The Olathe East Men's Varsity Soccer team played Topeka Washburn Rural at Hummer Sports Park in Topeka KS 2:00 Saturday November 8 for the 6A State Championship. A cold front had moved through the area and the forecast called for a chilly northwest wind. Fans arrived bundled and up carrying blankets, but the sun was out and the breeze was light which made for a pleasant afternoon in the low to mid 50's. A great day for championship soccer.
Both teams came out hard and fast. It was back and forth until the 24th minute when Mark VanLandingham got a through ball to Logan Steen, from right center to the right side of the six yard box. Logan crossed it back to Shane Kopplin in front of the goal who put it in the far back corner of the net for the first goal. The hard fought battle continued until the 38th minute when Lucas Reynolds threw the ball in from the right side to the left of Mark's feet. Mark turned to his right and followed the ball touching it once past a defender and then launched a left foot shot from outside the box to the far upper left 90 into the side net. The keeper just watched it go by.
The first half ended 2-0 with only one additional shot on goal, a near miss and two saves by Brad Krull.
We controlled the ball well in the second half with five shots on goal and a couple of near misses, but couldn't get anything else to fall. With just under five minutes left in the game, they got a ball over the top. Andrew Kramer was in position goal side under the ball and got his head on it, but the ball dropped inside and their superstar forward got a foot on it and launched a hard shot past a diving Collin Shepard to the back of the net for his 30th goal of the season.
The final five minutes were intense as they tried to tie and we tried to run the clock out. The game got fast and physical, and the officiating got strange. The clock stopped more in the last two minutes than an NFL Football game. Our boys kept their composure, controlled the ball and outlasted the opponents and the center referee for the win.
Congratulations to the 2014 Kansas 6A State Champion Olathe East Hawks!!!
Both teams came out hard and fast. It was back and forth until the 24th minute when Mark VanLandingham got a through ball to Logan Steen, from right center to the right side of the six yard box. Logan crossed it back to Shane Kopplin in front of the goal who put it in the far back corner of the net for the first goal. The hard fought battle continued until the 38th minute when Lucas Reynolds threw the ball in from the right side to the left of Mark's feet. Mark turned to his right and followed the ball touching it once past a defender and then launched a left foot shot from outside the box to the far upper left 90 into the side net. The keeper just watched it go by.
The first half ended 2-0 with only one additional shot on goal, a near miss and two saves by Brad Krull.
We controlled the ball well in the second half with five shots on goal and a couple of near misses, but couldn't get anything else to fall. With just under five minutes left in the game, they got a ball over the top. Andrew Kramer was in position goal side under the ball and got his head on it, but the ball dropped inside and their superstar forward got a foot on it and launched a hard shot past a diving Collin Shepard to the back of the net for his 30th goal of the season.
The final five minutes were intense as they tried to tie and we tried to run the clock out. The game got fast and physical, and the officiating got strange. The clock stopped more in the last two minutes than an NFL Football game. Our boys kept their composure, controlled the ball and outlasted the opponents and the center referee for the win.
Congratulations to the 2014 Kansas 6A State Champion Olathe East Hawks!!!
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