Leavenworth ? As it turns out, Lawrence High football coach Dirk Wedd’s preseason concerns were well-warranted — and well-exposed by Leavenworth, a team with three victories the last two years.

The Pioneers, a perennial Sunflower League doormat, might have scrapped that reputation in three short hours Friday night, beating Lawrence High, 20-14, at Abeles Field.

Lawrence High's Jeff Colter is gang-tackled by Leavenworth defenders after a long catch in the first quarter. Colter led LHS with 17 carries for 55 yards and scored on a four-yard reception in the Lions' 20-14 setback Friday at Leavenworth.

The score, in fact, was closer than the game actually was. Leavenworth was prepared for Lawrence’s traditional running attack, and completely dominated the Lions’ offensive line, giving the big-name running backs of LHS no room to move.

For the last three weeks, Wedd worried aloud about his offensive line and his inexperience brought about by a big hit from graduation. The result was Lawrence’s first loss to Leavenworth since September of 1973.

“We just didn’t come ready to play, and they did,” senior Jeff Colter said. “We didn’t execute.”

Colter and Ian Handshy, Lawrence’s top two rushers, were popped behind the line of scrimmage a combined nine times in 23 total carries. Four of Handshy’s six carries were stuck for no gain or negative yardage. Neither back had more than a split second with the ball before being greeted with a possessed player in Pioneer blue.

“Offensively, we’re not very good up front yet, and it shows,” Wedd said. “I was scared to death that Colter and Handshy would be making big plays back to the line of scrimmage.”

Lawrence High coach Dirk Wedd, front, watches his team in the first half. The Lions lost, 20-14, Friday in Leavenworth.

They did. It led to sub-par numbers for both Colter (17 carries for 55 yards) and Handshy (six carries, eight yards).

Lawrence had the lead for a grand total of 23 seconds, when Colter caught a short pass from Brian Heere and darted into the end zone from four yards out late in the first quarter. A similar play made the two-point conversion successful, and put Lawrence up 8-7.

Leavenworth immediately countered, when quarterback Adam Booth found Travis Atkins on a pass near the sideline on the second play from scrimmage after Colter’s touchdown. Atkins eluded a diving Colter, and sprinted 82 yards up field for the score. The Pioneers failed the two-point conversion to be up only 13-8, but they would never trail again.

The Pioneers (1-0) added another score in the second quarter after a bad snap on an LHS punt put Leavenworth in great field position. From there, it was a game of catch-up for the Lions, but the slow-moving offense didn’t make things look optimistic.

“We made too many mistakes,” Wedd said, citing three turnovers. “We dug ourselves in a hole we couldn’t get out of.”

Lawrence (0-1) didn’t strike again until 5:17 remained in the game, when Heere found a streaking Brandon Lassiter open for a 40-yard touchdown pass.

The Lions had one more chance to catch the Pioneers, but a Heere pass up the middle was intercepted by Leavenworth’s R.J. Suttles with 3:35 to play. The Pioneers ran out the clock and celebrated in the north end zone.

6Sports video: Lawrence stumbles in opener against Leavenworth

Leavenworth showed no traces of a program that had struggled to compete for the last decade. Led by new coach Tom Young, Leavenworth looked more organized, more prepared and more hungry from the onset.

“It starts up top,” Wedd said. “I did a poor job coaching.”

Lawrence’s road only gets tougher the next two weeks. Friday’s matchup is against Olathe North, widely regarded as the top team in the entire state. Shawnee Mission North comes to Lawrence the third week.

“We’ll be OK. I like this group,” Wedd said. “It’s going to take awhile to develop, but we will.”

Lawrence High's Nolan Kellerman tries to escape Leavenworth defenders. The Lions lost to the Pioneers, 20-14, Friday night at Leavenworth.