BROOKINGS — With four straight state championships, the Brookings Rangers are in the midst of their best stretch in program history. But Ranger alums Robb McClemans, JaColby Anderson and Jesse Rounds have contributed to that stretch even with their playing days behind them.

The former Rangers will join official Doug Sorensen as Brookings-area inductees in this year’s South Dakota Amateur Hockey Association Hall of Fame class, which will be inducted during a ceremony in Sioux Falls on Friday night. In addition to their success on the ice, their contributions to the program have extended their legacy and helped future generations have the same opportunities as they did.

The story dates back to the early days of the Rangers program when McClemans and Rounds were teammates. Both players saw success at the youth level, winning league and state championships at the Peewee and Bantam levels and it took many parents and coaches behind the scenes to put it all together.

“Playing hockey for that long [and] growing up in a successful program like that, we were very fortunate that we had a lot of parents and coaches that supported us,” McClemans said. “We were just kind of a newer program in the state and when we came through we started winning a lot more. That’s really when the program started to have success at all levels.”

Rounds and McClemans continued to win at the varsity level leading the Rangers to a 52-2 league record, an 84-14-1 overall record and three straight SDAHA league championships from 2000-02.
McClemans also saw success individually, scoring 109 career goals, 95 career assists, 204 career points and tying for the program record with a +84 plus/minus rating in a single season and a +207 rating over his career.

With the overall run of success, more kids got involved and the Rangers’ program started to grow. One of the kids who joined the program at the time Rounds and McClemans were having success was Anderson, who made his debut as the Rangers’ goaltender in his sophomore year and served as the starter during his junior season in 2004 and his senior season in 2005.

“I remember watching those guys play and being a little bit younger than them, but we had people like [McClemans and Rounds] who were really good players,” Anderson said. “They really set the tone for the guys like me who were behind them.”

Anderson went on to record a career record of 67-12-2 with a 1.59 goals-against average and 19 shutouts during his career. Anderson’s best season came in his senior year, posting a 1.55 GAA with 11 shutouts and anchored a 15-game unbeaten streak on the way to SDAHA First-Team All-State honors.

With Anderson in net, the Rangers owned a combined record of 97-18-3 and won three straight SDAHA State Championships in 2003, 2004 and 2005.

“Our goal was to be the best player individually that we could be and in the end we all wanted to win the state title,” Anderson said of those teams. “We all wanted to win the state title and that was kind of our big motivating factor.”

The time on the ice for all three players has come and gone but their impact on the program is still present.

McClemans went on to play baseball at South Dakota State and Mount Marty College. He remains in Brookings and has three kids — Maddie (age 10), Jaxx (8) and Rhett (6) — who have also played hockey in the Rangers system.

Serving as a coach for all three of his children, McClemans continues to pave the way for future generations of Rangers to have the same opportunities for success that he did.

“When you see what Brookings has grown into, it’s a cool feeling to know that we were back at the start of it and where that success first started,” McClemans said.

Rounds has also made an impact, by serving as the varsity coach for the Rangers for several seasons before moving out of the area. Since returning a few years ago, Rounds has made contributions to the youth football and baseball organizations as well as paying for all of the 8U registration fees to help introduce younger kids to the sport.

“It’s a huge impact as it cuts the cost and gives everybody the opportunity to play hockey,” Brookings Rangers hockey director Justin Kirchhevel said. “We were one of the first organizations to do it and now other organizations in the state have followed suit.”
Meanwhile, Anderson has been a coach at both varsity levels and led the girls’ varsity team to the SDAHA State Championship in 2023.

“One thing I’ve had a lot of extra passion about is girls hockey,” Anderson said. “I’ve been a part of it for a while and I love to see the girls hockey community grow in South Dakota.”

While he appreciated what the SDAHA has done to grow the sport, he also recognizes the growth that both the Rangers and the association have experienced throughout his involvement.

“It’s a really special honor for me to be inducted into the Hall of Fame knowing that the Rangers have a really strong program,” Anderson said. “But the ultimate thing for me now is, being a coach and a teacher is that I’m all about giving back to the game and continuing our tradition of excellence, developing whether its my own kids or whether it’s developing other kids as part of our association.”

With McClemans, Rounds and Anderson contributing, the Rangers program has never been stronger and with several other former players contributing, Brookings hockey has the contributions to keep succeeding in the future.

“It’s everything, honestly,” Kirchhevel said. “To have those guys on our coaching staff is unmeasurable. To be able to bring back that knowledge, passion and experience allows us to live by the motto ‘tradition doesn’t graduate.’

“We wouldn’t be where we are today without our alumni and specifically those guys giving back to the Rangers organization. I can’t even describe how fortunate Brookings is for those guys to be heavily involved in the development of all youth sports.”