FAYETTEVILLE — Tightly contesting every set of Thursday’s Sandhills Athletic Conference volleyball match, the Lady Raiders couldn’t manage to seal the deal.
Continuing its second round of conference play, Richmond dropped a road contest to Jack Britt High School. Despite being within four points of each frame, the Lady Raiders fell 3-0.
Set scores were 22-25, 21-25 and 29-31. Head coach Ashleigh Larsen praised her team’s efforts on the floor, especially the adjustments the Lady Raiders made from the first meeting between the two squads last month.
“The girls played better tonight than they did Tuesday. They really cleaned up some mistakes and we were able to slow down (Jack Britt’s) hitters,” Larsen said. “We took some angles away and had better success against Sydney Conklin, which was a big adjustment from last time.”
Leading Richmond’s offensive attack were seniors Georgia Grace Anderson and Kelly Hoffman, who finished with 10 and seven kills, respectively. Anderson had five of her kills in a competitive third set.
The Lady Raiders’ defense also performed well, collecting 48 total digs in three sets. Larsen noted senior libero Emy Cooley “did a good job” working the floor, scooping up a team-high 13 digs.
Richmond dug in and recorded 28 digs in the third, with senior Taylor Chappell tallying seven of her 10 digs in the set. Kelly Hoffman had nine digs, Shelly Hoffman had 20 assists and six digs and Allyiah Swiney added three kills and five digs.
Both teams battled in the first set, playing out to 10 separate ties. Anderson and Shelly Hoffman created pressure at the net to force an error by Jack Britt, which tied the set at 18 points.
A couple plays later, a kill from Kelly Hoffman put Richmond ahead 22-20. But a 5-0 run by Jack Britt ended the first.
A series of runs by both squads highlighted another competitive set in the second, starting with a five-point run by the home team to take an 8-3 lead. Richmond responded with a 5-0 spurt of its own, featuring Anderson and Chappell kills and a Cooley ace, one of her two on the night, to make it a 15-14 deficit.
Thanks to several unforced errors by Jack Britt, Richmond tied the set at 17 points. However, two Anderson kills and another from Kelly Hoffman weren’t enough to close the frame. Jack Britt took eight of the next 12 points.
“Tonight’s match had a bunch of good moments and a handful of bad ones that unfortunately cost us the game,” Chappell said. “We rallied together and got the energy up, playing good as a team.
“Here and there we had some mistakes that cost us crucial points. Even though we lost the game tonight, Scully (Larsen) was pleased with how our aggressiveness built up through the match,” she added. “We hope to build on this over break and come ready to win big the next game.”
Richmond had a couple of chances late in the third set to extend the match. Rallying, the Lady Raiders tied the final frame at 19, 20 and 23 points. Swiney made a smart play at the net and tipped a ball over two blockers to find the floor to knot it at 23.
A net violation by Jack Britt gave Richmond a chance to take the set, but the two teams battled to six more ties. Even at 29 points, a kill and an ace by the Lady Bucs ended the match.
“I know how badly the girls want to win, but we just can’t find the finishing drive,” Larsen said. “We need to find the little pieces to get the end result. I thought we’d win the third set, there was a lot of momentum back and forth, but we just couldn’t close.”
She added that the match may have gone in Richmond’s favor early on had the Lady Raiders not “tossed points to Jack Britt” on several missed serves.
Now fifth in the SAC standings, Richmond (4-6) will get 12 days off for holiday break. Up next is Hoke County High School on Dec. 29, which is currently winless through 10 games this season.
“The team will get some much-needed rest,” Larsen closed. “Despite our record, the girls have worked really hard.
“I want them to reset, let their bodies rest and spend time with their families over break. Then we’ll come back and get after it against Hoke.”
