Wilsonville makes statement vs. Thurston as 5A rivals clash in opener: 5 takeaways from Wildcats' win over Colts
WILSONVILLE - It didn’t take long for the Wilsonville football team to make a statement — a loud and clear statement.
In the Wildcats’ season-opening showdown with Thurston, their first play on defense resulted in senior lineman Mason Seal sacking Colts junior quarterback Noah Blair for a 7-yard loss. Wilsonville’s first offensive play of the game, and the season, was even more spectacular, as senior quarterback Kallen Gutridge connected with junior receiver Mark Wiepert for an 80-yard touchdown.
“Any time I throw it up to Mark, I feel there’s a good chance he’ll come down with it and get yards after catch,” Gutridge said. “He’s a great player, and we’ve got a good connection. It’s only going to get better.”
“We decided to take our shot that first play,” Wiepert said. “I like the call, but Kallen had all day to throw, and it was a perfect throw.”
After that exhilarating start, the Wildcats didn’t seem to slow down at all, as they cruised to an impressive 44-15 win over Thurston in the nonleague game played Friday at Wilsonville High School.
“It was super fun,” said Wilsonville senior defensive back Lucas Larson, who had an interception and a sack. “It was a big game to start the year, and I’m glad we came out on top.”
“It was so fun,” said Wiepert, who scored three touchdowns. “We all knew what was in the tank. We knew it was a possibility — we were just excited to unleash it.”
Photos by Leon Neuschwander
Here are five takeaways from Friday night’s matchup:
Wilsonville has the appearance of a state title contender
It was just a year ago that the Wildcats came oh-so-close to claiming the Class 5A state championship, as they fell 35-28 to Summit in the title game.
This year, Summit enters the season as the No. 1 team in the Class 5A coaches poll, with Wilsonville No. 2. But with their impressive win over Thurston, which is ranked No. 3, the Wildcats certainly seemed to serve notice that they appear to be a contender — a strong contender.
That’s OK with the Wilsonville squad, which has the title in its future sight.
“Absolutely, it’s a goal,” Wiepert said. “Everyone has that same common goal in mind. It started that night (the 2022 final loss to Summit). Everyone is hungry to get back there and do it for the seniors last year and before that. It’s really a family business, and we’re excited to keep going.”
“Of course it is. It’s always a goal,” Larson said. “I think we want that, and we know we have to work hard for that. It’s a yearlong thing, so we have to keep on working.”
There are some big games in the near future that might show just how much of a contender Wilsonville is, as it will play at Class 6A powerhouse Tualatin on Sept. 15 and then play host to Summit in a title-game rematch Sept. 22.
Gutridge, for one, isn’t about to overlook anyone.
“I don’t know. That’s a long ways away,” Gutridge said of championship aspirations. “We just have to take care of business week by week.”
Gutridge is getting better
Gutridge definitely had a strong junior season, throwing for 2,476 yards and 34 touchdowns in earning Class 5A second-team all-state accolades.
But if Friday’s season-opener is any indication, the 6-foot-4, 190-pound senior could have a bigger and better 2023 campaign. His teammates sure think so.
“He’s just starting at such a higher point this year,” Wiepert said. “Last year was his first year running the show. He had to get comfortable … but the end, he was great. But now, his ball placement, at the start of the year, is just amazing. And he’s such a dual threat. You almost have to put a spy on him. I think he’s really underrated, and he’s going to have a really great season.”
“He’s great,” Larson said. “He was great last year, he’s great this year. He can sling it. I love Kallen.”
In Friday’s win, Gutridge completed 15 of 19 pass attempts for an astounding 332 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions. He ran for 32 yards and a touchdown on three carries.
“A lot of it is just experience,” Gutridge said. “Shout-out to my O-line. It wouldn’t be possible without those guys.”
The offensive line, Gutridge wants to be sure to acknowledge, includes starters Eli Nelson, Seal, Lincoln Mason, Max Nelson and Jack Lubisich.
Wilsonville shines on both sides of the ball
It might be a little hard to determine what was more impressive in Friday’s game — the Wilsonville offense, or the defense?
On the offensive side of things, the Wildcats had 517 total yards on 41 plays. Wiepert had six catches for 146 yards and two touchdowns. He scored on a 12-yard run. Junior Nick Crowley had four receptions for 106 yards, including a 47-yard touchdown catch on the final play of the first half.
On the ground, sophomore Roman Kealoha ran for 79 yards and a touchdown on seven carries, and senior Maverick Summers ran for 49 yards on seven carries.
“It’s all around,” Wiepert said of the offensive attack. “We have a similar receiving corps to last year. Our running backs run so hard. It’s fun to watch them. And we have one of the biggest lines we’ve had here.”
“The offense will be fun,” Gutridge said. “We’re really big up front for the first time in years. Those guys are working their butts off every day in practice. I have a great connection with them. It’s just special.”
