11-man game. But Axtell took over the overall lead this year and extended the streak to 52 games with a convincing 50-0 win against Victoria in Saturday morning's title game in Greensburg. The previously unbeaten Knights had outscored opponents this season 668-94. Axtell has now won four consecutive Div. II titles.
8-Man, Div. I at Greensburg
Saturday's late game featured unbeaten Hoxie and a resurgent Central Plains team. Hoxie won a title in 2017 and Central Plains followed in 2018. The Indians just missed a chance to end the game in the first half. Instead, Hoxie needed just four plays to reach the 45-point rule less than two minutes into the third quarter.
"We came in here knowing not to underestimate them," said Hoxie senior Duncan Bell, who threw for five touchdowns. "These guys have played four games and they've been able to stay close and come out on top in the last seconds of a couple. We knew if we could run the score up and take it so far they couldn't stay in the game, eventually we hoped they'd shut down."
Bell completed 10 of 14 passes for 204 yards and four touchdowns in the first half. His final prep pass went for 28 more yards and a touchdown as he finished the night with 232 yards and five scores on 11-of-15 passing.
Central Plains ran no offensive plays in the second half. The Oilers netted just 38 rushing yards on 19 carries in the first half. Sophomore quarterback Brodie Crites completed 3 of 10 passes for 15 yards.
Hoxie ends its season at 13-0, while Central Plains closes the 2024 campaign at 10-3 with losses to Victoria, Ell-Saline, and Hoxie.
Class 1A at Hutchinson Community College
After winning the title in 2023, Conway Springs spent the 2024 season ranked atop the class with a perfect record. The Cardinals went virtually untested in this year's playoffs, with a 15-point win over Marion in week 10 being the closest contest for the reigning champs. Centralia had not lost a game to a Kansas opponent this spring but fell to Conway 41-6 in Saturday's title game.
The Cardinals did it all on the ground with 386 yards and no pass attempts. Senior Isaac Winter rushed for 227 yards and three touchdowns on 19 carries, and also gave up a touchdown so a teammate could score.
Class 2A at Hutchinson Community College
With just two title games slated for Friday, many in the state caught a spectacle as it was televised on PBS Friday evening. A week after needing a last-second play to get by Beloit, Southeast of Saline scored twice in the final two minutes to knock off two-time defending champion Nemaha Central 36-28.
Despite several years of success, the Trojans were playing in just their first state title game since 2005.
Thunder standout quarterback Carter Hajek, still a junior, ran the ball 14 of his team's 16 plays on a drive the culminated with his go-ahead touchdown with 1:50 to play in regulation. Just as he did a week earlier against Beloit, Trojan quarterback Gannon Jacobson quickly drove Southeast down the field in just five plays, scoring on a 4-yard run, then throwing a 2-point pass to tie the game.
With under a minute to play on the ensuing kick, Nemaha Central failed to grab a kick by Malachi Hopkins. Southeast took advantage. Facing fourth down, Jacobson completed a 29-yard pass to Tucker Thaxton for the go-ahead score with just 11 seconds left on the clock.
Jacobson threw for 114 yards and two scores on 8-of-16 passing. He added another 85 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. Grady Gebhart rushed for 99 yards and had a rushing and a receiving score.
After a loss in week one, Nemaha Central rattled off 11 straight wins to finish the season at 11-2. Southeast of Saline capped a perfect 13-0 season.
Class 3A at Hutchinson Community College
Andale lost its nation-best win streak last year with not one but two losses against eventual state champion Andale. The Indians have played the 2024 season with a vengeance. That carried over into Saturday's championship game with a 36-19 win against Topeka Hayden.
Sam Harp rushed for 163 yards and Landon Harp added 148 yards on the ground.
Prior to Saturday's finale, Andale had scored at least 47 points in all 12 games this season, reaching 55 points in seven of those games. The Indian defense held eight of its first 10 opponents to one touchdown or fewer with four shutouts.
Class 4A at Emporia State University
Even entering the playoffs with a 1-7 record, Bishop Miege could not be counted out for another state title after wins in 2022, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, and 2014. Andover Central had other plans, winning the first 4A public-school title since 2013 by taking down the Stags 49-42. The win is also Central's first state title in school history.
Senior Maddux Archibald carried his team with 345 rushing yards and four touchdowns.
Miege had previously outscored its four playoff opponents 140-46. With a 22-16 blemish against Goddard in week five of the season, Andover Central closes its season at 12-1.
Class 5A at Emporia State University
Few teams play St. Thomas Aquinas as a favorite. That was par for the course for a Hays High team playing in its first-ever state championship game Saturday evening, but only after knocking off the likes of Great Bend, Hutchinson, and Goddard-Eisenhower to keep its season alive. With a 35-13 loss to Aquinas, Hays ends its season at 8-5 with losses against 6A Derby (11-1), a Manhattan team that nearly won the 6A title, and a 20-19 loss in the regular-season finale against Liberal. The Indians also split against Great Bend, handing the Panthers their only loss of the season.
Aquinas won the 4A title last year before making the move back to Class 5A and knocking off five-time defending champion Mill Valley by a point in the state quarterfinals.
Class 6A at Emporia State University
Both Friday championship games proved to be classics. Southeast of Saline scored twice in the final two minutes to beat two-time defending champion Nemaha Central in Hutchinson. In Emporia, Manhattan missed an opportunity to run out the clock with a 33-28 lead late in the fourth quarter. Reigning champion Gardner-Edgerton took advantage, scoring with 10 seconds left to secure a 36-33 win.
After winning just six games in 2020, Manhattan has posted a 43-5 record over the past five seasons, including a 13-0 championship season in which it beat Gardner-Edgerton in the title game.