TUALATIN – For much of the first half Friday night, it appeared as if No. 4 Tualatin was in danger of being upset by visiting Mountainside in the 6A nonleague football opener for both teams.

But in the final minute of the first half, everything changed, as the Timberwolves scored on a blocked punt and interception return and rode the momentum to a 52-13 victory.

“This is a new team, a very young team, so I think it just took us a moment to get going,” Tualatin senior running back Cole Hachmeister said. “But once we got into our groove, it definitely was much better.”

When Mountainside senior Reece Ballew scored on a 41-yard run early in the second quarter, the Mavericks led 7-0 and were dominating the Timberwolves, owning a 199-13 edge in total yards.

But Tualatin stirred to life on its next drive – pulling even at 7-7 on a 10-yard touchdown run by Hachmeister – and moments later took command of the game.

Senior Luke Patzke blocked a punt and senior Carter Lemon scooped up the ball and ran 23 yards for a touchdown. Mountainside quickly countered and had first-and-goal at the Tualatin 8-yard line, but Hachmeister intercepted a pass off the hands off a receiver and rambled 105 yards for a score.

“Right before half, those last two plays definitely kept our momentum up,” Hachmeister said. “After that, I think there wasn't any stopping us.”

Tualatin led 22-7 at half, and when junior quarterback Lincoln Keeney connected with senior Hunter Grubb for a 67-yard touchdown pass to start the third quarter, it was 29-7. Three touchdowns in a span of 2:35.

“I thought early on we looked a little sluggish,” Tualatin coach Dom Ferraro said. “We got the punt block, and the touchdown return, and it just kind of snowballed into the offense picking things up.”

The Timberwolves gained 275 yards in the second half. Mountainside had a 392-360 advantage for the game, but Tualatin felt good about finishing strong.

“We were having trouble running the football early on,” Ferraro said. “That kind of changed in the second half, which kind of got us going and started to open things up for us.”

Keeney completed 10 of 20 passes for 147 yards and one touchdown and junior Brock Estes had five catches for 58 yards. Hard-charging junior Iden Rule finished with a team-high 82 yards and one touchdown on 10 carries, lighting the fuse of the running game with his first carries in the second quarter.

“He's a beast. He's hard to handle,” Ferraro said of Rule. “He's hard to get down, he's got such a low center of gravity.”

Tualatin has high hopes for its rushing attack this season with Hachmeister, Rule and promising sophomore Easton Grubb, who impressed late by rushing for 23 yards on two carries and returning an onside kick 52 yards for a touchdown in the fourth quarter. Junior Nasir Howard capped the scoring with a 25-yard run.

“I think we have the best backfield in the state,” Hachmeister said. “I think we have the best running back for the '27, '28 and '29 class. I think that will help us a lot with the pass game, too, because they'll have to tee off on the run.”

The Timberwolves, who exited the 6A playoffs in the first round the last two seasons, expect to be serious contenders this season.

“I think we can make it all the way, if we really come together and hone our skills,” Hachmeister said. “It's going to take a lot of effort, but I think we can definitely make a deep run in the playoffs.”

Mountainside – undone by mistakes, including a punt snap out of the end zone for a safety – was left to ponder a missed opportunity after an encouraging start.

“I think this is what's considered a good loss,” Ballew said. “This is a great team we're playing

“The first half, I think it could have gone either way. Our offensive line was blocking a top-three defensive line. We just started to have some mental errors, like on special teams. If we fix those tiny mistakes, this is definitely a much closer game, and I think we come out with a win.”

The speedy Ballew, who played in only three games last year due to a shoulder injury, was a bright spot for the Mavericks. He rushed for 104 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries and caught three passes for 94 yards.

Mountainside senior quarterback Mason Severson completed 21 of 41 passes for 242 yards with one interception. Senior Kai Paler had had seven catches for 77 yards.