Bryan Spangler walked from the field like most of the Free State High soccer team did wearily.

The Firebirds played Shawnee Mission South to a scoreless overtime tie Tuesday at Free State, giving them 180 minutes of soccer in the past 26 hours. Combined with Monday’s win against Tonganoxie, that’s a lot of running in the afternoon sun.

Free State goalie Justin Howell, right, makes a save against two Shawnee Mission South defenders. The teams played to a 0-0 tie on Tuesday at Free State.

“My legs feel a little bit like Jell-O,” Spangler said.

Plus, the Firebirds aren’t a team that can minimize their effort and win. The Raiders controlled the ball throughout much of the first half and early in the second, making the Free State defense chase and delay the ball.

But by the end and into overtime the Firebirds’ conditioning was evident, giving them a half-dozen chances to win the game.

“When you’re outskilled and I’m not sure if we were you’re work ethic has to be better than theirs. You can’t just rely on your skills,” Spangler said.

Firebirds coach Jason Pendleton agreed, saying his team wasn’t “going to bounce the ball around a lot.” Rather, they rely on their athleticism and wearing down the opponent. If not for Monday’s game, a fresher Free State squad might have prevailed.

Still, Pendleton wasn’t about to minimize the tie.

“I feel good about our effort,” Pendleton said. “Playing back-to-back games and going for 100 minutes today is pretty big.”

Free State, now 2-1-1, has another game Thursday at Shawnee Mission East, ensuring it won’t have much time to recuperate. It won’t matter if the FSHS defense shuts down the Lancers like it did the Raiders.

SMS enjoyed a 33-13 shot advantage, but most of those were from 35 yards away or harmless dribblers that goalkeeper Justin Howell easily stopped. There was a four-minute span midway through the first half when Howell had to make two diving stops, and another with 15 minutes left.

But that was it. The defense ruled.

Free State's Joel Angelone heads upfield. The Firebirds played Shawnee Mission South to a 0-all tie Tuesday at FSHS.

“For the past three years since I’ve been on varsity, that’s been the staple of Free State soccer,” Spangler said.

The Firebird offense showed some spark in the second. Spangler just missed on a header that sailed above the bar, then junior Joel Angelone juked a defender, split two more and just missed left past a diving SMS goalkeeper.

Junior Jake Schneider had the Firebirds’ last real scoring chance on a rebound in the first overtime, but it was deflected at the last minute.

“Without a doubt, we had opportunities to score,” Pendleton said. “And the quality of those opportunities is what I’m concerned about.”

Free State 0, Shawnee Mission South 0, OT

SM South (3-1-1) 0 0 0 0

Free State (2-1-1) 0 0 0 0

Yellow cards: SMS: Chris Wenske (52:55), Parker Ferebee (81:33); FSHS: Kayvon Sarraf (31:55), Brian Ozorkiewicz (52:08).