It has been a very long since FHC came out victorious over the Lowell Red Arrows. Yet, after five years, the Rangers were finally able to break the curse.

After facing a tough deficit of 14-12 in the fourth set, FHC tied it back at 14 when senior Sophie Shields was able to serve again. Sophie would come to the line red hot and lead the Rangers on a seven-point serving run. That tear helped the Rangers secure the fourth set by a score of 25-17. The Rangers won the third set after winning the first set 25-21 and the second 25-20. Lowell squeaked out the third set by a score of 25-19.

The serving run by Sophie was the dagger for Lowell; the Red Arrows momentum was shot after that fantastic set of plays.

“It felt almost necessary,” Sophie admitted. “I wasn’t on my A-game for the first three sets, so I knew I owed it to my team to help us finish at the end.”

On the offensive end, senior Brooklyn Conner and Sophie led the way for FHC with a combined 17 kills. In addition to that duo, senior Sophia Galan and sophomore Avery Weslow tied with 6 kills. In the serving game, Sophie made another significant impact with 5 aces. Sophie led the team with 14 digs in the middle court, Avery had 11, and junior Sarah Dunn made ten big plays off digs.

The first two sets were close, but the Rangers’ offense looked too strong for Lowell to handle. The Red Arrows mostly cut back FHC’s lead when the Rangers were close to winning the set.

“It was crucial because winning those first two sets off the bat gave us the momentum to finish and beat Lowell for the first time in five years,” Sophia said.

Defensively, junior Averie Zaschak made quite a big impact. Averie led the Rangers in assists with 25 total on the night, while sophomore Kadence Roelfzema had a solid 14. Senior Grace Hudkins did another great job in the middle with 5 digs and 15 receptions. With that being said, Sophie led the team with 16 receptions. To go along with that, Avery had 15.

The supreme Rangers now sit at 21-2 on this spectacular season and remain at the top of the OK White Conference with a record of 2-0. The Rangers now move onto a huge matchup with crosstown rival Grand Rapids Christian. This will be another showcase game for the Rangers, as they have already defeated the Eagles this season. Earlier in the season, FHC topped the Eagles in three sets. To close out the month of September, the Rangers will move on to a matchup with another rival in East Grand Rapids. Then, FHC will play the number-two ranked team in Michigan for Divison 1, the Hudsonville Eagles. The Eagles were one of the two teams to defeat FHC so far this year. These rounds of games should give the Rangers some adversity, as they will have to travel for two out three of these matchups.