Olathe North wins, gets playoff rematch with SM East

Olathe North survived a wild start and the high-octane passing attack of Blue Valley North and the result is that the Eagles’ season is still alive.

Olathe North didn’t lead until the fourth quarter, but the Eagles held on for a 35-28 win BV North on Friday night in a Kansas Class 6A regional playoff game. The victory sets up a showdown between the Eagles and defending state champion Shawnee Mission East.

“Our big thing is don’t give up,” Olathe North quarterback Matt Wright said. “We knew it was going to be a test and we fought through it.”

Wright’s back-to-back dramatic runs — the latter producing a 15-yard touchdown — gave Olathe North its first lead with just 5 minutes, 30 seconds remaining in the game. Vinnie Shabazz’s two-point conversion made it 35-28.

“Those two runs were huge. Me and Vinnie both, we had the will to not go down all night,” Wright said. “We needed a touchdown there and we got it.”

Shabazz rushed 33 times for 175 yards, while Wright had 107 yards rushing and 172 passing for Olathe North.

Blue Valley North, which saw starting quarterback Joey Dolan and his 244 passing yards leave the game due to a dislocated finger on the opening drive of the second half, had a first-and-goal from the 5-yard line just three plays later. But a penalty, a stuffed run and three incompletions ended the Mustangs’ drive.

Blue Valley North had one more chance after forcing a quick Eagles punt, but Olathe North didn’t allow a yard on the Mustangs’ final drive.

“We didn’t make good enough adjustments,” said BV North coach Andy Sims, who led the program to an 8-2 record after being 2-7 last season and winless the previous year. “This loss will hurt right now, but I want our guys to see the fruits of their labor.”

The game got off to a breathless start. Two plays after Dane Freberg blocked an Olathe North punt to end the night’s first possession, Cooper Lantefield’s 1-yard run gave Blue Valley North a 7-0 lead.

Two plays later, Olathe North’s Isaiah Simmons caught a short pass from Wright and maneuvered, untouched, 70 yards to tie the game. Four Blue Valley North passes later, it was 14-7. Six Olathe North rushes later, it was tied at 14.

The teams traded turnovers and Blue Valley North made it 21-14 on Dolan’s 22-yard pass to Sam Shortall. On the next play from scrimmage, Simmons made an outstanding catch and scored from 41 yards out.

It was 21-21 with more than 3:00 still remaining in the first quarter. The Mustangs took a 28-21 lead into halftime, but did not score again.

“We made some adjustments in the second quarter,” said Olathe North defensive back Jake Campbell, who had a pair of interceptions. “We came together as a team, figured it all out and stopped them from there.”

This story was originally published November 6, 2015 at 11:05 PM with the headline "Olathe North wins, gets playoff rematch with SM East."