VERMILLION -- Leave it up to two defending state champions to play a thriller. 

Platte-Geddes claimed its second consecutive Class 9AA state championship, edging Canistota/Freeman 14-8 at the DakotaDome on Thursday. It was the Black Panthers’ second win over Canistota/Freeman, which had won the past three Class 9A state championships. 

Platte-Geddes outlasted Canistota/Freeman, 16-8, in the season opener and did it again Thursday for another state championship. 

“It was very tough,” Platte-Geddes coach Bruce Hanson said. “We know Canistota is a great team and a great program. We knew it was going to be a defensive battle.”

After both teams scored second-quarter touchdowns, they locked into a defensive slugfest and traded offensive possessions into the fourth quarter. Trailing 8-6, Platte-Geddes’ Chase Varilek intercepted Canistota/Freeman’s Tage Ortman and took over at midfield with 7:12 left. 

Faced with a 3rd and 9 at Canistota/Freeman’s nine-yard line, Dawson Hoffman connected with Aiden Bultje on a nine-yard touchdown reception for the go-ahead score. 

“I was supposed to roll out right,” Hoffman said about the play. “I knew the lineman was going to come hard. So I had to get going and I put it where Aiden needed to be and he was in a perfect spot at the right time.”

“It took a lot of weight off our chest and it gave us a lot more confidence to play defense and get it done,” added Hoffman. 

Bultje finished with 86 receiving yards on five catches, but none bigger than the touchdown reception. 

“It was all kind of happening in a blur,” Bultje said. “I just ran my route and I just happened to be wide open.”

Caden Foxley hauled in a wide-open pass for the two-point conversion, giving Platte-Geddes a 14-8 advantage with 3:33 left. 

On Canistota/Freeman’s next possession, the Pride were faced with a fourth and 7 at its own 37-yard line. Ortman completed a pass to Isiah Robertson for the first down. But replay review overturned the call and the Black Panthers took over on downs, cementing the hard-fought victory.

“It was a dogfight,” Bultje said. “I wouldn’t want to play any other team besides Canistota. I have a lot of respect for those guys.”

In the second quarter, Ortman scampered in for a 13-yard touchdown run and an 8-0 lead. Grayson Hanson got Platte-Geddes on the board on a two-yard plunge just 25 seconds before halftime. 

Varilek intercepted Ortman and one play later, Hoffman connected with Bultje down to Canistota/Freeman’s 30-yard line. But Jackson Olsen’s 47-yard field goal was no good as the first half expired. The game remained scoreless until Hoffman’s touchdown reception to Bultje. 

Hanson finished with 83 rushing yards on 21 carries, while Jackson Neuman had 56 rushing yards. Hoffman added 97 passing yards and Hanson had 77 passing yards. Neuman was named the Joe Robbie MVP and outstanding back. 

Ortman threw for 56 passing yards, while Robertson had 59 rushing yards. Tye Merrill had six receptions for 61 yards. Trace Ortman was named the outstanding lineman. 

For Platte-Geddes, it capped off a playoff run that featured three straight games decided by six points or less. 

“We’ve done it three weeks in a row,” coach Hanson said. “We just believe we are going to win. Those kids believe they are going to win.”