FROSTBURG — Few sophomores find themselves in the starting lineup from the season opener to the finale.
Fewer lead their team in scoring and are consistently among the area leaders from start to finish.
And none have ever been voted the winner of the Dr. Raul Felipa Offensive Player of the Year award.
Until this year, when Mountain Ridge’s Chris Ranker made a bit of area history.
He will receive the award at the 62nd Dapper Dan Awards Banquet on Sunday, Jan. 31, at the Ali Ghan Shrine Club. The dinner begins at 4 p.m., and the awards program at 5.
Ranker made one of the biggest impacts ever by a first-year player. It came at the perfect time for the Miners, who had lost 11 players to graduation from last year’s 15-1, area championship team.
The forward started all 18 games and led Mountain Ridge in goals scored, points and scoring average, helping lead the Miners to a 14-3-1 record, conference and region championships and a trip to the state tournament.
Ranker, with 16 goals, two assists, 34 points and 1.88 scoring average, finished seventh in the area in scoring.
“Chris had an outstanding sophomore season. He was a threat to score every time he touched the ball,’’ said Mountain Ridge coach Tim Nightengale. “He has explosive speed with great acceleration, allowing him to run down balls played in space.
“He also has good strength and a low center of gravity which allows him to not get knocked off the ball.”
Ranker was also first-team All-Area and first-team All-Appalachian Mountain Athletic Conference in his first varsity season. He was the conference’s third-leading scorer with eight goals, one assist and 17 points in eight games for a 2.12 average.
“Chris was constantly hounded by the opponent’s defense and he always hustled and battled to win the ball. He has a powerful shot and doesn’t need much space to get it off,’’ said Nightengale.
“Chris came to practice every day and worked on his game. He was very coachable, had a positive attitude and always listened to a coach’s instruction by looking him in the eyes. He tried to do what we asked him to do to help make himself a better player and our team better.”
Ranker, also a good student with a 3.2 grade-point average, is also on the Mountain Ridge wrestling team.
“Wrestling will help to increase his strength, stamina and agility,’’ Nightengale said. “We are very enthusiastic to have a caliber player as Chris back for two more seasons. He is a great player but has the potential to only get better because of his attitude, work ethic and natural talent.”
For Dapper Dan Banquet ticket information, call The Original Sports Shoppe at (301) 722-5490.
Mike Mathews is a Cumberland Times-News sportswriter.Contact Mike Mathews at mmathews@times-news.com.
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