ROCKINGHAM — A fast start and a high-scoring first half led the Richmond girls’ basketball team to its biggest win of the season in its home opener on Friday.
Hosting non-conference Pine Forest High School, a 27-point lead at halftime led to a 73-50 win over the Lady Trojans.
Freshman point guard Jamyia Lindsey scored a career-high 33 points in just her third varsity game. Senior center Jaimaya Ratliff chipped in a season-high 16 points in the win.
Head coach Teddy Moseley said a big part of the team’s success was its defense’s ability to create turnovers and easy transition baskets.
“I thought we played very well tonight and it was all about execution,” Moseley said. “Our defense turned into offense for us. Pine Forest wanted to get in their press tonight, but we didn’t allow them to score.
“That made them play transition defense and they weren’t a very strong transition defense team,” he added. “They were a tough team, but our defense set the tone tonight.”
Lindsey, Ratliff and sophomore forward Ryelan Lyerly, who finished with a season-high 10 points, each scored 8 points in the first quarter to put the Lady Raiders ahead 24-12.
On the opening possession, Lindsey drove to the basket for two points, which started a 16-10 run that featured all of her and Ratliff’s points.
Sophomore Ryelan Lyerly (33) rips away a steal in the first half of Friday’s win. (Kyle Pillar/The Richmond Observer)
Off the bench, Lyerly drained a triple from the left corner with 2:12 left in the first, starting an 8-2 run by herself. She added a layup a minute later and hit all three of her free throws after she was fouled on a three-point attempt at the buzzer.
“Ryelan was big tonight and it was good to see her bounce back since she’s been battling some injuries,” Moseley said. “Hopefully it’s a confidence booster she’ll ride heading into conference play.”
Seven different Lady Raiders found the basket in the second quarter, including five points each from Lindsey and sophomore guard Keyoni Nichols.
Accounting for all of her points in the second, Nichols started the frame with a three-ball and a deep two to extend Richmond’s lead to 29-15.
Ratliff added 4 points and sophomore C’Niya Hinson scored two buckets from close range on back-to-back possessions. A jumper from Lyerly ended her scoring, freshman Rena Drake added a putback and senior Miccah Wall had a free throw.
At halftime, the Lady Raiders held a 47-20 lead.
“It’s important to get off to a good start because there are going to be times where we’re going to have scoring droughts,” Moseley explained. “If we could get enough of a cushion like we did tonight to make it through those droughts, we’d be okay.
“I thought we got a little complacent in the third quarter. But we were able to pick it back up later in the game.”
Pine Forest outscored Richmond 19-14 in the third quarter, including three triples from Valerie Veauthier and 8 points from Amaya Hunt.
Lindsey kept the Lady Raiders ahead with 12 points in the third on five field goals and two free throws. Drake added the other bucket to take a 61-39 lead into the fourth.
Senior Jaimaya Ratliff pulls up for a jumper in the second half against Pine Forest. (Kyle Pillar/The Richmond Observer)
Two baskets and four free throws from Lindsey in the final eight minutes, coupled with a pair of short-range jumpers from Ratliff put the game safely away for Richmond.
Veauthier had 19 points to lead Pine Forest (2-1), and Hunt added 14 points in the loss. Scoring 9 points was Journey Glass Fraser.
The Lady Raiders (2-1) will look to win their third straight game when they open Sandhills Athletic Conference play on Tuesday against Southern Lee High School (0-1). Play will begin at 6 p.m.
