Two victories. Two serious injuries. The deuces may have canceled each other out for Lawrence High’s football team.

The unbeaten Lions, ranked No. 5 by the Kansas Prep Power Index, will go into tonight’s game against Shawnee Mission North without starters Paul Finch and Matt Stiles.

Kickoff will be 7 p.m. at SM South District Stadium.

“My biggest concern is if North scores a couple of touchdowns early,” LHS coach Dirk Wedd, “and we have to dig out of a hole.”

Not that it’s likely SM North will score a couple of early touchdowns. The Indians have managed only two TDs in their first two games – losses to Olathe South (32-7) last week and Free State (27-9) in their opener.

Lawrence High, meanwhile, recorded an impressive 18-13 victory over longtime nemesis Olathe North on Thursday night after pounding Leavenworth, 49-7, to start the season.

But the victory over O-North was costly. Finch, a senior starting guard and reserve linebacker whom Wedd regarded as one of his team’s best players, suffered a season-ending knee injury.

Then Wedd learned that Stiles, a senior fullback, had suffered a broken wrist bone during the O-North game.

“We didn’t know it was broken until Saturday,” Wedd said. “Now he’s out for a while.”

Stiles’ injury will necessitate senior Nathan Hickey going both ways at cornerback and running back. At the same time, Nolan Kellerman has shifted from running back to fullback.

Wedd has tapped two players to replace Finch. Patrick Johnson, a 5-foot-10, 210-pound senior, will start at offensive guard, while Wedd has elevated Tyler Hunt from the sophomore team to fill in for Finch on defense.

• 6Sports video: Injuries hamper Lions

Hunt, who has sparkled as a running back and linebacker in sophomore games, stands 6-1 and weighs 200 pounds. Hunt won’t start, but he’ll log considerable minutes because regular linebackers Scott Penny and Nick DeBiasse also play on offense and need a blow from time to time.

For the second straight week, Wedd will use back-up place-kicker Abby Vestal because regular kicker Chris Cates’ first commitment is to the soccer team, and LHS soccer also has a game scheduled tonight.

Vestal attempted a conversion kick following the Lions’ first TD against O-North, but it was blocked. That missed PAT prompted Wedd to go for two points after the Lions’ next two scores.

Tonight’s game will be at SM South because the district’s other facility at SM North is being renovated. And with the SM South stadium scheduled for more use this fall, artificial turf was installed over the summer.

That’s fine with Wedd.

“It’s a treat for our kids,” Wedd said. “But if they say to play on a pasture, we’ll play on a pasture.”

The Lions will have two more games on plastic grass – Oct. 21 against Free State at Memorial Stadium and a week later against Topeka High at the Capital City’s Hummer Park.

The Lions’ next two games, however, will be at Haskell Stadium – SM East on Sept. 23 and SM South on Sept. 30.