Isaac Dotson knows how to kickoff a season.

The Newport junior scored three touchdowns on the ground (two of 60-plus yards) and tossed another to senior wide receiver Nate Anderson to propel his team to a 43-34 win over a game Interlake squad on opening night.

“He made a lot of plays tonight,” Newport head coach Mike Miller said. “We came out with a quiet confidence,” Dotson said. “We knew what we had to do to get the job done.”

Dotson got things started early, scoring on a 71-yard run on the Knights’ third play from scrimmage to break the ice. Interlake had a slightly less fortuitous start with the football, fumbling on each of its first two plays, the second of which was picked up by Matt Ortega. When Eric Rodan scored two plays later, it looked as though Newport would be able to run away and hide as they did in last year’s 70-14 opener against the cross-town Saints.

But Interlake running back Jordan Todd had and the much-improved offensive line in front of him had other ideas.

Todd scored the first of his three touchdowns on a 14-yard run to pull his team back within a single score at 15-7. Rodan answered that score with another of his own before Kamana Adriano found Ryan Turman down the seam for a 30-yard score to make it 21-13 in favor of the Knights.

“I had the first-time jitters,” Adriano said of his fumble on the Saints’ first offensive play. “But I got past it on the second drive.”

The Saints’ defense followed that score with its best two defensive series’ of the game, forcing a turnover on downs when they stopped Dotson short on fourth down, setting up another Todd score.

“I think our offensive line really proved to themselves they can help Jordan,” Interlake head coach Jason Rimjus said.

Interlake forced a punt on the next series and took a 22-21 lead into the half after a Alex Lorenz field goal.

But it was too much Dotson and too much Newport defense in the second half, as the Saints’ offense was held scoreless in the final two periods.

“We made some adjustments at half time and I thought the kids responded well,” Miller said.

Evan Turman and Todd returned kicks for scores to keep Interlake within shouting distance, but another long scamper from Dotson (64 yards) put things out of reach for Rimkus’ group.

“He [Dotson] is too big and they are too much of a machine for us to be able to have mental lapses,” Rimkus said.

The Knights’ junior quarterback finished the game with over 200 yards rushing and completed 2-7 passes for another score.

Newport will face Mercer Island next Friday in its home opener while Interlake will travel to Memorial Stadium in Seattle to play Roosevelt.