JUNIOR VARSITY BOYS
A split with Rushmore over the weekend at Larson Ice Center – a 4-3 loss on Saturday and a 4-3 overtime win on Sunday – left the Rangers in third place in the SDAHA standings with 22 points, courtesy of an 11-4-0-0 mark. Fremont sits atop the standings with 29 points (14-3-1-0), with the Thunder in second place with 28 points (13-2-0-2).
With two weeks left in the regular season, Brookings plays host to Sioux Center on Friday and Oahe on Saturday before traveling to Watertown on Sunday to face the Lakers.
• Rangers 4, Rushmore 3, OT
Brookings drew first blood less than five minutes into the game when Carter Shoup netted the puck on a power-play opportunity off an assist from Kobe Ischen. The Thunder tied the game midway through the period on Jonathan Vogel’s unassisted tally.
Rushmore scored two unassisted goals in the second period by Blake Devries and Dylan Pederson to take a 4-2 advantage into the third.
Trevor Berreth’s goal with 7:01 to play in the game pulled the Rangers within one as Dylan Park earned the assist, and then, Joel Syrstad tied it up at 4-4 just 12 seconds later with Berreth picking up the assist.
In overtime, Jack McCarty scored the game winner off a helper from Shoup as the Rangers outshot Rushmore, 36-19, which included an 8-0 edge in OT.
Philip Kuechenmeister earned the win in net with 16 saves.
• Rushmore 4, Rangers 3
Logan Socia cashed in on a power-play chance late in the first period as the Thunder led 1-0 heading into the first intermission.
Brookings took the lead with two straight goals by Syrstad and Shoup as Berreth and Ischen picked up the respective assists, but Rushmore’s Lewis Hall lit the lamp with 3:54 on the clock to make it 2-2 through two.
Kasey Miller put the Thunder back in the lead with 8:35 to play, but the Rangers tied it back up at 3-3 just 34 seconds later on an Ischen goal as Luc Bouchard earned an assist. Devries scored the game winner – a short-handed goal – with 2:11 left as Rushmore held a 21-13 edge in shots with Kuechenmeister collecting 17 saves.
JUNIOR VARSITY GIRLS
The JV Rangers closed their season with a pair of league wins at Sioux Center – 5-2 on Friday and 5-0 on Saturday – to finish in first place in the SDAHA with a 17-1-0-0 record and 34 points.
• Rangers 5, Sioux Center 0
Savannah Barber found the back of the net less than 3 1/2 minutes into play as Montana Myer and Addi Ramlo picked up the assists. Janaya Kuehl scored midway through the first off a Barber setup as Brookings led 2-0 after one.
Alexis Schelske tallied an unassisted power-play goal 29 seconds into the second before McKenna Geraets made it 4-0 off a Kuehl assist. Kuehl provided for the final margin with 6:23 to play in the period with Ramlo and Jenna Schulte earning the assists.
Brookings outshot the Storm, 28-17, as Jadyn Runge earned the shutout win with 17 stops.
• Rangers 5, Sioux Center 2
Brookings scored three first-period goals and added one each in the second and third as the Rangers held a 22-14 advantage in shots with Runge collecting 12 saves in the win.
Geraets opened the scoring with an unassisted goal before Ramlo lit the lamp twice – the first assisted by Brooklyn Roberts and Kuehl and the second set up by Schelske.
Camille Plagge scored midway through the second for Sioux Center, but Kuehl answered less than 30 seconds later off an assist from Ramlo to make it 4-1 through two.
Roberts notched an unassisted goal for a 5-1 lead before Aubrey Cannegieter scored for the Storm for the final score.
BANTAM A
Brookings posted a 3-1 league win at Huron on Saturday to move into a second-place tie with 10-4 Sioux Falls in the SDAHA standings as the Rangers improved to 9-3-0-2, good for 20 points.
The Bantam A Rangers close the regular season with a home game against Oahe on Saturday before traveling to Watertown on Sunday.
• Rangers 3, Huron 1
Carson Duba tallied an unassisted goal less than five minutes into the game but that was the last time the All Stars lit the lamp as Max Kjelden tied the game late in the first off an assist from Alec Rice.
In the second period, Cole Mahlum notched an unassisted goal before Cayden Jacobsma cashed in on a power-play opportunity with 1:11 left for the final score. Kjelden and Mahlum set up Jacobsma’s tally as Brookings held a 45-9 edge in shots with Carter Schulz collecting eight saves for the win in goal.
BANTAM B
The Bantam B Rangers moved into a fourth-place tie Sioux Falls in the league standings with 13 points after playing the Yankton Miracle to a 5-5 tie in Saturday’s road game. Brookings closes the season with a home game versus Oahe on Saturday and then takes on the Flyers in Sioux Falls on Sunday.
• Rangers 5, Yankton 5, OT
Trevor Pederson spotted the Rangers the early lead with a power-play goal off an assist from Jackson Law, but the Miracle sent the game into the first intermission tied at 1-1 when Thomas Wiener found the back of the net late in the period.
Yankton went up 2-1 on Austin Wagner’s goal before Brookings tallied three straight goals by Mason McKnight, Nick Jonas and Pederson. Jerett Syrstad set up McKnight; Wes Koenig earned the assist on Jonas’ goal; and Pederson’s was unassisted on another power play. Yankton’s Brody Burgeson made it 4-3 through two with an unassisted goal late in the period.
Noah Ronning’s goal off a Koenig assist pushed the Rangers’ lead to 5-3, but Tanner Sedlacek pulled the Miracle within one and Burgeson sent it into overtime with his second unassisted goal, where neither team could light the lamp in OT.
Yankton held a 28-22 advantage in shots as Kaden Gutormson finished with 23 saves for the Rangers.