The Wilsonville defense came up with six sacks and limited Thurston to 257 yards, with 83 of those yards coming on a touchdown pass late in the contest.
“It was great. We really game-planned for it. We had a lot of preparation. Our scout team played well, and we were ready tonight,” Larson said of the defensive effort. “We’ve got a strong core, with a lot of guys returning. We’re hoping we can stay healthy and keep it up.”
Larson had an interception and a sack.
“I’ve got to go sack — that’s pretty rare, and pretty fun,” Larson said of his favorite of those two plays.
Seal had two sacks for the Wildcats, and Noah Lubisich, Ty Smith, Cooper Adams and Riddick Molatore each had one.
Thurston shows fight and potential
While the game didn’t go the way the Colts hoped, they’re looking to learn from it and improve.
“Honestly, we just have to be better. Too many mistakes. We can’t let this happen,” Blair said. “We just have to be more physical and more confident coming into these games.”
“We have a very young team, but that’s not an excuse for us,” Thurston senior tight end Luke Newell said. “We should have been ready, but we’ll get better throughout the season. We need to work on some things and fire the young guys up. They don’t have that in them, but I think it will happen. Our next game is Summit, and I plan on not letting this happen again.”
Trailing 37-0 midway through the third quarter, the Colts got a couple of touchdowns before the final horn sounded. The first came on a 15-yard pass from Blair to senior running back Ethan Burkhead. The second came on an 83-yard strike from Blair to junior David Macdonald.
“We just don’t stop fighting,” Blair said. “Even if we’re down, we don’t stop. We keep on battling.”
Blair completed 19 of 27 passes for 288 yards, despite being under constant pressure.
“We have a great quarterback, and he’s going to sling the ball around,” Newell said. “We need to work on our O-line, and if we figure that out, we’ll be good.”
Thurston senior receiver Lombel Doreen had eight catches for 94 yards. Newell had three grabs for 55 yards. Burkhead, sophomore Matt Newell and Macdonald each had two catches.
“I saw some good things, and a lot of bad,” Luke Newell said. “I think we just need to believe in ourselves.”
Schools nearly 100 miles apart can be rivals
Sure, Wilsonville and Thurston high schools are separated by 98.5 miles, but they insist they’re still Class 5A rivals — spirited rivals, at that.
“It’s one of the better rivalries in the state, I think,” Wiepert said. “This goes back to my freshman year; it was ugly for us. So, this feels so nice. Blowout wins are whatever, sometimes, but we’re trying to make statements this year.”
In Wiepert’s freshman year, the 2021 season, Thurston topped the Wildcats 34-14 in a Class 5A state playoff semifinal game. Last year, in a season-opener at Thurston, Westview triumphed 38-35 in overtime.
“It kind of shocked me last year, to see how excited they were that they beat us,” Luke Newell said. “I really wanted to beat them tonight, but it didn’t go our way.”
The rivalry might have something to do with that.
“We’ve played them the past couple of years. It’s always a good game, it’s always competitive. That gave us some fire today,” Larson said. “We were fired up, and we had fun with it.”
Newell is hoping there is another chapter to the rivalry — later this season.
“I want another shot,” he said with a smile. “I hope we see this team in the playoffs.”
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WILSONVILLE 44, THURSTON 15
Thurston 0 - 0 - 8 - 7 – 15
Wilsonville 21 - 13 - 3 - 7 – 44
First quarter
W – Mark Wiepert 80 pass from Kallen Gutridge (Emmitt Fee kick)
W – Gutridge 10 run (Fee kick)
W – Wiepert 8 pass from Gutridge (Fee kick)
Second quarter
W – Wiepert 12 run (Fee kick)
W – Nick Crowley 47 pass from Gutridge (kick failed)
Third quarter
W – Fee 20 field goal
T – Ethan Burkhead 15 pass from Noah Blair (Lombel Doreen run)
Fourth quarter
W – Roman Kealoha 6 run (Fee kick)
T – David Macdonald 83 pass from Blair (Kyle Miller kick)
STATISTICAL LEADERS
RUSHING – Thurston: Burkhead 6-2, Blair 7-(-31). Total 13-(-29). Wilsonville – Kealoha 7-79, Maverick Summers 7-49, Gutridge 3-32, Aidan Jenkins 2-24, Wiepert 1-12, Will Ingle 2-(-2). Total 22-185.
PASSING – Thurston – Blair 19-27-1, 288. Wilsonville – Gutridge 15-19-0, 332.
RECEIVING – Thurston – Lombel Doreen 8-94, Luke Newell 3-55, Macdonald 2-87, Burkhead 2-22, Matt Newell 2-11, Ryan Roser 1-16, Trey Silva 1-3. Wilsonville – Wiepert 6-146, Crowley 4-106, Kheller Larson 3-48, Summers 1-20, Nick Colyer 1-12.
