Austin senior Dylan Hoium scored a third period goal to put the Packers boys hockey team up for good as they beat Waseca (0-1 overall) 4-3 in their season opener Friday night in Riverside Arena.

“It’s a great start and this is this first time we’ve won the opener in awhile,” Austin head coach Tim Peterson said. “It’s a mental boost and I’m proud of the way they battled.”

Austin (1-0 overall) was able to do something it hasn’t been able to do in the past — rally from a letdown. The Packers stormed out of the gates as Ethan Larson scored 46 seconds into the game and Tyler Stevens added another goal on an assist from Larson to make it 2-0 early on.

Austin sophomore Nick Castellano scored a goal in the second period, but the Bluejays still tied things up with two goals in that period.

“In the past, we’d shut down whenever we allowed a tie, but the kids showed a lot of character,” Peterson said.

Austin goalie Rainer Londino-Green helped preserve Austin’s lead in the third period with some big saves.

“Rainer really stepped up with a few key saves,” Peterson said.