Timberwolves complete 24-point comeback to stun Mountaineers

RAINIER — Seventeen years.

That’s how long Lee Metcalf has roamed the sidelines for Morton-White Pass’ football team. He’s gotten first-hand glimpses at league titles, state championship games and plenty of talent to don the green and white.

What he witnessed on Friday night – a rally down 30-8 with 6 minutes, 25 seconds remaining in the first half – gained entrance into Metcalf’s memorable moments club.

“Never been a part of a comeback like that before,” Metcalf stated. “Pretty special. This is one I’ll remember for a while. We imposed our will.”

Freshman Liam Pelletier scored the game-winning touchdown on a 23-yard fumble return with 3:14 remaining and Logan Mays put them up by the final score of 32-30 on the two-point conversion to spoil Rainier’s homecoming.

A handful of weeks before his debut prep season, Pelletier was named the Defensive MVP at an eighth grade showcase. Now, he’s living up to the honor with his first career defensive score.

And in his biggest moment to date.

“It was pretty terrifying,” Pelletier said. “Was shaking a little bit. I’m pretty proud. Put 100 percent, maybe 200 percent, into this.”

For the first time since 2022, MWP (3-0, 1-0 C2BL East) is unblemished after 33 percent of the regular season. It faces Ilwaco at home next week for its final non-league game that would join the 2022 squad as the last to start 4-0.

The 11 seniors on the roster are attempting to finish their careers the same way they started. As sophomores, they mustered through a 1-8 season. As juniors, they saw vast improvements to reach a crossover game.

With two blowouts and a league-opening comeback, confidence in the locker room is sky high.

“We weren’t planning on being behind, but I knew we could get the win,” Timberwolves quarterback Logan Mays said.
How it all happened was the talk of the sidelines.

Rainier had 3rd and 1 from its own 49-yard line with under four minutes to go. Tailback Darien Cano, who ended the game with a game-high 174 yards, was stuffed for a loss of three to bring up fourth down.

Coach Andy Bartell chose to go for it. A high snap over the head of Mountaineers quarterback Jackson Stockdale turned the drive into a disaster. Pelletier picked up the ball with no extra bounces and went untouched to the end zone.

“Thought it might be an opportunity to score,” Pelletier said.

“The football Gods smile when you have momentum,” Metcalf added.

In back-to-back weeks, Rainier has lost games by a combined three points. It now gets Onalaska next week in hopes of righting the ship.

“I was going for it the whole time,” Bartell said of the fourth down call. “Defneitly felt deflating. We’ve had two or three (high snaps) a game. We can fight back into this thing.”

About everything and anything that could go wrong for MWP in the first half, did.

Nine of the T-Wolves’ 11 penalties were in the opening 30 minutes. They struggled to bring down Cano and Jayden Alegarbes. They fumbled four times – didn’t lose any of them – and threw an interception.

The only bright spot was Kohen Ingalsbe taking the opening kickoff 83 yards for the touchdown 17 seconds into the night.

“We knew that most of that stuff was self-inflicted,” Metcalf said.

Mays and Pelletier found success running in the A gaps after halftime. Several times, Mays would take the snap and immediately burst up the middle for 10-plus yard carries. Mays ended with 66 yards, Pelletier chipped in and Ingalsbe led the way with 88.

“They were stacking to stop our outside runs,” Mays said. “Ran right through the middle where their weak spot was.”

An 18-play, 80-yard drive capped by a 5-yard plunge and ensuing two-point conversion by Mays brought the Timberwolves to a score. Their second half defensive performance had two turnovers on downs and the fumble recovery.

Cano, Alegarbes and Jordan Pringle scored for Rainier in the first two stanzas. It had a holding penalty wipe out a touchdown in the third quarter and totaled just 88 yards of offense in the second half.

Bartell is hopeful the last two setbacks can lead the Mountaineers back in the thick of the league slate.

“We got down on ourselves in the second half and we didn’t have that fire,” he said. “I do think they bounce back."