Platte-Geddes holds off Canistota to earn seventh-straight win
Oct. 13—PLATTE, S.D. — The Platte-Geddes football team was prepared to do whatever it took to surmount the testy weather and secure a win over visiting Canistota in its regular-season finale.
So facing a harsh headwind and a fourth-and-7 situation near midfield in the third quarter, the Black Panthers didn't hesitate to take a risk.
Opting against a run play — or punting into the wind — P-G chose a passing play it ran just once in practice this week. Running back Jye Bailey received the snap, rolled to his left, and tossed the ball to an open Skyler Hanten, who caught the ball and ran downfield for a 28-yard completion, setting the hosts up in the red zone.
Joey Foxley scored a touchdown moments later, giving the Black Panthers a 22-14 lead in the fourth quarter on what proved to be the punctuation mark of a 28-14 Friday afternoon victory over Canistota.
"We put a lot in the kids' hands. We asked if they were good running the (passing) play, and they wanted to run it," coach Bruce Hanson said. "We just trusted our guys."
"I just went out there and made a play," Hanten said. "Just tried to help our team get the win."
The seventh-straight win for Platte-Geddes (7-1) all but secured itself a top-four spot in the Class 9AA playoffs, while Canistota (6-2), who entered the game fourth in Class 9A, missed out on a chance to jump higher in the standings.
P-G certainly had to earn it, though, playing on a field that received 5 inches of rain in recent days while 40 mph wind and rain gusted in from the north throughout the game.
"It was a big game for both teams," Hanson said. "We kind of preached whoever was going to enjoy the weather, not complain about it, just embrace it, was probably going to win, and I think our kids did that. They had some fun out there."
After the opening drives of the game proved fruitless for both sides, P-G struck first, when it recovered a Hawks fumble, then scored on a one-yard run from Foxley soon after. Canistota countered in the second quarter, when Levi Schroeder broke loose for a 15-yard touchdown run, but the Hawks failed on the two-point try.
The Black Panthers cashed in again before halftime when quarterback Parker Bailey maneuvered for a 25-yard gain, and Foxley punched in the score to give P-G a 16-6 lead.
In the second half, P-G opened by turning the ball over on its own 36-yard-line. Canistota capitalized with a one-yard run by Schroeder and tacked on the two-point conversion to trail 16-14 and climb back into the game.
However, the Black Panthers' fourth-down pass play and ensuing touchdown gave the hosts momentum back entering the fourth quarter. Canistota sought to counter but was unable to move the ball effectively against the wind, which picked up in the second half, and turned the ball over on downs twice.
The final play of the game, following a P-G punt, saw the Hawks pitch the ball backward to each other in hopes of a miracle, but the ball ended up on the ground for a fumble, recovered in the end zone by the Black Panthers' Kasen Konstanz to end the game with a touchdown.
The Class 9AA and Class 9A playoffs begin on Thursday, Oct. 19.
