Rangers battle out end of regular season

Despite missing three of its starting line-up, the Hill City Rangers girls basketball team was able to triumph over the Douglas Patriots Feb. 11.
The Rangers dominated the first quarter with a 19-1 lead over the Patriots, but the tables quickly turned as Douglas made a strong comeback in the second quarter. The Patriots put 17 points on the board while holding the Rangers to only four and trailed by five at the half.
The second half of the game was kept a little tighter with the Rangers hanging onto their lead despite their foul trouble.
The Douglas gymnasium is almost certain to need to repaint the free-throw lines after the third quarter of this game. The Rangers put the Patriots into bonus shots early in the third, sending the team to the free-throw line 10 times in the quarter. The Rangers shot five times from the line, including a technical foul called on Patriots head coach. Maycie Ham took the shots, sinking both and putting the Rangers up by 10.
“We got into foul trouble early in the third, but the girls shot confidently throughout the game,” said head coach Anna Eckert.
Hill City led 42-31 going into the fourth and finished the game pulling away with a 57-39 win.
Leading the Rangers were Daril Frandsen with 20 points, Lillie Ham with 19 and Macie Ham with 13.
“The girls had a good game against Douglas,” said Eckert. “We were low on numbers and had three starters out, so it was great seeing other girls step up.”
Heading into last Saturday’s game, the Lakota Tech Tatanka came in and hit the floor running. After losing to the Rangers during the 2023-24 season the Tatanka came to the Rangers home court looking for redemption, and they found it in the 79-51 win.
Coming off last year’s losing season, the Tatanka are now 13-6 for the year after the win over the Rangers. Lakota Tech has gone on a four-game winning streak, with a cumulative differential of 185 points over their opponents.
Despite putting up 51 points in the game, Hill City couldn’t keep up with the Lakota Tech offense, which out-ran and outscored the Rangers.
“They run the court extremely well and shoot the ball well too,” said Eckert.
Lakota Tech’s Shania Ferguson put up 33 of the team’s 79 points against the Rangers, including five from the arch.
“We struggled to stop Shania Ferguson, who is a great athlete,” said Eckert.  “Lillie Ham had a great game for us, dominating the offensive boards and getting to the free throw line (7-10) and coming away with 19 points said Eckert.
“Naiya Ginsbach got hot from behind the arc in the first quarter, keeping us in the game. We went into the second quarter trailing by nine. They scored another 25 in the second quarter, and we struggled to keep up for the rest of the game.”
Hill City kept a tighter margin in the third and fourth quarters, but the Tatanka had already taken a lead and didn’t slow down.
“The girls played hard and still played hungry until the end. That’s something you want to see heading into the postseason,” Eckert said.
The Rangers’ last regular season game against its rivals, the Custer Wildcats, has been postponed until Friday, Feb. 21, starting at 6 p.m. at Gins Gym. It will also be senior night, celebrating players Jessica Escalante and Kylee Alexander as well as team managers Sydney Genaldske and Angela Becerra.
The team will play its first round of the regional tournament Feb. 25.