photo by: Conner Becker

Despite tight defensive play all game long and more than 30 saves by senior goalkeeper Cree Stewart, the Lawrence High girls soccer team came up short to Olathe East, 1-0, at home on Tuesday night.

The Lions (0-6) stood tall on 11 of the 12 corner kicks that O-East barreled toward them, but LHS coach Joe Comparato said his group needed to pressure the ball more.

“One thing we did better tonight than we did in other games was control the midfield a little better,” Comparato said. “But they were really good in the back half. In the first half, we had so many opportunities to strike forward, but in the second half we just couldn’t find the right combination.”

The Hawks pressured the box early. Junior forward Braylee Rogers rocketed off their first shot, which flew wide left, six minutes into the game. Rogers took another shot at the goal moments near the 29-minute mark, but Stewart made the save.

Junior forward Angela Braden took the first shot for LHS at the 13-minute mark; it sailed just left of the goal. Mere moments later, Stewart and junior Ivori Jones made two critical stops for the Lions on defense. LHS junior Rai’Onna Helm and freshman Stella Comparato got shots off late in the first period, and both sides were scoreless at halftime.

Joe Comparato said he thought his team set a good pace in the first period.

“Our goal was to get the ball forward and keep pressure on them because we thought we could get them to make a mistake in the back half,” Joe Comparato said. “We were there a couple of times, but we just couldn’t find the feet to capitalize.”

The Lions struggled to move the ball upfield early in the second period. O-East sophomore midfielder Maddie Shoup launched a shot at the 35-minute mark, the first of multiple failed attempts that the Hawks fired off during the next ten minutes. Stewart stopped all of those from going in.

But O-East finally got past Stewart at the 20-minute mark, when sophomore Amaya Bible scored on a header that was passed in from the right corner. O-East made two more attempts after that, but they didn’t find the net again.

With under seven minutes left, LHS did manage to put the ball in prime scoring position when sophomore forward Giova Rubenstein broke up a corner kick and looked for an open shot. But the late push didn’t turn into a score.

Joe Comparato said that even though his team lost, he was pleased to see their growth.

“Most of these girls out here are young, and they’re learning — which is great,” Comparato said. “That’s what we need to rebuild this program from the bottom up.”

Up next, LHS travels to Shawnee Mission South on Thursday. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m.

Free State drops home match to Shawnee Mission South

The Free State girls soccer team fell to Shawnee Mission South, 6-0, at home on Tuesday night.

The Raiders struck first at the 20-minute mark and tacked on two more goals shortly afterward. Then, they scored three more goals in the second period.

Free State coach Joe Waldron did see some bright spots in Tuesday’s game, including strong play by sophomore keeper Merrit Hale and junior midfielder Shelby Roberts. He said the team moved the ball well, but that they left themselves open far too often.

“It’s kind of hard to keep the raft afloat when you have some holes in it,” Waldron said. “(Free State)’s level of competition is so good, but when you’re making mistakes, it’s hard to win.”

Up next, Free State travels to Mill Valley on Thursday. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m.