photo by: Val Montanez/Special to the Journal-World

Free State running back Nez Lattimore-Douglas runs down the field after catching a punt against Olathe West in Olathe on Friday, Oct. 4, 2024.

Olathe — Friday night’s game at the College Boulevard Activity Center presented some significant adversity to Free State football.

The Firebirds took it on and made plays at the right times, defeating Olathe West 30-13.

“We got some guys getting hurt and some injuries, so we’ll have to see how that is,” head coach Kevin Stewart said.

The injury bug hit pretty early on with senior running back Noah Simpson, who went down with a shoulder injury, and senior quarterback Boston Baker, who put his body on the line to get a crucial first down late in the third quarter.

The “next man up” mentality then took effect with sophomore quarterback Finn Moore, senior running back Collins Mwithaga and junior running back Nez Lattimore-Douglas.

“They want to play, Collins, Nez, Finn, those guys are all (good) football players and they want it. They want their opportunities,” Stewart said.

All three made the most of those chances, as Moore finished the night with 68 rushing yards and a touchdown, Mwithaga added 33 yards on the ground, and Lattimore-Douglas chipped in to the rushing attack with 14 yards.

Free State (3-2) started the evening with a 65-yard touchdown drive thanks to a kickoff out of bounds to set up good field position. Baker found senior wide receiver Bralin Preston for 22 yards on the drive. Later, Moore picked up a 5-yard gain to put Free State at the 5-yard line, then two plays later, pushed his way into the end zone for the first score of the night.

The Firebirds held the lead for a majority of the first quarter, before the Owls knotted the score at seven apiece with 16 seconds left in the opening quarter. Junior running back Josh Foland recorded 52 yards on the drive, and capped it off with a 3-yard score.

Both teams traded punts until Moore came up with another huge play, this time an interception. Baker found Preston on a 15-yard touchdown reception to regain the lead for Free State with 4:48 left in the second quarter.

The Firebirds forced another turnover on the third play of the ensuing Owls’ drive when senior linebacker Parker Moore, the brother of Finn, hauled in a tipped pass for an interception. The Firebirds could not find the end zone, but found three points by way of a 33-yard field goal from senior kicker Yusef Iskandrani to extend the lead to 10.

On the third straight possession, Free State came up with a turnover as a mishandled handoff on the opening play of the drive led to a fumble recovery from senior defensive lineman Hyrum Vaeono. Two plays into the Firebird drive, Baker connected with senior wide receiver Braiden Blanchard for a 13-yard touchdown to push the lead to 24-7.

The swing for Free State came at a crucial time, swinging a tie game into a 17-point lead. Despite experiencing moments where it was hard to make plays, the defense pulled off three of the largest plays of the night when it really counted the most.

“It was a great series of defense, and that was really a great turn of momentum for us,” Stewart said. “Prior to that, it was a pretty close game, and that kind of gave us some breathing room before halftime.”

The Firebirds extended their lead to 20 ahead of the half as Baker hit Blanchard again for a 36-yard reception to set up a 27-yard field goal by Iskandrani before the halftime break.

Down 20 to open the second half, Olathe West needed a score to pull back within two possessions. After a long drive that took off over half of the third quarter game clock, Foland punched in his second score of the night on a 2-yard rush to pull within 14.

With a chance to extend the lead once again, Free State drove down the field and looked to be in prime position to score. After finding Preston to pick up a second first down on the drive, Baker went down with an apparent arm injury, bringing in Finn Moore at quarterback.

Moore drove the Firebirds down the field, as they seemed primed to score after Moore rushed down to the 9-yard line, but a holding call pushed the Firebirds back, and they could not respond. As the fourth quarter began, Iskandrani was sent out for a long 49-yard field goal attempt that hooked to the right.

With Moore taking over in his first full drive at quarterback, he led the Free State offense on a long, grueling drive to put the game away. Free State drove down all the way to the Olathe West 6-yard line before Iskandrani hit a 23-yard field goal. More importantly, Free State took off almost all of the remaining clock off, giving Olathe West the ball back with only 26 seconds left.

The Owls did as much as they could with the little remaining time, but a 12-yard rush from senior quarterback Cameron Kruse was the final play of the game.

The scoreboard doesn’t necessarily reflect the entire story, as aside from the three defensive plays in the first half, Olathe West challenged the Free State defense and gave the Firebirds everything they wanted, which is something Stewart was expecting coming into the matchup.

“I think they have some good players over there, they’re not a bad team, and so we knew it was going to be a tight game,” Stewart said.

Free State will travel to face Shawnee Mission North on Thursday.

Score by quarters

Free State (3-2) – 7 20 0 3 – 30

Olathe West (2-3) – 7 0 6 0 – 13

How they scored

First quarter

08:14 – Finn Moore 2-yard rush. Yusef Iskandrani kick is good. (FS 7 OW 0)

00:16 – Josh Foland 3-yard rush. Dylan Wiman kick is good. (FS 7 OW 7)

Second quarter

04:48 – Boston Baker 15-yard pass to Bralin Preston. Iskandrani kick is good. (FS 14 OW 7)

03:07 – Iskandrani 33-yard field goal. (FS 17 OW 7)

02:27 – Baker 13-yard pass to Braiden Blanchard. Iskandrani kick is good. (FS 24 OW 7)

00:23 – Iskandrani 27-yard field goal. (FS 27 OW 7)

Third quarter

05:35 – Foland 2-yard rush. Wiman kick is blocked. (FS 27 OW 13)

Fourth quarter

00:26 – Iskandrani 23-yard kick is good. (FS 30 OW 13)

photo by: Val Montanez/Special to the Journal-World

Free State teammates celebrate a touchdown in the second quarter against Olathe West in Olathe on Friday, Oct. 4, 2024.

photo by: Val Montanez/Special to the Journal-World

Free State teammates celebrate a touchdown in the second quarter against Olathe West in Olathe on Friday, Oct. 4, 2024.

photo by: Val Montanez/Special to the Journal-World

Free State quarterback Boston Baker looks down the field before the snap against Olathe West in Olathe on Friday, Oct. 4, 2024.

photo by: Val Montanez/Special to the Journal-World

Free State quarterback Boston Baker throws the ball to teammate against Olathe West in Olathe on Friday, Oct. 4, 2024.

photo by: Val Montanez/Special to the Journal-World

Free State running back Noah Simpson runs down the field against Olathe West in Olathe on Friday, Oct. 4, 2024.

photo by: Val Montanez/Special to the Journal-World

The Free State Firebirds huddle before facing opponent Olathe West in Olathe on Friday, Oct. 4, 2024. The Firebirds won 30-13.

photo by: Val Montanez/Special to the Journal-World

The Free State Firebirds run onto the field before facing opponent Olathe West in Olathe on Friday, Oct. 4, 2024. The Firebirds won 30-13.