Last year’s meeting between Chanhassen and Waconia was decided by three points. But with both teams entering Friday’s Suburban District White Division matchup undefeated, this year’s game carried much more significance.

Storm quarterback Alex Spillum said both teams have improved since they last met and the deciding factor would be which one made the right plays down the stretch.

Enter Tom Loeffler, Chanhassen's all-purpose athlete who made the biggest play when it mattered most. He took a bubble screen 30 yards to the end zone with less than five minutes to play, helping the Storm clinch a 30-16 win at Bayview Elementary School in Waconia.

“I just threw it out to (Loeffler). He did the rest for me,” Spillum said. “It looks good on the stat sheet, but he did everything.”

Ranked seventh in the Associated Press Class 5A high school football poll, the Storm (3-0) are off to their best start in program history following the comeback victory.

“We knew we’d be special this year,” Loeffler said. “We’ve got some guys and are just rallying so far.”

Loeffler wasn’t without help. Teammates laid several initial blocks before he found the open field and then juked right past another mob of defenders to find a clear path to the end zone.

The game-winning play occurred just a minute after Waconia had retaken the lead on a Wyatt Schmitt field goal.

“Anytime you fall down in the fourth quarter -- that’s a gut check,” Chanhassen coach Mike Bailey said.

Bailey, in his first year as head coach, inherited the program from Bill Rosburg after being the Storm's offensive coordinator since the school’s inaugural season in 2009.

Rosburg showed his selflessness in leaving the program despite its abundance of athleticism in the barracks, Bailey added. 

“A lot of coaches don’t hang it up when the cupboards are full and it shows the kind of man Bill is,” Bailey said. “It was never about Bill Rosburg, and I’d love to follow in those footsteps.”

Bailey, a running back on Waconia’s 1992 state tournament team, praised the workhorse mentality of current Wildcats running back Justin Schultz.

“(Schultz) kept going and was grinding us up,” Bailey said.

Schultz compiled 166 yards against the Storm, but Chanhassen’s defense forced No. 15-5A Waconia (2-1, 1-1) to settle for three Wyatt Schmitt field goals in the game.

“I’m really proud of the effort Waconia gave and proud of our guys who came back and got it in the end,” Bailey said.

Wildcats coach Sam Baker said his team had a chance to win despite giving up the game-winner late. 

“We’re right there,” he said. “That’s a state tournament caliber team, and we’ll see them again in playoffs.”

In the aftermath of the game, Chanhassen's student section rushed the field and was joined by the team in an “I Believe” chant. 

“It’s incredible," Spillum said. "The school spirit right now is through the roof, and I’m just real excited for what’s to come."

Alex Spillum threw the game-winning touchdown to Tom Loeffler to clinch a 20-16 win for Chanhassen over Waconia Friday night at Bayview Elementary School in Waconia.

Spillum tossed the ball to Loeffler on a bubble screen and the running back took care of the rest, dodging his way 30 yards to the end zone with four and a half minutes left in the game.

Ranked seventh in the Class 5A Associated Press state high school football poll, the Storm (3-0, 2-0) then stopped the No. 15-5A Wildcats on two late possessions to preserve the victory.

Chanhassen held Waconia to a single touchdown through four quarters, but the Wildcats (2-1, 1-1) remained in the game behind Wyatt Schmitt, who kicked three field goals -- including a 20-yarder with just under six minutes to play to give his team a 16-14 lead. 

The Storm, however, quickly retook control with a four-play, game-clinching drive on the ensuing possession.

Waconia's Justin Schultz carried the ball 47 times for 166 yards, unofficially.