photo by: Mike Shaw/Special to the Journal-World

Lawrence kicker Andrei Lefort kicks off during a game against Shawnee Mission East in Lawrence on Friday, Sept. 15, 2023.

The Lawrence High football team escaped Shawnee Mission East 31-28 in a roller-coaster double-overtime finish at home on Friday night.

In characteristic fashion following last week’s win, the Lions (3-0) battled back from an early two-score deficit to defeat the Lancers on a 75-yard pick-six by senior safety Zander Thomas late in the fourth quarter and a game-winning field goal by junior Andrei Lefort to cap off two overtimes’ worth of high school football action.

The Lancers’ (0-3) backfield caused trouble all night long, with 108 yards coming from sophomore running back Jack Reeves on the ground. Conversely, the Lions produced 223 yards of total offense, with nearly 100 coming through the air from junior Banks Bowen.

While it wasn’t the prettiest win in the state that night, LHS head coach Clint Bowen can hardly complain about his group’s ability to hang around and get the job done.

“I learned a long time ago in this business that you celebrate every win,” Bowen said. “The margin of error is always so small … especially in the game of football, when things are so crazy, if you find a way to win, you celebrate … I told our kids that I hope they learned the lesson that there’s mental preparation that goes into every game.”

Out of sync right from the opening drive, the Lions coughed up the football on a wild snap swiftly recovered by the Lancers near the LHS 33-yard line. The discouraging start resulted in a swift touchdown for SM East, which took a 7-0 lead midway through the first quarter.

LHS, faltering under pressure on its next drive and leaving Bowen sacked twice, set SM East up for another manageable score from the LHS 20-yard line, a 3-yard touchdown rush by Nate Philips.

The Lions’ defense forced its first punt of the ballgame on the following drive and paved the way for the first LHS score of the night, a 15-yard touchdown scamper by Malcolm Paul. Once it looked like Reeves was making his case for another score, LHS sophomore safety Josh Galbreath stepped up and denied him on fourth-and-short.

Not satisfied with just one score, LHS rode the Lancers’ turnover downfield and tied things up at 14-14 on a 35-yard strike from Bowen to senior wide receiver Mason Mosiman shortly before the halftime horn sounded.

Both squads were able to stall each other’s initial second-half drives after SM East opened the third quarter with possession, as the Lancers bled the clock on the third drive of the second half — which finally resulted in a missed field goal try by Ryan Dehan with just 1:27 left in the third quarter.

The Lancers, continuing to stump the LHS offense as the clock rolled into the fourth quarter, eventually broke the deadlock with a 37-yard touchdown run by Reeves to take a 21-14 lead with plenty of time left for an LHS response.

Fighting back, LHS did find itself in a rhythm after a series of first-down rushes from Bowen and Paul, leading the Lions up to the SM East 27-yard line. Facing fourth-and-8, LHS just fell short of the first-down marker on a wild toss from Bowen that ended back up in his hands before he went down just four yards short of the sticks.

Even when things looked their lowest, LHS senior offensive lineman Will Hendricks felt his team was always going to keep snapping right back.

“There’s a lot of fight in this group,” Hendricks said. “And in a game like this, your whole body hurts. We’ve got a good group of 22 guys who can fight through the pain.”

With just under six minutes left to go, SM East looked poised to put its stamp on the game when LHS senior safety Zander Thomas picked off Luke Pearcy and raced home for a 75-yard momentum-swinging touchdown with 4:59 left on the clock.

The Lancers, fighting up to near the LHS 30-yard line, opted to stick with their quarterback on fourth-and-7, resulting in a sack on Pearcy by LHS junior tackle Andrew Nelson with just seconds remaining in regulation. The stop forced overtime, which saw the LHS offense come out first after SM East won the toss and deferred possession.

LHS scored right away on a 10-yard touchdown run by Bowen to put the Lions up 28-21 and bring the East offense out. East, moving quickly, scored on a toss from Pearcy to Reeves that tied the ballgame up at 28-28 after the PAT.

In the second overtime, SM East settled for a field goal attempt on fourth down and Dehan’s kick sailed wide left. Back out with the LHS offense, Bowen got his helmet knocked off and had to exit the game; senior backup Tyson Grammer made a two-yard jolt up the middle to set the game-winning field goal by Lefort.

GAME STATS

SM East 14 0 0 7 7 0 – 28

Lawrence 0 14 0 7 7 3 – 31

SM East | LHS

First downs 10 | 11

Rushing yards 201 | 125

Passing yards 10 | 98

Total offense 211 | 223

Fumbles lost 0 | 1

Interceptions 1 | 0

Penalties-yards 1-5 | 5-39

HOW THEY SCORED

1Q:

6:48 – SM East touchdown: Pearcy 2 run. Dehan kick is good. (LHS 0, SM East 7)

0:57 – SM East touchdown: Philips 3 run. Dehan kick is good. (LHS 0, SM East 14)

2Q:

8:14 – LHS touchdown: Paul 15 run. Lefort kick is good. (LHS 7, SM East 14)

0:51 – LHS touchdown: Mosiman 35 pass from Bowen. Lefort kick is good. (LHS 14, SM East 14)

4Q:

11:52 – SM East touchdown: Reeves 37 run. Dehan kick is good. (LHS 14, SM East 21)

4:59 – LHS touchdown: Thomas 75 interception return. Lefort kick is good. (LHS 21, SM East 21)

OT:

LHS touchdown: Bowen 10 run. Lefort kick is good. (LHS 28, SM East 21)

SM East touchdown: Reeves 10 pass from Pearcy. Dehan kick is good. (LHS 28, SM East 28)

2OT:

LHS field goal: Lefort kick is good. (LHS 31, SM East 28).

INDIVIDUAL STATS:

Rushing: LHS – Paul 8-56; Bowen 18-52; Edwards 1-6; Grammer 1-2; SM East – Reeves 19-108; Falley 6-38; 5-22.

Passing: LHS – Bowen 6-17, 98; SM East – Pearcy 1-6, 10.

Receiving: Wingerd 3-46, Mosiman 1-35, Paul 2-17; SM East – Reeves 1-10.

photo by: Mike Shaw/Special to the Journal-World

Lawrence quarterback Banks Bowen looks for receiver Jaxon Becker during a game against Shawnee Mission East in Lawrence on Friday, Sept. 15, 2023.

photo by: Mike Shaw/Special to the Journal-World

Lawrence quarterback Banks Bowen looks to pass during a game against Shawnee Mission East in Lawrence on Friday, Sept. 15, 2023.

photo by: Mike Shaw/Special to the Journal-World

Lawrence safety Noah Richardson tries to make a tackle during a game against Shawnee Mission East in Lawrence on Friday, Sept. 15, 2023.

photo by: Mike Shaw/Special to the Journal-World

Lawrence receiver Gabe Wingerd carries the ball during a game against Shawnee Mission East in Lawrence on Friday, Sept. 15, 2023.

photo by: Mike Shaw/Special to the Journal-World

Lawrence tailback Malcolm Paul carries the ball forward during a game against Shawnee Mission East in Lawrence on Friday, Sept. 15, 2023.