Lincoln Northeast takes off in the second half, defeating North Platte by one score

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) — The Rockets blast off to a 4-0 start, defeating North Platte 35-27 at Beechner Stadium Friday night, marking their first 4-0 start since 2010.

Lincoln Northeast remains the only undefeated high school team in Lincoln. But, it wasn’t an easy victory.

To start things off, North Platte scored two quick touchdowns in the first quarter to open up to a 14-0 lead.

The Rockets immediately responded, returning a kickoff for a touchdown, cutting the deficit to seven.

After a fourth down stop, the Rockets were moving the chains.

Senior Quarterback Grant Matson threw a touchdown pass to Michael Hunter Jr, tying the game at 14. The score remained tied at halftime.

But the Rockets were on a mission coming out of the break. Matson led the way for Northeast’s offense, scoring two rushing touchdowns. He finished with three on the night.

When Lincoln Northeast scored late in the third quarter, it was a lead they never gave back up.

Head Coach Javonta Boyd talked about the team’s come from behind win, and how they were able to get it done.

“We just practice. We practice everything situational,” Boyd said. “Our guys know we’re a slow starter, and that’s okay. We accepted that. These guys just fought.”

With the tight win Friday night, it marked the first time Lincoln Northeast faced adversity this season.

Matson knew this was a game they had to win. “We just knew it was going to be a harder game coming into today. We really brought it,” Matson said.

Lincoln Northeast will carry this momentum into next week, where they’ll host Omaha North Thursday night.

Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at Seacrest Field.