Despite a phenomenal run in the regular season, Sandhills/Thedford couldn't carry that success into this playoff game. They were beaten by the St. Mary's Cardinals 66-24 on Friday. While losing is never fun, the Knights can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Nebraska football rankings (they are ranked 37th, while the Cardinals are ranked second).
Despite the loss, Sandhills/Thedford still got an impressive performance from Maurice Robinson, who rushed for 157 yards and three TDs.
Gage Hedstrom produced another solid effort rushing for 208 yards and five scores while picking up 9.9 yards per carry, and also throwing for 184 yards and three touchdowns while completing 92.3% of his passes for St. Mary's. Hedstrom's rushing production has been exceptional as that marked his sixth straight game with at least 102 rushing yards. A healthy portion of Hedstrom's aerial production (85 yards to be exact) went to Ben Barlow, who also brought in a receiving touchdown.
Knights
| 11/07/25 vs St. Mary's | 24-66 |
| 10/31/25 @ Anselmo-Merna | 28-20 |
| 10/23/25 vs Winside | 46-12 |
| 10/16/25 @ Hyannis | 44-28 |
| 10/09/25 @ Mullen | 48-32 |
With the loss, Sandhills/Thedford broke their seven-game winning streak and moved their record to 8-3. As for St. Mary's, the victory keeps them at an undefeated 11-0.
Sandhills/Thedford does not have any more games scheduled as of now. As for St. Mary's, they will square off against Howells-Dodge on Friday. The Jaguars' defense has only allowed 11.6 points per game this season, so the Cardinals' offense will have their work cut out for them.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
