As with many games throughout the season, the boys varsity soccer team started off with the majority of the energy. The Byron Center Bulldogs’ plan was foiled early on by the Rangers with their immense energy on and off the field. Despite this impressive start, the Rangers still ended the game down 4-0 and have one more game in the Conference Tournament.

The offense and midfield for FHC was on fire for the whole game, as they created chance after chance. The flip side of this offensive-intensified strategy was the increase of uphill counter attacks for the opposing team. With the extreme pressure came a lack of defensive force, which allowed for easy goals for the Bulldogs. They ended up scoring three goals in the first half alone, which was detrimental towards the Rangers’ success. Freshman pull-up Lance Childers was put in goal for majority of the game, which was wise by FHC. Despite the outcome, Lance proved vital, as he made a plethora of important saves which kept his team’s hopes high.

The second half was more of the same, as sophomore forward Noah Gleason made use of his speed and athleticism and attacked the opposing goal with a multitude of shots. Along with him, was Omar Hadzimujic, who was crucial for the offensive pressure of his team. These two were a key pair for the Rangers as their offensive coercion intensified. The Rangers put more than 10 solid shots on net, forcing Byron Center to scramble, but also led to more unfortunate chances down the stretch. The final goal of the game was off a Bulldog corner kick that the Ranger defense couldn’t collapse on. It was the finalizing goal as the clock ran down to zeros, and the second round of the Conference Tournament was put in the past.

“With easily 80% possession throughout the game creating 10+ excellent chances to score, we shoot ourselves in the foot with mental mistakes and finishing mistakes,” head coach Paul Kramer said. “The effort was never questioned at all throughout the game, but it is still a learning process for our team to give a complete performance.”

With this, the Rangers fall to 0-2 in the tournament and face off against Greenville in the battle for 6th place in the OK White on Monday, October 12.