Keegan: Vestal perfect for LHS

Nobody would have noticed if the historic moment Friday night at Haskell Stadium shook the earth hard enough to cause a power outage.

Abby Vestal’s smile was bright enough to light up the place all by itself.

Vestal, a Lawrence High junior and a soccer star, became the first girl to make a successful kick in a varsity football game for a Lawrence high school. A backup to senior Chris Cates, Vestal made both extra points she attempted.

The crowd nodded to the history books with a standing ovation. Teammates, free from jealousy, showered her with smiles and attaboys, check that, attagirls.

Afterward, as she and Cates stood outside the team bus, Abby’s eyes still sparkled. The highlight of her night?

“Probably the first field goal,” she said.

For the record, they were extra points. OK, so she doesn’t have the terminology down yet. She does appear to have the kick down. Both boots whistled through the uprights with plenty to spare on a night the Lions did everything right in dusting Leavenworth, 49-7.

Everything about the night showcased the grand tradition of Lawrence High. Everything, including Vestal’s second-quarter appearance as a kicker. More on that in a minute.

Yogi Berra would love this program. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Running the ball up the gut worked, so why pass?

Haskell Stadium has been an ideal home for high school football for decades, so why move?

The black helmet with the white stripe has been good enough for 26 state champs, so why alter it?

Depth of talent, I’m told, was a signature of those teams in the days before the split created Free State. Depth created competition, which in turn brought on individual improvement.

If competing for jobs worked, why change?

Which brings us back to Abby Vestal, the strong-toed kicker. Dirk Wedd invited Abby to try out not to make history but to embrace the tradition of competing for jobs.

“We’re not trying to make a circus out of Lawrence High football,” said Wedd, careful to call Abby a kicker – not a girl, not a lady, a kicker. “I just think competition brings out the best in players, and we needed another kicker.”

“Awesome!” was Cates’ one-word answer when asked how he has liked having someone to compete against.

The word’s not strong enough to capture how the linemen performed. Their domination was most obvious when Lawrence had the ball. Tackles Mark Chapman and Uliti Fangupo made punishing up-the-field blocks. Guards Nick DeBiasse and Paul Finch and center Cory Gaston pushed white jerseys straight up the field. Travis Alexander, Cameron Reschke and others rotated in to help blow open so many holes the Lions had 285 yards on 27 first-half rushes.

It was enough to turn a team cocky, except that’s never a concern at Lawrence. The players need only listen to the glass-bending voice of KLWN-AM 1320’s Hank Booth, in his 36th season calling the games, to be reminded of a team with true domination. Booth played for the ’63 state champs that allowed 1.9 points a game.

Here’s guessing this team has a better smile.