It was a bit awkward walking away from the Youth Sports Inc. fields Thursday night for Lawrence High boys soccer coach David Platt.

His team had just lost, 3-0, to Shawnee Mission East, and the coach had seen none of the goals.

That’s because Platt had more important matters to deal with after a scary incident inside the Lions’ penalty box in the second minute.

On a 50-50 ball, Lawrence goalkeeper Colin Flanders received a knee to the head from East’s Brad Segall. The keeper was knocked unconscious momentarily, then, when told to stay still, stood up and wandered around the field.

“He was pretty disoriented right after that initial hit,” Platt said. “My brain shifted gears, and I lost track of where we were.”

Flanders was taken to the sideline, with both Platt and trainers attending to him while an ambulance was called.

Meanwhile, the impact of the injury left its mark on the field.

“You kind of can’t pay full attention to the game when your teammate’s hurt like that,” LHS senior Cole Walker said. “You just hope that he’s OK and have to play through it, because you know he’d want you to.”

Lawrence High's Spencer Sorenson (18) drives the ball downfield against Shawnee Mission East. The Lions never could break through Thursday, losing 3-0 at the Youth Sports Inc. fields.

The Lions still had trouble playing on.

In the fourth minute, Segall contained a loose ball in the box and hit the left side of the net for a 1-0 East lead.

Garrett Webb’s deflection off his back gave East its second goal in the 12th minute, and the senior also connected on a penalty kick in the 22nd minute to make it 3-0.

Still, Lawrence put together an impressive final 40 minutes after receiving Platt’s full attention.

“Coach challenged us to play with them the second half, shut them out, and try to win it,” Walker said. “I think we did that pretty well.”

Showing greater focus, the Lions were able to keep the half a scoreless tie, never allowing the Lancers to take it easy and empty their bench.

“It never hurts to challenge them,” Platt said. “It’s just a reminder to play like they’re capable of playing.”

Lawrence also saw its best scoring opportunities late. A spinning shot by Ignacio Carvajal curved wide of the right post in the 45th minute, and Joe Wessel’s blast on a break missed just left in the 77th minute.

Platt said part of the reason for his team’s improved performance was its better spacing.

“We still weren’t doing it great, but we were doing it better,” Platt said. “Just doing it better kept the game 0-0.”

After being observed by medical personnel, Flanders was taken to the hospital by his parents. Junior David Liston replaced him in the lineup, allowing no goals in the second half.

The Lions have two more games before regional play begins. Platt said he was proud of his team’s effort – or at least that effort he was able to see.

“They could have chose not to rise to the challenge,” Platt said, “but they did.”