EMPORIA — For a quarter Saturday afternoon, it looked like Axtell might have the upper hand in the rubber match. 

By the end, Hanover had the trophy. 

The Wildcats shook off an early deficit and leaned on timely scoring and gritty defense down the stretch to defeat Twin Valley League rival Axtell, 66-60, in the Class 1A Division II state championship game at White Auditorium.  

It was the third meeting between the two powerhouses this season — and the biggest. The teams had split their regular-season matchups, each handing the other its lone loss, setting up the decisive showdown with a state title on the line. 

Hanover (28-1) made sure the final chapter belonged to the Wildcats. 

“I am just thinking about those seniors,” Hanover coach Cory Jensen said. “I told them in the huddle that I try not to get emotional with them, but it is hard because I love those guys. I wanted this for them so bad.”

 

Axtell jumped out quickly behind strong shooting in the opening quarter, building a 21-10 lead as the Eagles hit 9 of 15 shots.  

But once Hanover settled in, the Wildcats’ fast-paced style began to take hold. 

Hanover responded with a 17-8 second quarter to cut the deficit to two at halftime and turned the game into the back-and-forth battle many expected between the league rivals. 

“We got off to kind of a sluggish start and played on our heels in that first quarter,” Jensen said. “Once we got things going, we got into attack mode and started playing more of our kind of basketball.” 

The teams traded blows throughout the second half, with Axtell briefly regaining control early in the fourth quarter and stretching the lead to five. 

That’s when Hanover’s guards sparked the decisive run. 
 

Point guard Kadrick Cohorst scored all seven of his points in a two-minute span to pull the Wildcats even and shift momentum. Moments later, Cooper Bruna drilled a 3-pointer with 3:08 remaining to give Hanover a 58-56 lead — one it would not relinquish. 

“Axtell is a great team and they are always going to be our rival,” Cooper Bruna said. “They went on a streak for like four years where they always beat us, and it is about time we broke that.” 

The Wildcats closed the game at the free-throw line, scoring 22 fourth-quarter points to seal the championship.  

“It is just a gritty group,” Jensen said. “We tell them all the time that you have a run in you and we did. We just clawed back. We took it possession by possession and just played some great defense.” 

Bruna led the Wildcats offensively with 22 points, attacking the basket and knocking down three 3-pointers. Braylon Meyn added a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds in his final game in a Hanover uniform, while Jack Bruna chipped in 14 points.  

 

“This means a lot to us,” Meyn said. “My freshman and sophomore year we didn’t make it to state, then last year we had a heartbreaking loss in the first round — this one really means a lot.” 

Meyn also played a pivotal defensive role late in the game. 

Hanover had the difficult task of defending Axtell’s 6-foot-6 junior center Logan Sandmann, who dominated inside with 22 points, 18 rebounds and five assists.  

Tanner Bruna drew the assignment early but battled foul trouble, forcing the Wildcats to turn to the 6-2 Meyn for stretches to help contain the big man. 

 

“You can’t say enough about Braylon,” Jensen said. “He didn’t have his best shooting night, but good players impact the game in many different ways. We put him on Sandmann when Tanner went out with foul trouble and he did great.” 

Axtell (27-2) stayed within striking distance throughout behind Sandmann and balanced scoring from Landon Schmitz and Colin Shaughnessy, who each added 12 points. 

But in the end, the Eagles couldn’t quite deliver the final run. 

“We played hard and gave ourselves a shot,” Axtell coach Jayson Tynon said. “We just didn’t make plays down the stretch and they did so credit to them. It’s probably the greatest matchup you could have had in 1A Division II and it turned out to be a heck of a game.” 

For Hanover’s seniors — Meyn, Tanner Bruna and Elijah Heiman — the victory carried extra meaning. 

The Wildcats not only captured their first state championship since 2021, but Meyn also capped his senior year with both football and basketball state titles. 

“To be football and basketball champs my senior year, it just doesn’t get any better than that,” Meyn said. 

And considering the opponent, the championship carried even more significance. 

“It really does make it even better beating a league rival for a state title,” Meyn said. “The Twin Valley League is the best league in 1A Division II. Our league makes us better and it shows.” 
 

CLASS 1A DIVISION II BOYS CHAMPIONSHIP 

HANOVER 66, AXTELL 60 

Axtell… 21 … 8 … 17 … 14 … -- … 60 
Hanover… 10 … 17 … 17 … 22 … -- … 66 

Axtell (27-2) – Schmitz 4-10 2-2 12, J. Lybarger 0-2 0-0 0, Detweiler 3-8 0-0 8, Shaughnessy 4-15 3-4 12, Sandmann 8-15 6-11 22, Heinen 2-2 0-0 6, B. Lybarger 0-0 0-2 0, Kostal 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 21-52 11-19 60. 

Hanover (28-1) – Cohorst 3-6 1-1 7, Meyn 4-9 9-13 17, C. Bruna 8-17 3-4 22, T. Bruna 2-8 0-0 4, J. Bruna 3-11 6-8 14, Sedlacek 1-1 0-1 2, Kickhaefer 0-2 0-2 0, Heiman 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 21-54 19-29 66. 

3-point goals – Axtell 7-22 (Schmitz 2-6, Detweiler 2-6, Heinen 2-2, Shaughnessy 1-6, J. Lybarger 0-1, Sandmann 0-1); Hanover 5-18 (C. Bruna 3-8, J. Bruna 2-6, Cohorst 0-1, Meyn 0-1, T. Bruna 0-1, Kickhaefer 0-1). Rebounds – Axtell 40 (Sandmann 18); Hanover 34 (Meyn 10). Assists – Axtell 16 (Sandmann 5); Hanover 10 (Cohorst 6). Turnovers – Axtell 11, Hanover 8. Total fouls – Axtell 26, Hanover 17. Fouled out – Shaughnessy.