PEEWEE A
Brookings closed the regular season with three wins to finish in second place in the SDAHA standings with 25 points, courtesy of a 12-3-0-1 record. On Saturday, the PeeWee A Rangers rallied in their first game at Mitchell for a 6-5 win before beating the Marlins, 4-3, in their second game of the day. On Sunday, Brookings shut out the Lakers, 7-0, at LIC.
On Friday, the second-seeded Rangers open state tournament play in Yankton against Aberdeen.
• Rangers 7, Watertown 0
Talon Richter opened the scoring early in the period off a Jacob Drew assist before Logan Bortnem tallied an unassisted goal for a 2-0 lead after one.
Ashton Witte found the back of the net off a Bortnem assist and then Bortnem lit the lamp with another unassisted goal to make it 4-0. Brody Powers netted the puck with 1:59 left in the period as Breck Hirrschoff set up the goal as the Rangers led 5-0 through two.
In the third, Hirrschoff scored off a Richter assist before Bortnem earned a hat trick with his third goal off an assist from Powers.
Holden Richardson earned the shutout win in goal with seven saves as the Rangers held a 39-7 advantage in shots.
• Rangers 4, Mitchell 3
Hirrschoff found the back of the net in both the first and second periods off assists from Witte as the game headed into the final period tied at 2-2.
Bortnem scored twice in the third – the first assisted by Witte and Drew and the second set up by Drew – for the one-goal win.
Brookings outshot the Marlins, 36-17, as Richardson finished with 14 saves in the win.
• Rangers 6, Mitchell 5
The Rangers led 2-1 after a period as Zach Struck netted the puck off assists from Hirrschoff and Jeffrey Min before Drew lit the lamp with 1:04 to play off a Witte assist.
The Marlins scored twice in the second to take a 3-2 lead into the final frame, where Brooking rallied with four goals – three by Bortnem and one by Isaac Schulte as Pederson, Drew, Isaac Dobesh and Witte earned the respective assists – as Richardson collected 13 saves.
PEEWEE B
The PeeWee B Rangers played Brandon to a pair of ties at LIC – 1-1 and 2-2 – in their final regular-season games as they finished ninth in the league standings with a 1-15-2-0 record.
On Friday, Brookings takes on Sioux Falls West in state tournament play in Huron.
• Rangers 2, Brandon 2, OT
Brookings led 1-0 after a period as Joseph Wu tallied an unassisted goal.
The Rangers took a 2-1 lead into the final period as Jack Merritt lit the lamp off an assist from Kiran Vugteveen, but Brandon rallied with a third-period goal to force OT, where neither team could find the back of the net.
Brookings outshot Brandon, 30-17, as Kade Brecher finished with 15 saves in goal for the Rangers.
• Rangers 1, Brandon 1, OT
No statistics were available.
SQUIRT BLUE B
The Rangers went 2-1 in their own Jamboree at LIC, suffering a 6-3 loss to Brandon Valley before bouncing back with a 7-5 win over Fairmont and a 7-0 shutout of Mitchell.
• Brandon Valley 6, Rangers 3
Carter Runge lit the lamp off assists from Jameson Hunter and Haidin Heesch as the game was tied 1-1 after one.
In the second, Andrew Hahn found the back of the net as Charles Malone picked up the assist to send the game into the third tied at 2-2.
Runge scored the lone Ranger goal off Riley Linstad’s assist as Brandon Valley scored four times for the win.
Egan Jensen finished with 19 saves as the Ice Cats held a 25-23 edge in shots.
• Rangers 7, Fairmont 5
Brookings trailed 2-1 after a period as Linstad scored off assists from Runge and Hahn in the first.
Linstad and Runge tallied unassisted goals in the second as Fairmont led 4-3 heading into the final period.
The Rangers rallied with four goals in the third off six shots to pull out the win. Runge scored off assists from Taryn Richter and Linstad; Heesch lit the lamp as Linstad set up the goal; Runge netted the puck off a Jack Lee assist; and then, Linstad picked up the hat trick off a Malone assist.
Fairmont outshot the Rangers, 35-15, as Jensen notched 30 saves.
• Rangers 7, Mitchell 0
Hahn, Linstad and Heesch tallied unassisted goals as Brookings led 3-0 after one.
Heesch opened the second-period scoring off an assist from Runge before Hahn lit the lamp with Braden Dobesh and Wyatt Carlson picking up the assists. Dobesh’s goal off a Linstad setup sent the game into the final period with the Rangers leading 6-0.
Hahn provided for the final margin with his hat-trick goal with Lee earning the assist as the Rangers held a 22-11 edge in shots as Jensen stopped all 11 Marlin shots for the shutout win in goal.
SQUIRT WHITE B
Brookings posted a 1-2 mark at the Squirt Jamboree held at LIC over the weekend as the Rangers fell, 8-4, to Sioux Falls Orange in their first game; came back with 2-0 shutout over Aberdeen White; and then dropped a 6-1 decision to the Sioux Center Tornadoes.
• S.F. Orange 8, Rangers 4
Orange led 4-0 after a period and 6-3 through two on the way to the four-goal win.
In the second, Cole Schaller tallied back-to-back unassisted goals before Tre Christopherson lit the lamp off a Keygan Peterson assist.
Schaller earned a hat trick with another unassisted goal in the third as Wyatt Pitsenberger notched 17 saves for the game.
• Rangers 2, Aberdeen White 0
After two scoreless periods, Brookings scored two unassisted goals in the third as Christopherson notched the game winner before Schaller added an insurance goal inside of 30 seconds to play.
Brayden Bingham stopped eight Aberdeen shots for the shutout win in goal.
• Sioux Center 6, Rangers 1
The Tornadoes scored two goals in each period while the Rangers managed just one second-period tally by Schaller as Bingham collected 27 saves.
