PEMBROKE — The first scoring play of the new Richmond Senior High School varsity girls’ soccer season mirrored the final one scored last spring.
What proved to be a slow start for the Lady Raiders in their season opener Monday ended in two comebacks and a 3-2 victory over Purnell Swett High School.
The scoring duo of junior midfielder Kaitlyn Huff and senior striker Jayla McDougald provided the firepower behind Richmond’s offense, which scored two goals in the first half and the game-winner in the closing 12 minutes.
Huff netted two goals in the win, while McDougald added a goal and assisted on both of Huff’s tallies.
“The first 20 minutes were pretty hard to get anything going in the right direction,” head coach Chris Larsen said. “It was the girls’ first live action in over a year, but there were some good things we were trying to do early on.
“We were able to overcome some of the mistakes at the first-half mask break, and from that point on, we knocked the ball around better,” he added. “I reminded the girls that we needed to settle in and play our game, which was obvious in the second half.”
Richmond conceded a goal early in the ninth minute when Wren Jacobs tapped in a second-chance opportunity off a corner kick past senior goalkeeper Kelly Hoffman from inside the six-yard box.
The Lady Raiders had two scoring chances on consecutive corner kicks in the 13th minute, but it was Huff’s first tally in the 17th minute that got Richmond on the board.
On a counter rush, McDougald brought the ball down the left side of the field and slid a pass to Huff in the middle of the box. She one-timed her shot that went past goalkeeper Destiny Locklear to knot the game at one.
Purnell Swett (0-1) again took a one-goal lead in the 22nd minute when Jadyn Locklear made a steal on a clear attempt deep in Richmond’s defensive zone. Going one-on-one with a charging Hoffman, Locklear managed to chip the ball over the sliding block attempt.
McDougald and Huff connected again in the 35th minute to tie the match a second time, which would hold until the intermission. This time, McDougald weaved through traffic and found Huff in the middle of the field again, who punched it low to the back post.
“We started getting more first touches and winning more 50-50 balls throughout the game,” Huff explained of the team’s progress. “Once Purnell Swett got the first goal of the game, the girls started to pick the pace up and get their head in the game.
“Me and Jayla started to connect more and Jayla was taking a lot of more chances, which landed her a goal in the second half,” she added. “I also feel like our defense picked it up more and started communicating and working with each other better.”
Jayla McDougald (4) moves around Sydney Brooks during the first half of Monday’s win.
Out of the halftime break, the two teams played evenly until McDougald scored the game-winning goal in the 68th minute. Playing the ball in space, she roped a shot from 25 yards out that sailed over the outstretched hands of Destiny Locklear.
McDougald said the team’s focus, cohesiveness and aggressiveness in the second half is what helped secure the win.
“At first, I was rushing my shot and was really anxious to score to get the team fired up,” McDougald explained. “But Kaitlyn is a big help and when we play off each other, we free each other up for more opportunities on goal.
“I knew if I was patient enough, and if I used my speed and footwork, I could find Kaitlyn and the goal easier.”
Monday’s match was a good opportunity for Larsen to mix and match players in different roles since the team wasn’t able to scrimmage before the start of the season. He said he had “some core girls who played in one true spot,” and was able to “move other girls around.”
Larsen added the biggest positive was seeing how the Lady Raiders responded in different positions and situations to better build an effective lineup moving forward.
“Those two picked right up from last year, and their connection finding each other in space is the type of chemistry you want to see,” Larsen said of Huff and McDougald. “Jayla pushed wide twice and Kaitlyn filled in at forward to score twice. Both were our most consistent players tonight.
“We’ll take the win and come back and focus on getting better,” he closed. “It’s good to get the first one out of the way and now we have to get ready for a tough match in two days.”
Richmond (1-0) will continue Sandhills Athletic Conference play at Pinecrest High School (1-0) on Wednesday at 7 p.m.
Note: The junior varsity team didn’t play Monday due to Purnell Swett not having a team, and will travel to Pinecrest on Wednesday (5 p.m.).
