photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Lawrence junior Jackson Raney dribbles the ball in a 2-1 win over Shawnee Mission Northwest on Monday, Oct. 19, 2026, in Lawrence.

After a six-game slide, Lawrence boys soccer got back in the win column with a 2-1 senior-night victory over Shawnee Mission Northwest.

The Lions are in the final week of the regular season. The last month hasn’t gone well, and Monday night was the last time the Lawrence seniors will take the home field at LHS. With that, the Lions wanted to win, and they got it done in the end.

“I’m glad they got it done on senior night,” Lawrence coach Joe Comparato said. “We haven’t been playing very well these last few weeks, and there’s a lot of reasons… the last couple of games we’ve had our chances and just had silly mistakes.”

Lawrence put the pressure on the Cougars early in the match, though it took some time for the Lawrence offense to put a goal through the net. The high-danger chances were there, but the Lions were unable to make good on them early on.

“When we press as a team, we are really good and we cause a lot of trouble for other teams’ back lines,” Comparato said. “I want them to play that way. That’s where they’re most comfortable.”

Lawrence senior Gavin Hayes got the ball in the middle of the field in the 30th minute and hit a long pass to junior Jackson Raney running under the ball. Raney caught up to it outside of the frame of the goal and bounced the ball up, over the goalkeeper and into the net for the first goal of the game.

The Lions went into halftime with the 1-0 lead and spent the break celebrating the seven seniors on the team. The celebration provided a big motivation for the game: seniors wanting to win for themselves and the younger guys wanting to win for the seniors.

“They wanted to play for our seniors,” Comparato said of the team. “Our bench did a great job, some of our seniors who have been on the bench most of the year came out and had great games.”

After the break, the Lawrence defense was challenged by the Cougars, but between a lot of saves from senior Noah Schmidt and a strong defensive gameplan to trap the Cougars offsides, the Cougars weren’t able to get too many clean shots off.

“We were working a trap, we’ve been working on it the last few games, and we had some luck with it tonight,” Comparato said. “The defense did well, and we’re without two of our starters. That’s tough, and we had some guys come off the bench and step up.

The defense didn’t hold completely, however. With 10 minutes left in regulation, the Cougars took over the ball at midfield on a free kick and got the ball on an inside pass in the goal area, where a Cougar put the ball in the net to tie it up.

Comparato said the best thing about the Lions this season is that the team doesn’t give up. The Lions didn’t let the disappointment of letting the senior night lead disappear hold them back. The Lions kept the pressure up, and with 2:17 left in regulation, senior Oscar Paden passed the ball across the net to an open Raney for a Lawrence goal.

“No matter what the deal is, they never give up,” Comparato said. “That is a testament to their character and how hard they work. We let the one goal go in, and they rallied and they created an opportunity and finished it.”

The Lions held on for the final minutes to secure the win, the first since a 3-1 victory over Shawnee Mission North on Sept. 24.

Lawrence still has two Sunflower League games left this week before postseason play begins. The Lions will be at Olathe North on Tuesday and Shawnee Mission West on Thursday.

“We’ve got to be healthy,” Comparato said. “We’re going to depend on our bench to pick up some minutes this week so that we can be ready for the playoffs.”

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Lawrence senior goalkeeper Noah Schmidt looks to kick the ball in a 2-1 win over Shawnee Mission Northwest on Monday, Oct. 19, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Lawrence junior Lincoln Beck blocks a pass in a 2-1 win over Shawnee Mission Northwest on Monday, Oct. 19, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Lawrence senior Sullivan Leitch runs to the ball in a 2-1 win over Shawnee Mission Northwest on Monday, Oct. 19, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Lawrence junior Jackson Raney runs to defend in a 2-1 win over Shawnee Mission Northwest on Monday, Oct. 19, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Lawrence gets ready for a corner kick in a 2-1 win over Shawnee Mission Northwest on Monday, Oct. 19, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Lawrence senior Gavin Hayes turns around in a 2-1 win over Shawnee Mission Northwest on Monday, Oct. 19, 2026, in Lawrence.