MANDATA — If there was any doubt that Kaiden Maurer would pick up where he left off last season, it was erased by halftime of Line Mountain’s 2025 season opener against Lewisburg as Line Mountain won, 38-13.

The Eagles ran all over the Green Dragons on their first series of the game, eating up almost seven minutes of game time during a 15-play, 73-yard scoring drive that ended with Maxim Johnson punching it in from the 6-yard line.

Of the Eagles’ 73 yards, 51 came on the ground during the first drive.

“I think that really set the tone that no matter what happened, we were just going to stay on task,” Line Mountain coach Brandon Carson said. “We just executed the plays that we had to execute to keep moving the ball down the field. I was really proud that we played with that kind of like focus and heart.”

Line Mountain’s offense took the field after Lewisburg’s opening drive of the game fizzled out after five plays, and the defense continued to limit the Green Dragons all night, forcing a fumble on the opening play of their next drive.

With good field position after the recovery by Kaden Dunkelberger, the Eagles executed again. Maurer found senior Bryce Smeltz over the middle, who rushed to the end zone for a 27-yard score that put the Eagles up 14-0 before the end of the first quarter.

Coming into this season, Lewisburg head coach Eric Wicks wanted to see a more balanced attack and lean on quarterback Xavier Carter’s arm a little more. While Carter still managed to connect with his top target in Jaylen Walker, Line Mountain kept Lewisburg to just 32 yards passing in the first half.

The Green Dragons’ first spark came on the first play of the second quarter when communication broke down on the Eagles’ side of the field. Xavier Carter jumped in front of a deep pass and returned it to the 50-yard line.

“We called the play, and then audibled out of it. I continued the audible, but it happened,” Maurer said. “It’s football, you make mistakes and you can’t really let that get to you. Obviously, I had my teammates, too.”

Line Mountain’s defense continued to limit the Green Dragons, and Maurer found Smeltz again, this time for an explosive 57-yard score. While the first drive was dominated by the run game, the Eagles quickly found their air attack.

“I feel like we’re so multi-dimensional that we can do what the game calls for,” Carson said. “We did that, and I was really glad that we were able to.”

After making the switch from tight end to running back, Maxim Johnson collected 64 rushing yards and a touchdown in what was a dominant attack that Lewisburg couldn’t find the answer for. Along with being the team’s enforcer in the ground game, Johnson was a force in the passing game as well, with five receptions for 41 yards and a touchdown.

“I think I did a pretty good job,” Johnson said. “I just wanted to run the ball; I think it’s fun to hit people.

“I caught a couple of balls, too, so overall I’m really pleased with the way I played.”

Maurer finished Friday night’s contest with 212 yards and three touchdowns through the air on a 14 of 17 clip, with the only blemish being the interception.

Despite the strong performance in the opener, though, Maurer deflected all the attention to his teammates postgame.

“Overall, it’s not really about how I played,” he said. “It’s mainly the team and the effort they put in. The offensive line did fantastic, I had receivers catching great balls, and the running backs did amazing. This was just a great team effort from start to finish.”