Fueled by a hat trick from freshman Mason Kelly, the Rangers squeezed by the Eagles of Hudsonville 6-5 Friday afternoon in the Public School Showcase. After being injured for most of the season, Mason completely dominated his first game back and now adds even more to this already-hot Ranger offense. Senior Jacob Demeter also continues to be successful, as he put another goal and an assist on the stat sheet. The Rangers now shift their focus tomorrow to Stoney Creek, which is set to be another close game.

The first period went well, but one thing the Rangers could have done better was finishing plays. The Eagles and FHC were tied 1-1 after a hard-fought first period. The Rangers came out very strong again in the second period where they scored 3 out of their 5 goals. Hudsonville tacked on one more goal to end the period with FHC on top 4-2. In the third period, the Eagles stormed back to make things close again. But two more goals for the Rangers put Hudsonville away as FHC’s winning streak extends to five games.

This was a big win for the Rangers, especially because of how they had to fight hard to pull out a win against a very good team like Hudsonville. With Stoney Creek on the clock and two more conference games in the future before playoffs, FHC looks to continue what they have been doing these past five games by playing with energy. FHC’s high-powered offense will look to continue to score at will, especially with another threat like Mason back on the ice. It will certainly be hard for conference opponents such as Grandville and East Kentwood to plan for this much-improved Ranger team in the future.