After a hard weekend of games, a big tournament win is just what the varsity volleyball team needed.

FHC traveled to Jenison High School this past Saturday to square off in another mid-season tournament. Last week, the Rangers finished with a record 0f 2-1-1 after dropping a game to West Ottawa and coming to a tie with Unity Christian.

This week, the Rangers quickly took off on a terror as they won the first game versus Mason High before drawing again to Unity Christian. Then, FHC took off on a four-game win streak to win the tournament championship in a match-up versus Coopersville. On their way to the chip, the Rangers also defeated many highly notable teams such as Morley Stanwood, Grandville, and Whitehall.

“Volleyball is a long season, very much a marathon and not a sprint. Our goal is to get better each week, and peak come playoff time. We’ve won 2-tournaments this year and still have goals ahead of us. It’s been a fantastic year with our girls putting FHC on the map across the state.  They have earned respect both with their on-court play and doing things the right way. We’re very proud of this team,” assistant coach Kevin Zaschak said.

The Rangers popped off this weekend in the stat column, picking up big numbers across the board. Seniors Brooklyn Conner and Sophie Shields both dominated this weekend as Conner went for 48 kills, and Shields made 42 digs. The junior class also made a heavy impact as Averie Zaschak had a team-high 77 assists, and Sarah Dunn went for 41 kills and 37 digs. The sophomore class also saw Avery Weslow make big plays as she went for 17 aces with 51 digs for the day.

“It’s a little bit of gas to the tank because we have a very big week ahead of us, playing the up-and-coming Forest Hills Northern,” Sophie said. “I know we all appreciated the reassurance of a gold championship this weekend.”

The 30-4-2 Rangers now move on to a big week of inner conference play with Byron Center and Forest Hills Northern.

“We’re 30-4-2 and state-ranked, so each match, we’re getting the other team’s best punch,” coach Zaschak said. “This weekend, we played six matches, and the girls battled through mental and physical exhaustion. We’re very proud of their overall effort.”