After an obliterating 18-1 win over Comstock Park in the first round of Regionals, the boys varsity lacrosse team took on the Grand Rapids Christian Eagles in the Regional Semifinal. The Eagles came into this game with a 5-8 record, with one of the eight losses being a 13-4 defeat at the hands of Forest Hills Northern, a team the Rangers beat 19-2. However, the Eagles were fresh off of a 10-7 win against Comstock Park, but the Rangers defeated the Panthers 18-1, so the odds looked to be heavily in favor of the Rangers.

The Rangers did not start off the game as they have in previous favorable matchups. Against the likes of Comstock Park, Forest Hills Northern, and Caledonia, FHC got off to quick leads and, for the most part, put the game away within the first quarter. However, against the Eagles, the offense moved slowly and didn’t finish some of the easy chances early on.

Fortunately for the Rangers, the offense heated up and began firing on all cylinders in the second quarter. As of late, the bulk of the FHC offense has come from junior Jackson Clay and sophomore Carson Deines; this was no different on Wednesday, as Jackson scored 6 goals and recorded 4 assists, while Carson scored twice and assisted his teammates twice.

A nice return to the top of the box score was senior Luke Majick, who has turned into more of a facilitator lately, recording 4 assists in two of the last three games. Even though he did still have an assist against GRC, he also scored 4 goals. Senior Brett Koczenasz, however, was more dominant assisting the ball as he went on to dish out 3 assists along with scoring a goal. By halftime, the starters were ready to be taken out as the Rangers had quickly built up a 13-0 lead.

In the second half, everyone available to play for FHC on the day got in the game. All of the JV pull-ups—freshmen Charley Mehney, John Tomsheck, Miles Duiven, and sophomores Sawyer Bosch and George Cobb—played significant minutes, even if the game was already out of hand. John even scored on Wednesday, recording his first career varsity goal to make it 18-0. Due to a new MHSAA rule for playoffs that ends the game if there’s an 18+ goal lead anytime after the third quarter, the game was ended with 3:14 left in the game after John’s goal.

With this win, the Rangers now improve to 18-1 and advance to the Regional Finals against Forest Hills Northern on Wednesday. The Huskies defeated Northview and Grand Rapids Catholic Central in the first two rounds, but the Rangers took down FHN 19-2 earlier in the season. A win on Wednesday would send FHC to the State quarterfinals, and they would take on winner out of Region 15.