Late defensive stand leads LHS past Olathe West, 28-21

photo by: Chance Parker/Journal-World Photo

Lawrence High senior Tyrell Reed is jubilant after scoring a touchdown against Olathe West on Thursday, Sept. 8, 2022.

Olathe — After an air-tight four quarters, the Lawrence High football team defeated Olathe West in dramatic fashion Thursday night, 28-21 in a Sunflower League road showdown.

Down 28-21 with 3:25 left in the game, O-West stopped the Lions (2-0) at the goal line on fourth down to regain possession for another scoring opportunity.

Olathe West drove all the way down to the Lions’ 8-yard line in the game’s final seconds, but LHS senior Kenton Simmons and junior Kem Allen wrapped up Owls quarterback Mason McGavran for the game-winning sack.

LHS coach Clint Bowen said being able to finish in a gutsy situation says a lot about his group’s potential.

“It was great to see that they fought,” Bowen said. “It was great to see that emotion and to see them finish the game like that, I’m really proud of our kids and I think this is a week that we can build on.”

The Lions recorded 358 yards of total offense, fueled by junior Tyson Grammer’s 12-of-16 passing performance for 176 yards and two touchdowns.

Both squads traded off punts to drain the first quarter. O-West scored first, opening up the second quarter with an 11-yard touchdown pass from McGavran to Jack Scott to put the Owls up 7-0. Tyrell Reed led the LHS backfield with 103 yards on nine carries.

Lions’ senior Tyrell Reed didn’t wait long to answer the O-West score, kicking off the next drive with a 70-yard burst for six, tying the game at 7 with 10:26 to go in the half. The Owls responded with a 12-yard keeper from McGavran to regain the lead, 14-7.

Grammer responded by hitting senior Sam Sedo for a 77-yard LHS touchdown pass less than a minute later to even the score at 14-14 with 7:26 still to play in the half.

The Lions’ defense followed up with its second stop of the night, giving Lawrence another chance to score with a little over a minute before the break. After the Lions drove to the Owls’ 13-yard line, O-West denied Reed on fourth-down to prevent another Lions score before the halftime break.

Warming up his arm, Grammer completed passes to three consecutive receivers to put LHS in the red zone before the drive fell apart on a failed fourth-and-short. But an opportunity to score came right back to LHS moments later, after forcing a stop and taking advantage of an Owls penalty on the punt.

Grammer, who started for just a second time Thursday night, said things felt a little more natural on the road.

“It felt great to come out with my guys after a long week of practice that we had,” Grammer said of his performance. “It always feels great to come out, fix things and get done what you’ve got to get done.”

LHS took its first lead of the game on an 11-yard touchdown pass from Grammer to Sedo and the Lions found themselves up 21-14 with 5:02 to go in the third quarter. O-West didn’t take the score lightly, as McGavran connected with Scott for his second touchdown pass of the night, knotting the score at 21 with 3:34 to go in the third quarter.

Early into the fourth quarter, Reed pushed the Lions back out front, 28-21, on a 5-yard touchdown rush. Another stop saw the Lions stomping on the Owls’ goalline, but a poor throw from Grammer handed O-West the football with 3:25 still to play.

The Owls recorded six first-downs on the final drive, but LHS stuffed McGavran on the final play to deliver the Lions’ first win of the season.

GAME STATS:

Lawrence High 0 14 7 7 – 28

Olathe West 0 14 7 0 – 21

HOW THEY SCORED:

2Q:

10:48 – O-West touchdown: Scott 11 pass from McGavran. Gatschet kick is good. (LHS, O-West 7)

10:26 – LHS touchdown: Reed 70 run. Kirk kick is good. (LHS 7, O-West 7)

8:13 – O-West touchdown: McGavran 12 run. Gatschet kick is good. (LHS 7, O-West 14)

7:26 – LHS touchdown: Sedo 77 pass from Grammer. Kirk kick is good. (LHS 14, O-West 14)

3Q:

5:02 – LHS touchdown: Sedo 14 pass from Grammer. Kirk kick is good. (LHS 21, O-West 14)

3:43 – O-West touchdown: Scott 47 pass from Grammer. Kirk kick is good. (LHS 21, O-West 21)

4Q:

10:57 – LHS touchdown: Reed 5 run. Kirk kick is good. (LHS 28, O-West 21)

LHS | O-West

First downs 14 | 15

Rushing yards 182 | 108

Passing yards 176 | 171

Total-offense 358 | 279

Fumbles-lost 0 | 0

Interceptions 0 | 0

Penalty yards 28 | 45

INDIVIDUAL STATS:

Passing: LHS – Tyson Grammer 12-16, 176; O-West – Mason McGavran 14-22, 171.

Rushing: LHS – Tyrell Reed 9-103, Brayden Heck 16-57, Sam Sedo 3-9; O-West – Vincent Gatschet 14-36, Mason Barnard 5-18.

Receiving: LHS – Sam Sedo 4-105, Cole Watson 2-17, Dominic Ostronic 2-23, Mason Mosiman 2-14, Tyrell Reed 1-11, Brayden Heck 1-6; O-West – Jack Scott 5-83, Micah McGavran 5-45, Elijah Hakim 1-26, Mason Barnard 3-16.

photo by: Journal-World file photo

The Lawrence Lions take on the Olathe West Owls on Thursday, Sept. 8, 2022 at CBAC.

Lawrence High coach Clint Bowen observes his team against Olathe West on Thursday, Sept. 8, 2022.

Lawrence High senior Tyrell Reed runs the ball against Olathe West on Thursday, Sept. 8, 2022.

Lawrence High senior Jaydon Brittingham is jubilant after recording a sack against Olathe West on Thursday, Sept. 8, 2022.

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