To conclude the OK White Conference Tournament and their season, the JV boys soccer team made their way to Forest Hills Northern to play the Huskies.

Going into this game, the boys had a record of 7-8-2 with hopes of tacking on their eighth win against a rival team. At the beginning of the season, most of the team hoped for a winning season; now they were one game away. Unfortunately, playing Forest Hills Northern on their turf is not an easy task, especially in a game that has lots on the line; however, the team didn’t let this affect their play.

The game started very back and forth with both teams struggling to sustain an attack. Toward the end of the first half, the Rangers started to take control of the game which led to a diving header from sophomore Santi Tanner. This gave the team momentum going into the second half. This momentum brought another goal for the Rangers scored by sophomore Cole Decker. The goal ultimately gave the Rangers the win to close out the season giving them a record of 8-8-2.

Coach Rob Otterbein was very happy with the result the team got against their rivals, he said, “I thought the boys played really well against FHN. Overall, the boys played a complete game. Controlling possession and creating opportunities to score were really great. We were even able to end the game with a shutout having a backup keeper in goal in the first half.”

With the conclusion of the season, many of the boys look back on the season with content. One of these players is Freshman Grant McLean. Grant said, “I’m happy with the season because even though we did not win every game, we still got a lot better from the start of the year and we’re all looking forward to next year’s season.”

The end of the season is always a sad time but it brings a new opportunity for many of the players. Next year some of the sophomores will find themselves on varsity and the freshman will take their place as leaders on the JV team. Both are great chances for the boys to develop both as a person and as a player. Sophomore Nathan Rushman is excited about the opportunity next year presents as he said, “I look forward to playing at the varsity level. Being part of the team and playing at a high level are both things I am excited about.”

The boys are done with this season but are eager to start back up next summer.