Lawrence High’s boys soccer team hasn’t had many close games this season. Heck, the Lions have been outscored 22-1 in their last five contests.

But not Tuesday.

LHS probably outplayed Blue Valley High at Youth Sports Inc., but the result was the same. The Lions’ eighth loss this season came when Tiger Jonathon Baldwin struck the game-winner with a goal 15 minutes into Tuesday’s match for a 1-0 Blue Valley victory.

“Yeah, it’s definitely frustrating,” said LHS coach Keith Nelson, whose team was 6-11 last year. “To see our guys play well and not be rewarded for their efforts is a little disheartening.”

Tuesday the Lions’ problem was the same affliction they’ve suffered all season  not being able to put the ball in the net.

Not that Lawrence didn’t have chances, the Lions had nearly five times as many shots as the Tigers.

Yet those opportunities became meaningless when the Lions left the field for the fourth time in their last five outings with the same numeral showing on the scoreboard as when they arrived  zero.

“It is getting frustrating,” said LHS junior goalkeeper Sean Hargis, who made a pair of fantastic saves in the final minutes when the Lions moved players down field in a last-minute offensive push. “But all I can do is keep trying to be supportive and telling the guys to keep their heads up.”

That’s about all Nelson can do as well.

He’ll be the first to say his team is young and has had to learn lessons the hard way. But he’s also quick to jump in and say Lawrence’s 1-8-1 record will be meaningless by the postseason.

Nelson even thinks his team may be able to surprise somebody by then, if not sooner.

“We’re improving every game,” Nelson stressed. “They are showing signs of getting better each time out, but we just haven’t been able to score.”