By Ryan Deal 

605 Sports

On their ensuing drive, the Black Panthers (0-1) turned the ball over on downs. Platte-Geddes, however, couldn’t pick up a first down and punted the ball back in the waning seconds. The Black Panthers completed a pass inside Parkston’s 10-yard line as time expired to end the conference tilt.  

“It was a dogfight,” Jervik added. “But at the end of the day, I will take my nine guys over anyone in the state. I love those guys and I believe in them — 100 percent.”

Parkston built a 14-0 lead in the first quarter, capitalizing on an early turnover. Platte-Geddes quarterback Dawson Hoffman was intercepted on the opening drive and Luke Bormann’s three-yard touchdown run made it 6-0. Parkston’s Jesse Newton added a touchdown reception from Kaleb Weber for a 14-0 advantage. 

The Black Panthers found their footing in the second quarter, cutting the deficit to 14-6 on a Hoffman to Joey Foxley touchdown reception. After the teams traded fourth-down stops in the third quarter, Oakley Kott’s touchdown plunge and the successful two-point conversion knotted it up at 14-14. 

“In the second and third quarter, Platte had us on our heels,” Grave said. “I will be honest, I don’t know if we deserved to win that game, but we were able to execute and our D line made some pressure plays to help our DBs.”

The Trojans responded with their drive to pull ahead, 22-14. 

“I am hoping that drive brought us together a little bit,” Grave said. “Hopefully that’s a little bit of a turning point.”

It doesn’t get any easier for both teams as ultra-competitive Missouri Valley Conference action continues. 

Platte-Geddes will host Gregory on Sept. 2. Parkston, which was receiving votes in the latest Class 9AA poll, will host Wolsey-Wessington on Sept. 2. 

“It’s just a confidence booster going into next week with a tough Wolsey team,” Jervik said. “It’s just a huge confidence booster for us.”