Olathe ? Brandon McAnderson’s shoulders just weren’t big enough.

The Lawrence High senior carried the Lions to the brink of a victory Friday night at the Olathe District Activity Center, but the Lions came up short, losing 21-19 to Olathe East in the Class 6A playoff quarterfinals.

McAnderson, headed to Kansas University on a football scholarship next fall, was the Lions’ only offensive option most of the night, and spearheaded an LHS defense that limited the Hawks to just 227 total yards.

But it wasn’t enough.

“I know that I’m going to play at KU next year, so I’m going to be able to keep playing, but there’s a lot of guys that aren’t going to get that chance,” McAnderson said. “I was playing for them.”

It was obvious McAnderson was inspired. He finished with 165 yards on 32 carries and two touchdowns, most of it on four-yard runs into four or five Hawks linemen. By halftime, he accounted for 72 percent of the Lions’ offense, and even with East keying on him, he couldn’t be stopped.

“You’d have four or five guys on him and he’d still pick up yards,” Hawks junior Anthony Parks said. “That’s a great running back.”

East (8-3) will play Olathe North (11-0) next Friday in the semifinals.

Lawrence High senior Brandon McAnderson, left, wipes tears from his eyes as he is consoled by assistant coach Chuck Holley. McAnderson carried 32 times for 165 yards and two touchdowns in the Lions' season-ending 21-19 loss to Olathe East on Friday night in Olathe.

Down 14-0 after Taylor Bauer returned an interception 26 yards for a score, it was McAnderson that led the Lions back on a 71-yard drive that culminated with a 1-yard plunge 48 seconds before halftime. He racked up 66 yards on eight carries, most of them coming after the first hit.

With the Hawks bottling up the Lions’ other 1,000-yard rusher, senior Chris Fulton, McAnderson became that much more important. The Hawks, ranked No. 2 in total defense and rush defense among Sunflower League teams, wouldn’t allow it.

“We couldn’t get Chris loose,” LHS coach Dirk Wedd said. “You’re not ranked No. 2 in the Sunflower League for nothing.”

The Hawks opened the second half with a 15-play, 54-yard drive that had them convert a fourth and nine with a fake punt, get a timely pass-interference call in the end zone that extended the drive and had them at the LHS 4, ready to go up by three touchdowns.

Then as defense tackle Derrick Newman stood up running back Antonio Zabala, defensive end Josh Lawrence came storming around the outside, blasting Zabala. Senior Brian Seymour recovered the fumble, and it seemed that the Lions finally caught a break.

Until the ball wouldn’t bounce their way.

Lawrence High quarterback Tommy Mangino takes a hit as he hurls a pass downfield during Friday's 21-19 loss to Olathe East at the Olathe District Activity Center. Mangino, who was pressured and hit throughout the game, threw two interceptions in the loss.

Parks, who burned LHS most of the night, catching seven passes for 115 yards and a score, made a grab, but fumbled when Jeff Colter tackled him. He couldn’t recover the ball, and neither could two other Lion defenders as the ball squirted to the LHS 46. East recovered and scored four plays later on Parks’ 35-yard touchdown.

“That fumble over there was huge. I don’t know how we didn’t recover that,” Wedd said.

Still, quarterback Tommy Mangino opened the fourth quarter by easing McAnderson’s load.

On a third-and-15 from the LHS 15, the Lions’ offensive line gave Mangino plenty of time and he found Ryan Engel for an 85-yard score, hitting the junior in stride at the 50. He escaped an arm-tackle from Parks, and scooted into the end zone. The extra point kick was blocked, leaving LHS down 21-13 with 11:40 remaining.

The Lions forced East to punt, and after a 15-play, 86-yard drive, McAnderson scored on a 1-yard plunge. But Mangino couldn’t find an open receiver in the end zone on the conversion.

They did get one more chance with just over a minute left, but Mangino’s pass with picked off by Parks.

“They were the better team,” McAnderson said. “We didn’t have the same swagger. We didn’t have the same chip on our shoulder.

“They just outworked us.”

When LHS beat East 26-7 on Sept. 20, the Lions dominated the line of scrimmage and were able to break a couple of big running plays. That was the one thing the Hawks didn’t allow Friday, holding LHS to 210 rushing yards and only one run longer than 13 yards.

Lawrence ended its season 8-3, its best record since 1996.

“I just felt like we have been a good football team all year, and good football teams step up,” Wedd said. “We just came up a bit short.”