CUNNINGHAM 46, OTIS-BISON 0 — Cunningham's lightning quick Stephen Kerschen scored four touchdowns to spark a 46-0 quarterfinal victory over Otis-Bison in the 6-man football playoffs.
Kerschen opened with a 54-yard touchdown run on the Wildcats' first offensive play. Kerschen rushed for 87 yards and added 9, 20 and 25-yard runs. Skyler Thimesch rushed for 75 yards and scored 1 and 5-yard touchdown runs. Kicker Brody Bock converted 5-of-6 extra points.
Otis-Bison's Gavin Alloway rushed for 91 yards. Travis Ross contributed five tackles and one assist. The Cougars finish with a 5-6 record. Cunningham downed the Cougars by an identical 46-0 victory on Oct. 3.
Cunningham (10-0) advances to the 6-man semifinal round against Tescott (8-2). Weskan defeated Cunningham 49-48 for the 6-man state football title in 2024.
Otis-Bison 0 0 — 0
Cunningham 30 16 — 46
C—Stephen Kerschen 54 run (Brody Bock kick); C—Skyler Thimesch 5 run (Bock kick); C—Kerschen 20 run (kick fails); C—Thimesch 1 run (Bock kick); C—Kerschen 25 run (Bock kick); C—Kerschen 9 run (Bock kick)
RUSHING—OB—17-80; Gavin Alloway 14-91, Travis Ross 2-(-3); Maddox Firebaugh 1-(-8); C—20-252; Kerschen 5-87; Thimesch 6-75.
PASSING—OB—Firebaugh 3-6-2, 6; C—Logan Kinsler 0-2-0.
RECEIVING—OB—Marcus Starr 1-5; Konner Schenk 1-1.
SOUTH BARBER 45, PAWNEE HEIGHTS 0 — South Barber quarterback Austin Swonger dominated with two touchdowns rushing and two touchdowns passing in a 45-0 quarterfinal victory over the Pawnee Heights Tigers Friday. The Chieftains defeated the Tigers (6-5) by a 58-12 score in their first meeting Oct. 17.
Swonger passed for 123 yards and rushed for 86 yards. Steele Smith caught 30- and 35-yard scoring passes from Swonger for a lightning quick 13-0 lead. Swonger scored on 25- and 36-yard runs. Garen Cantrell and Cody Sklar each scored on 10-yard runs for the Chieftains. Kicker Devin Olson converted 4-of-4 extra points for eight points.
South Barber (9-1) meets defending 6-man state champion Weskan (9-1) in the 6-man semifinal round. Weskan defeated Cunningham 49-48 for the state title in 2024.
Pawnee Heights 0 0 — 0
South Barber 21 24 — 45
SB—Steele Smith 30 pass from Austin Swonger (Cody Shklar run); SB—Smith 25 pass from Swonger (run fails); SB—Swonger 25 run (Devin Olson kick); SB—Garen Cantrell 10 run (Olson kick); SB—Sklar 10 run (Olson kick); SB—Swonger 36 run (kick)
RUSHING—PH—1 Holste; 8 Alexis Ibarra; 28 Enabit; SB—15-150; Swonger 7-86; Shklar 5-43; Cantrell 3-18; Smith 1-3.
PASSING—PH—28 Enabit; 1 Holste; SB—Swonger 6-6-0, 123.
RECEIVING—PH—Holste; A. Ibarra; 11 Robert Cordero; 27 August Boese; 69 Thomas Boese; SB—Smith 3-75; Cantrell 2-38; Shklar 1-10.
6-MAN SEMIFINALS
Cunningham (10-0) vs. Tescott (8-2)
South Barber (9-1) vs. Weskan (9-1)
QUARTERFINALS—Tescott 52, Peabody 30; Cunningham 46, Otis-Bison 0; South Barber 45, Pawnee Heights 0; Weskan 60 Ingalls 26
SECOND ROUND—Peabody 54, Southern Coffey 0; Tescott 54, Chetopa 0; Cunningham 1, Altoona-Midway 0 (forfeit); Otis-Bison 54, Marias Des Cygnes 0; South Barber 54, Golden Plains 8; Pawnee Heights 51, Cheylin 6; Weskan 62, Moscow 12; Ingalls 51, Northern Valley 6
FIRST ROUND—Southern Coffey 1, Chase 0; Golden Plains 1, Rolla 0 (forfeit); Pawnee Heights 83, Brewster-Triplains 6; Moscow 46, Western Plains 0
