This Tuesday, February 28, FHC hockey faced off against Traverse City West for the MHSAA regional semifinal. This game was vital as it caused the Rangers to advance to the MHSAA regional finals. As this season comes to an end, players are getting tenser and playing harder than ever.

The Rangers played against the Titans at Patterson. The team had a great game, even considering the unexpected delay due to the weather. The final score was 3-0, ending with the Rangers in a major lead. After great anticipation and built-up suspense, the team came into the game with a high spirit and a great attitude.

“I feel like we have been taking every practice and film session seriously, and I feel like we have been doing the right things out of hockey to stay healthy as well. This has shown in our playing because everyone has had tons of energy and everyone has been buzzing,” sophomore Eli Lipke comments about the preparation that goes into a great game.

In the first period, senior Sammy Mielock started the lead by scoring the first goal of the night. The score at the end of the first period was 1-0 and it stayed that way through the second. In the third period, Sammy advanced the team’s lead by scoring his second goal of the game bringing the score to 2-0. With two minutes left in the game, senior Anthony Ott scores an empty net goal to bring the game to an ending score of 3-0.

The team’s confidence is rising and the boys are gaining momentum going into the rest of their playoff season. “After a big win against TC West, our spirits are high to go on and beat Mona Shores,” Justin Baehr commented after the win.

The Rangers faced a short turnaround of just one day before playing Mona Shores for the MHSAA regional finals.

On Wednesday, March 1, the Rangers took the barn by storm. The crowd was packed and ready to support. Coming off of a big win, the Rangers were ready for a tough battle. Going into this game, the record against Mona Shores this season is 1-1. The last game played was one for the books with an extremely chippy and aggressive game.

The first period started with a great goal by Sammy that started the Rangers off strong early on. The score stayed at 1-0 through period two as the tension built in the barn. The Rangers came into the finals hungry to continue their win streak and this was shown as the game became tied in period three. Mona Shores scored on a power play and the crowd was electric. The score stayed tied for most of the third period until sophomore Gibby Grendel came out with an amazing goal to save the game making the score 2-1.  To finish the game off Sammy scored his second goal of the night bringing the game to a final score of 3-1.

“This was the most fun crowd I’ve ever played for,” Eli said when asked about the vibe of this game.

The FHC hockey team is ready to continue its winning streak going into the rest of the playoffs. The team is very strong and it has high energy. The Rangers are looking to continue on and the FHC student body is right behind them with full support. The next game will be this Saturday, March 4, at 5:30 held at Suburban Ice Center, against Dewitt High School.