The Olathe East Eagles knocked out defending 6A state champion Shawnee Mission East 44-30 in a Kansas Class 6A sectional Friday night at Olathe District Athletic Complex.
The Eagles were able to take this one with three touchdowns on kickoff returns and three other big scoring plays.
Olathe North, 10-1, will play Blue Valley, 9-2, next week for a berth in the 6A state title game.
Shawnee Mission East, 9-2, dominated possession and was able to ground the clock to a pulp. The problem for the Lancers was they couldn’t score points — and they had no answer for Olathe North’s big-play capability.
Storey Jackson answered the Lancers’ seven-minute scoring drive to start the game with a 70-yard kickoff return for the Eagles.
When East got back within four points midway through the third quarter, Isaiah Simmons answered with a 98-yard kick return. That was after he scored on a 64-yard touchdown run and a 64-yard screen pass in the first half.
“Every day in practice, we preach that special teams is going to win the game, and special teams is just as big a factor as offense and defense,” Simmons said. “We really hammer that in practice. I just saw a big opening (on the kickoff return) and I just took off as fast as I could run. I made one cut, and it was open.”
Lancer senior running back Wyatt Edmisten had almost twice as many carries (46) as Olathe North had total plays (25).
