Junior Omar Hadzimujic came across the field on Thursday against Byron Center, and with the attack being in full swing, Omar was fed the ball right in front of the goal and scored. That goal gave the Rangers a 2-1 lead that led to a win against the Bulldogs Thursday. However, two days later, in their sixth game in 12 days, the Rangers lost to Portage Northern 3-1 with another defeating second half of play.

“It was a long weekend but also a pretty good one,” head coach Paul Kramer said. “Our ball movement was great for both games, and our defense played well throughout.”

After playing four games in seven days and coming off of a loss to Northview, the Rangers’ schedule turned into a gauntlet with the upcoming opponents of Byron Center and Portage Northern.

On Thursday, it was senior day for seniors Sam Kelly, Ben Taylor, Ryan Fitzgerald, and Jayden Savin. The team made sure that they weren’t going to lose on a special night like this. The defense looked strong throughout, with the only goal being netted in the second half. This was the only quality shot the Bulldogs got off because the Rangers attack was playing the best they have all season. Junior Kyle Webb put the Rangers on the board first with a nice free kick in the first half to give the Rangers a 1-0 lead going into halftime. FHC kept that lead the rest of the second half, and with Omar’s goal 15 minutes into the second half, it was all FHC in a great 2-1 win.

Two days later, the boys had another game and the last one to conclude a stretch of six games in a matter of 12 days. It was a great first half from the Rangers as sophomore Bennett Nieuwkoop scored another goal for his season starts in the first half for an early 1-0 advantage for the Rangers. Both teams played great until the halftime whistle, and when the second half started, it was a Huskies advantage from then on. A couple of injuries hindered the Rangers, and right after, Portage Northern took advantage. The Huskies scored three unanswered goals to take the game to an end with a 3-1 loss for the Rangers. 

“We’re still looking for that consistency in play,” Kramer said, “I feel like we are very close to where we need to be approaching the state tournament.”

After a long two weeks, the boys will finish off the regular season with two home games. The first one is tonight against Forest Hills Northern at 6:45 PM, and on Wednesday, the guys take on South Christian in a clash with the Division 3 powerhouse.