Whether it was an incredible dive to save the Rangers from losing a point or a powerful kill smashed over the net to gain one, the Rangers were in full form tonight against FHN, bringing home the conference title in only three sets.

The Rangers had faced the Huskies twice earlier in the season and lost both matches. They now looked determined to come out on top right out of the gate. The girls started out strong in the first set, forcing FHN to call a timeout after scoring five straight points in the opening minutes. The momentum seemed to carry them throughout all three matches, certainly in the first, beating the Huskies 25-20. The atmosphere was electric, and head coach Lauren Heinz recognized the home-court advantage after the game.

“That was the best student section I’ve ever seen,” Heinz said, “Hopefully you guys keep coming to our home games.”

However, it wasn’t an easy victory for the Rangers. The final two sets proved to be a huge challenge and showed signs of the previous two matches against FHN. At 17-17, set two was an absolute grind between the teams. One moment FHC looked like they had it, the next, FHN came back strong. It was a battle at the net tonight, but Heinz prepared the girls well all throughout the week to be sure that they would pick up the crucial victory.

“We knew the net was going to be pretty intense with their big hitters,” Heinz said. “Our hitters made good adjustments. They made great roll shots and hit it well to open spots.”

Senior Bri Tilton scored her fair share of points and was upbeat after the game. She talked about how great it felt to win such a big game as a senior and was optimistic about the upcoming playoffs.

“It felt like a great reward for all of the hard work that we put in,” Bri said. “We are going to continue to focus on the little things and go hard in practice everyday to make every touch count.”

Despite the win, the Lady Rangers are still not in the clear quite yet. Reese discussed how the team needs to stay focused and win a few more games to solidify the conference title.

“We have to beat Lowell next,” Reese said. “They beat Northern, so that’s our next goal. We have to keep on getting better as a team so that we can play our best at districts.”

Senior Emily Wiltz delivered a similar message after the match as well, feeling satisfied sitting atop the conference.

“It’s absolutely amazing,” Emily said. “We really wanted to do it last year but our seniors got it done today. We are going to practice hard like we have everyday and continue to improve.”