Boys JV football had an odd game against South Christian, but overcame adversity and ended up defeating them 21-19 with a last-minute stop at the goal line.

“We started off to a good start with a couple of interceptions and played decent on offense early,” Head coach Ty Hallock said. “Then the rest of the game we played rather sloppy and didn’t execute which really hurt us. We are lucky to walk out of this with a victory.”

Despite a long and strenuous week, the boys managed to come out of this game with a win. It started with an early interception by sophomore Benny Scholler that gave the Rangers fantastic field position to start their offensive drive. After seven plays of receptions and short, powerful runs, sophomore Quentin Rudolph ran the ball in from 4 yards out to make the score 7-0 with the Rangers up. Shortly after, the South Christian quarterback threw another interception which ended up leading to yet another rushing touchdown for FHC. This one, however, was ran in by freshman pull-up Rowan Clay, who was not fazed by the new competition.

Following the touchdown, sophomore Luke Gustafson kicked off for the Rangers. The kick receiver for the Sailors caught the ball in motion and swiftly ran plowed through the entire Rangers’ special teams and into the end zone making it 14-8 with Rangers still on top at the end of the first half.

Hoping for a quick turnaround, sophomore Pierson VanGorp threw the ball deep downfield. It ended in an interception, however, and led to even better field position. After a quick defensive shutdown for the Rangers, the offense got right back to work. They quickly connected on multiple passes to sophomore Rhosias Arius who was key yet again in this game. Unfortunately for the Rangers, the Sailors’ defense forced a punt. The Rangers weren’t about to accept defeat that quickly, though, so they performed a little trick: a fake punt. The ball was snapped to Luke, who instantly cut to the right and managed to run past a few defenders until finally being brought down by a pack of Sailors.

After another defensive stop, the Rangers threw for a 25-yard touchdown to Rhosias, putting FHC up 21-7.

“Rhosius has been one of our top receivers all year and continues to make big plays down the stretch,” Pierson said. “He was very clutch this game and gave us energy to keep chugging.”

After some sloppy football, the Rangers got the ball back deep on their end of the field. The ball was snapped and Pierson couldn’t handle it, for it was long and high. After a long roll, the ball entered the end zone and the Sailors leaped on the ball for the touchdown but missing the extra point, making the score 21-13.

FHC received the ball and threw it to a crossing receiver. The ball was tipped and intercepted at the 30-yard line by the Sailors and gave them a huge momentum swing. The marched up the field and slipped into the end zone, making the score 21-19. The Sailors were then forced to go for two and ran the ball to the end zone. Before getting there, however, a pack of Rangers pulled the runner back and halted the progression, winning the game for FHC.

“This was a really fun environment to play in,” Rhosias said afterward. “We played well at the start, but multiple sloppy mistakes killed us in the end. Our defense had to stop them on that last possession, and they did just that. I couldn’t be more proud of the guys who stopped them on the line.”

The Rangers’ next match is at Lowell on Thursday, October 17. The boys JV record now falls to 6-0 with a big game ahead of them.