Right Mann, right time.

Hinsdale Central linebacker Nico Mann saw a tipped pass go up in the air and saw an opportunity to change the momentum with his team trailing in the fourth quarter Saturday afternoon at Lyons.

Mann ran underneath and intercepted the ball at the Lyons’ 10-yard line.

On the very next play, Dominic Tresslar took a handoff 90 yards for the go-ahead score, leading Hinsdale Central to a 29-26 victory in La Grange and snapping Lyons’ 13-game regular-season winning streak.

The win for Hinsdale Central was the first in its last four meetings with Lyons.

“[Nico] is the kind of kid that you build your team around,” Hinsdale Central coach Brian Griffin said. “He’s always ready. ... For him to come in and make a hustle play like that, I mean, he’s not supposed to be there – and for him to make that play and we flip it the other way, that was huge.”

The Red Devils (3-1, 1-1 West Suburban Silver) trailed most of the second half, in large part to EJ Kuhlman, who carried the ball 30 times for 176 yards and two scores for Lyons.

Kuhlman was the mainstay on the Lions’ (3-1, 0-1) drive as they looked to pad a 19-14 lead midway through the fourth quarter. The junior running back carried the ball seven straight times for 46 yards to help Lyons (3-1, 0-1) get into the red zone.

But Mann’s interception snatched the momentum for Hinsdale Central, and the Red Devils never looked back.

“I give [Tresslar] all of the credit,” Mann said. “Him taking that ball [90 yards] right after the interception was the biggest play of the day. I just caught the ball, but for him to break a big run like that was amazing.”

Hinsdale Central wide receiver Jack Lesniewicz, who led the way offensively for the Red Devils with 194 receiving yards and a touchdown, respectfully disagreed, crediting Mann’s continued work ethic this offseason.

“[Nico] is the hardest working kid I know,” said Lesniewicz, who snagged a game-high eight receptions. “Before the season, he wasn’t playing a lot and he worked his absolute tail off to get himself some playing time. We needed a play at that moment, and for him to be the guy is just awesome.”

Hinsdale Central quarterback Riley Contreras put the nail in the coffin with 3:44 to go on a 17-yard read-option keeper for a score. Contreras finished the game 11-of-17 passing for 210 yards and two touchdowns. He also added 52 yards on the ground. Tresslar added a receiving touchdown in the win.

Contreras’ counterpart, Lyons QB Jack Slightom, completed 20 of 39 passes, his last of which found Brady Rusk on fourth-and-goal for a 7-yard touchdown to pull Lyons back to within three points in the final minute.

Lesniewicz recovered the ensuing onside kick to officially seal the victory.

For the Red Devils, it wasn’t about the start, but rather about the belief they could finish.

“This team has believed and they have bought in,” Griffin said. “You have to have a group that not only cares about each other and loves each other, but that buys into a common goal. These kids have done that, and I’m just so happy with the way we kept going and believed today.”

“This is a tough one because I felt like we had control of this one most of the day,” Lyons Township coach Jon Beutjer said. “There’s a few plays in these kinds of games that can decide it, and you have to credit [Hinsdale Central] for making those plays in those moments. We’ll get better from this. We have a lot of young guys that have never played varsity before, and they learned today what it takes to win rivalry football games like this.”