Senior Emma Yoder and junior Claire Baguley led the Lady Rangers to disrupt Lowell’s undefeated conference record, as FHC was victorious 45-38 last night. Claire was once again the leading scorer with 13 points, while Emma was close behind with 12.

“I’m really just happy I could contribute to such a big win like this,” said Claire, who also had 7 rebounds, 5 steals, 5 assists, and 1 block. “When Emma and I can connect our passes and play together, we typically succeed.”

Free throws were what secured this victory for the Rangers. The last 7 points for FHC was off of free throws from Claire, Emma, and seniors Ashley Lutkenhoff and Breanna Probst. Sophomore Ally Ringler also had a hot hand in the fourth to give the Rangers vital points as the entire fourth quarter was extremely close until FHC went on a 5-0 run to secure the win.

“I told them we have to take care of the ball and they did,” Head Coach Kristina Prins said. “All five girls stepped up and it was a great fourth quarter. They were ready to go tonight and they executed perfectly.”

While the Rangers led for the majority of the game, Lowell relentlessly came back and tied things up. A tight game, mixed with the emotions of a rivalry, led to a very intense atmosphere.

“We started to get frustrated but we were able to come together, talk about it, and come out stronger,” said Breanna, who had 6 rebounds, 5 points and 1 steal on the night. “Ultimately, we were the better team tonight, we worked hard, and we deserve this win.”

This game was back and forth all night long, but the Rangers were consistently ahead. FHC led 10-8 after the first, 18-14 after the second, and 26-23 after the third.

“We went out there and we played as a team,” said Emma, who had 6 rebounds, 3 steals, and 2 blocks in addition to her dozen points. “We left it all on the court.”This teamwork is exactly what allowed the Rangers to dominate. With 15 total steals, the team defense was key in this win.

The Rangers are hitting their stride right when they need to be.

“I feel like we’re finally peaking at the right time and each girl is playing unbelievably,” Prins said. “We had every component of the game working for us tonight, we took care of the ball, and we took care of business. We’re playing some good basketball.”

While FHC cut off the Red Arrows’ perfect conference record with one loss, Lowell is still in first place of the OK White and remains one game ahead of the 8-2 Rangers.

“I don’t think this is an upset,” said Emma, commenting on Lowell containing the top spot in the conference. “Obviously this was a big win for us, but I think that we’re right there with Lowell and tonight showed that.”

FHC will head to the home of the Bengals on Tuesday to battle with Ottawa Hills. When these two teams met previously, the Rangers were victorious 59-47.

The team looks to carry over the momentum from this huge win over Lowell into future games and finish out the last couple regular season games with two wins.

“I’m so proud of this team and how we worked tonight,” Claire said. “I can’t wait to finish off next week and head into Districts on a hot streak.”