1) Alec Dean’s Catch Against Olathe Northwest
Eleven seconds left. Olathe Northwest leads 22-21. Senior quarterback Christian Blessen drops back, and finds senior receiver Mitchell Tyler.
Tyler runs out of bounds at midfield to stop the clock. Six seconds left. Blessen snaps the ball and throws to junior receiver Alec Dean. Dean gets out of bounds at the 36 yard line. Three seconds left. They have to go for the touchdown. The field goal is too far for inexperienced senior kicker Colin Burns. Blessen drops back, and three East receivers sprint toward the end zone. Time expires. Blessen throws a hail mary pass towards the goal line.
Five Raven defenders surround the three East receivers. The ball tips off the hands of a Northwest defender, and finds its way into the hands of Alec Dean in the back of the end zone. Touchdown! Hail mary to the back of the end zone! The student section storms the field, chanting and wildly jumping up and down as East and Northwest players line up to wish each other a good game. It’s over. Final score: Lancers 27, Ravens 22.
Two LAKC Championships down, and the Lancers were getting a chance to win a third. Students loaded the stands of the UMKC Soccer Stadium, and the Lancer Lacrosse team was getting ready to go head to head against Pembroke High School.
For much of the first half, the Lancers looked shaky, falling behind 0-3. Yet, sophomore Nick Bailey scored three straight goals to tie the game. This sent the Lancers into the locker room with high spirits.
In the third quarter, goals were scored by seniors Connor Mcgannon, Jackson Stevens and junior Tommy Larson. Once the lancers took the lead, they never gave it up. The lancer defense led by juniors Kevin Cole and Mackey Merrill was able to hold on until the final whistle. The Lancers had won 10-6. The students stormed the field, as the Lancers raised their trophy for the third year in a row.
3) Boys’ Soccer Playing in Semi-Finals Last Year
Last season, boys’ soccer team made it to the semi finals round in the state tournament. In the quarter final round they faced off against Lawrence High School. Through a single goal by senior Bryce McClanahan, they were able to beat the Lions 1-0, and advance to the semi finals where they would lose by a score of 3-1 to Blue Valley Northwest. Their only goal in that quarterfinal game, and their last game, was scored by senior Tyler Rathbun — 20 days before he passed away.
“Tyler scored, of course,” senior Noah Ediemiller, who played alongside Rathbun last season said. “It only seems right that he did.”
4) Girls’ Soccer Winning District Championship Last Year
To win a district championship, the Lady Lancer’s soccer team needed to tie or win against Olathe South. The biggest crowd all year had shown up to, hopefully, see them hold that district championship trophy up high.
The Lancers led
the game until there were nearly eight minutes left in the second half, when disaster struck. Olathe South had scored two quick goals to take the lead. The Lancers had to score quickly if they wanted the title. With nearly thirty seconds left in the game, a bullet-free kick from senior Anna Colby went straight to senior Addison Steiner as she tapped the ball into the corner of the goal, rolling by the goalie. The Lancers had tied up the game, which was enough to win the district championship, giving the crowd what they came to see.
Students have been lined up for hours, all dressed in doctors and nurses clothes. Scrubs and surgical masks on the bodies of every East student there. They are getting ready for one the most anticipated boys’ basketball regular season games of the season (according to Coach Shawn Hair) — the East Rockhurst game.Although it’s a home game for Rockhurst, hundreds of East students will pack in the stands in just a few short hours. East had lost to Rockhurst the past two years. With help from the packed student section, East was able to beat Rockhurst 62-50. Sophomore Lucas Jones and seniors Vance Wentz, Zach Schneider and Conner Knabe all scored in double digits. Combined, they had 59 of East’s 62 points.
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