Lawrence High junior Noel Fisher (15) chases after Olathe East junior Austin Esparza in the second half..

Lawrence High’s soccer team lost to Olathe East, 2-1, Monday night at LHS, but in soccer, the final score sometimes doesn’t reflect the play. Despite the loss, junior Tanner Williams said he thought the Lions played their best soccer of the season.

Lawrence High sophomore Gavin Fischer looks to clear the ball against Olathe East in the second half Tuesday, Oct. 5, at Lawrence High School.

Lawrence High freshman Parker Davies, right, contests a loose ball with Olathe East sophomore Nick Andrews during the second half. The Lions lost, 2-1, on Tuesday at Lawrence High. Story on page 3B.

“We were really a team right there,” Williams said. “This is kind of the first game that we came together and played as a unit.”

It looked like Olathe East (7-2-2) might pull away from Lawrence (2-7-1) early in the match. The Hawks had five shots — two on goal — in the first five minutes before scoring on their sixth at 34:00. Junior Connor Elliott hit a low shot past Lawrence junior goalie Tanner Click and off the right post into the back of the net.

But Lawrence, reflecting the tenacious effort that coach Mike Murphy strongly encourages, responded just six minutes later.

Williams scored on a shot from the top of the 18-yard box 12 minutes into the first half. A slick layoff by sophomore Bray Kelley gave Williams an open look at the goal. He certainly didn’t waste the opportunity, burying the ball into the upper right corner of the net.

It was Williams’ first extended appearance since he bruised his hipbone in last Tuesday’s game against Olathe South.

“I was timid about it, but I just hit it and it felt perfect,” Williams said.

The score remained 1-1 at halftime despite the Hawks having 11 more shots. The possession was fairly balanced to open the second half, but then Olathe East senior Kyle Coates made a dangerous run down the Lawrence High backline. Coates crossed the ball to sophomore Brendan O’Keefe, who scored into the open net at 21:25.

Click was a little frustrated by the sequence leading up to the goal.

“It’s one of the easiest ways to score for them,” Click said. “He beat his man, and then all he had to do was a simple back pass and then he has a wide open goal because I had to pick near post.”

The defensive lapses don’t concern Murphy too much yet, mostly because he knows that it can take a while for defenders who haven’t played together much to mesh.

“Sometimes it takes a whole season for a back line to really get used to working together and coordinating who goes and who drops,” Murphy said. “We’re figuring it out, and I’m confident that these guys will have it figured out by the playoffs.”

A new addition to the back line is freshman Parker Davies, who was recently moved up from the junior varsity. He displayed good touch on the ball and nearly broke free for a goal opportunity early in the second half. Murphy also likes having the left-footed Davies playing on the left side of the field.

Murphy also applauded his team’s improved consistency.

“It was more consistent tonight for a longer period of time than it has been in some of these games against these tough opponents,” Murphy said. “We’ll get there.”

The Lions play again at 7 p.m. Thursday against Shawnee Mission West. Murphy also scheduled a game at noon on Saturday against St. James Academy to make up for the Junction City game that was cancelled earlier in the season. Regional playoffs start Oct. 25.

“We’re feeling pretty good about our chances in the playoffs,” Murphy said. “I don’t think there’s anybody that’s going to want to play us if we keep improving like we have.”