Looking to get over the .500 hump in conference play, the boys varsity basketball team traveled to Lowell with a chance to complete its season sweep over the Red Arrows.

Despite a slow start and some offensive struggles, the Rangers made the winning plays in the end. Thanks to a tremendous effort defensively, FHC mounted an insurmountable second-half lead to ride out of Lowell with a 53-45 win.

“There are times when shots are not going to fall, or the offense is struggling,” head coach Kyle Carhart said. “If we still defend, we will have a chance to be successful.”

Such ravaging defense was on display Friday, as the Rangers nabbed 9 steals and forced 13 total turnovers. They also triumphed in the rebound battle, snagging 33 rebounds to Lowell’s 21. 

It was clear that the Red Arrows came to play once they hit a number of shots to score the game’s first seven points. But, as it has all year, Rangerball responded with a 9-0 run to close out the first quarter with a 2-point lead. 

A lot of scoring came in transition for FHC. Senior Jacob Bonnett put on a clinic with 5 steals, leading to run-outs the other way. 

Fellow senior Conner Milton and sophomore Jonas VanderWoude kept the squad in it during the second quarter; nonetheless, the boys trailed by one entering halftime.

This was certainly an unexpected position to be in for the Rangers. But, after a chance to re-group in the locker room, Rangerball came out with a sharper, more engaged attitude. 

Jonas set the tone by draining a three, which he did again just two possessions later. This cushion allowed FHC to settle down on offense and look for good shots every time down the floor. 

This was made easy by more of Jacob’s steals that ended in Ranger layups on the other end. Once the fourth quarter rolled around, FHC clung to a seven-point lead after an impressive spin-and-finish by Conner.

It would pretty much be all Rangers from then on out. Senior captain Ben Scholler got a few shots to drop to go along with three assists on his night, followed by game-sealing shots from Jonas and junior Levi McKenzie.

It may not have been pretty, but FHC got it done. The boys closed out the 53-45 victory and escaped Lowell with a winning record in OK-White play.

Rangerball executed a perfectly balanced attack against the Red Arrows. The leading scorer for FHC was Jonas with 12, followed up by 10 points from Conner and Ben. Jake Koning gave some solid minutes, scoring 7 to go with Levi’s 6 and Jacob’s 8.

“A unique thing about our team this year is that we have a handful of guys who can contribute on the offensive end,” coach Carhart said. “Having said that, for us to be successful, we all have to be able to contribute in a meaningful way.”

Now sitting at 4-3 in the conference and 8-4 overall, Rangerball will rely on its team effort moving forward into more of the same OK White gauntlet.

On Tuesday, February 8, FHC is back in action with a massive home matchup against East Grand Rapids. The boys will be looking to avenge their prior loss to the Pioneers with a statement win over their cross-town rival.