Free State's Charlie Newsome tries to dribble past Lawrence High's Mason Anderson in the first half of the City Showdown on Thursday at FSHS. Newsome and Anderson both found the back of the net, as the Firebirds and Lions tied, 2-2.

The Free State and Lawrence High boys soccer teams were both oozing with confidence entering Thursday’s City Showdown at FSHS with each squad having won back-to-back matches.

The Firebirds (4-3-2) and the Lions (3-3-3) both felt like their winning streaks should have continued on Thursday, but it was not to be, as they played to a 2-2 tie in front of a raucous crowd.

“It’s always fun for these guys. This is such a great atmosphere and a great battle,” Lawrence High coach Mike Murphy said. “It’s one of those deals where we certainly want to win the game, but I’m sure it’s great for the community to see two really good teams out here battling it out and coming out with that kind of a result. I’m just really proud of our whole community of soccer fans and players and what they create for this kind of atmosphere.”

Murphy’s team was one minute and 40 seconds away from earning its third straight win and notching a victory in the City Showdown for the first time since 2013. The Lions owned a 2-1 advantage as they tried to hold off a late charge from the Firebirds, but Free State found the equalizer when Ashton Owen scored on a rebound after Charlie Newsome initially put the ball on frame with a free kick.

“The ball is right there and you just have to finish it no matter what,” Owen said. “Two minutes left. Crunch time. I just put it in.”

The Free State offense had been stagnant for much of the second half until the moments leading up to Owen’s goal. Newsome put the Firebirds on the board just seven minutes in, but he was heavily marked by the Lions after that.

“Whenever you score early, it does kind of put a target on your back,” Newsome said. “The defenders are definitely looking out for you. It can almost be a blessing that it opens up other guys.”

The Firebirds took a 1-0 lead into the break, but the Lions began knocking on the door in the second half. The Lions finally broke through with 23:40 to play when freshman Mason Anderson made a name for himself in his first City Showdown by pushing the ball past Free State goalie Thomas White after making a run up the right side.

“It feels awesome,” Anderson said. “The rush you have in that one moment — there’s no way to explain it.”

Anderson’s goal gave the Lions an extra boost of energy midway through the second half, and they kept the foot on the gas to get another just five minutes later. Lawrence High was awarded a free kick just outside of the penalty box after a Free State handball. Cole Shupert stepped up to drill it home to put the Lions in front.

“I just saw that the goalie was behind the wall, so I was trying to hit to the far post where he couldn’t see it,” Shupert said.

Murphy credited the Lions’ two quick goals to their play in the midfield. The Lawrence High coach was particularly proud of senior midfielders Dario Ramirez and Ben Matthews, forward Quentin Harrington and defender Robbie Kleibohmer. Murphy added that Shupert played like a senior despite only being a junior.

“I was really proud of the guys for how they dominated. In the second half, we had control of the ball,” Murphy said. “We were doing a lot better winning 50-50s. We were creating more opportunities.”

The Lions have scored eight goals in their last three games, but Murphy believes that they can still clean a few things up in the attacking third to be even more potent offensively.

“We’re still not quite finding the right lane, the right paths and playing it to feet when we need to play it to feet and being a little more creative with our movement off the ball,” Murphy said. “But those things are going to come.”

While Free State coach Kelly Barah was dejected about the Firebirds putting themselves in a situation where they need to find a late equalizer, he was pleased to see how they rose to the occasion to force overtime.

“This team has a couple of words that really stick out to me: grit and resilience,” Barah said. “Those are two really good ones that stick out. For our season to be what we want it to be, we need the team to have some of that.”

The Firebirds will be back in action for the second game of their four-match homestand when they play host to Shawnee Heights at 6:30 p.m. Monday.

The Lions will return home to take on Shawnee Mission Northwest at 6:15 p.m. Tuesday.