By Aaron Pyle

Morning Sun Staff

The visiting Southeast Lancers finished the season on a high note Friday night, as they
outlasted the Northern Heights Wildcats 20-6 in a hard-fought battle of
winless teams. Following the season-ending victory, the
Lancers snapped a nine game losing streak dating back to Oct. 28, 2021, when the Lancers fell
to Osage City 47-2. The Lancers closed the 2022
season with an overall record of 1-8. Senior running back
Landon Cole powered the Lancers past the Wildcats with his efforts
in the running game. Leading the offense, Cole compiled 143 yards on 14 attempts for two
touchdowns, averaging 10.2 yards per carry. In addition to Cole’s efforts, sophomore
running back Aden Smith finished over the 100-yard mark. Smith carried the ball
17 times Friday night for 111 yards and one touchdown. Smith also
caught one pass for 58 yards. “Landon had never
played football until this year,” coach Nick
Cheney said. “The last two games it started to click with him. His last
game was by far his best. Aden really started showing us what he
is capable of the last four games. He has good
vision and will only improve in the next two
years as long as he continues to work in the offseason.
“The win was very nice to end the season on. The kids played
hard, the game didn’t start out good but we fought and turned it around. We had a big
goal line stand at the one (yard line) in the fourth quarter. We then
were able to run the clock out with a couple
first downs.” Defensively, Cole led the team gathering 13 total tackles that included
three assisted tackles, two tackles for loss, two
sacks and one deflected pass. Sophomore linebacker Braxton Hudson contributed on defense
with three tackles, two deflected passes and one fumble recovery.
In total, the Lancers amassed 39 total tackles, four tackles for loss,
three sacks, and one interception. Southeast had 326 total yards on offense, with 265 coming through
the team’s running game. Looking toward the 2023 season, the Lancers look to build on this year’s sub-.500 season. Among the 26 players on the roster, the Lancers return all but four players — Landon Cole, Kolby
Lovell, Dakota Smith and Jace Fowler. “We had four seniors this year,” Cheney said.
“One had never played before. They worked hard during the season and showed leadership. Continuing to fight even
when stuff wasn’t going our way.”