ROCKINGHAM — Early deficits the past couple of matches haven’t seemed to deter the Richmond Senior High School volleyball team, as the Lady Raiders rallied to earn its second come-from-behind victory in as many nights.
Back on the court for the third time this week, the Lady Raiders welcomed in the Lady Pirates of Lumberton High School for the first of the two regular-season Sandhills Athletic Conference meetings. Entering the night, Richmond and Lumberton were in a four-way tie with Scotland and Jack Britt high schools for second place in the standings.
Richmond and assistant coach Melissa Dennis did their part to distance themselves from the pack, winning their third-straight match and eighth game in their nine tries this season. The Lady Raiders defeated Lumberton 3-1, overcoming a 24-26 loss in the first set.
The second set saw senior libero Layne Maultsby drill an ace to give Richmond a 26-24 win, and from that point on, it was all Richmond. The home team broke loose to seal the deal with set wins of 25-13 and 24-14 in the third and fourth, respectively.
Thanks to some help from Scotland High School, which defeated Pinecrest High School 3-1 on Thursday, the Lady Raiders are now in a three-way tie with the two schools for first place. Pinecrest does have the advantage over Richmond (8-1, 3-1 SAC), but with a majority of conference play left on the docket, there is a lot of time for the standings to shake out.
“The girls made so many smart plays tonight, and that helped us overcome a slow start in the first set,” Dennis explained. “In the first game, (Lumberton) was putting up some good blocks and we weren’t reading them very well. But we adjusted and were able to find those holes in the last three sets.
“Defensively, we scrambled a lot early on,” she added. “But we tightened it up and made up for the first game by making sure we were where we were supposed to be on the court the rest of the way.”
In the opening frame, the Lady Raiders trailed Lumberton 5-1, but rallied back to tie the set at 23 points. But the Lady Pirates would close it on a 3-1 run to take the first game.
The difference maker in the match, according to Dennis, was Richmond gaining and maintaining momentum in the second set. The Lady Raiders tallied 11 kills and four aces in the second frame, and sophomore middle hitter Jakerra Covington aided the offense with three of her team-high five blocks at the net.
With Covington’s handy work at the net, along with four kills on seven attempts, the Lady Raiders broke a 14-14 tie and slowly shifted the set in their favor. Leading 25-24, Maultsby delivered with one of her four aces, tied with senior teammate Jadyn Johnson for a team high, to tie the match at one set apiece.
After the first two sets going to extra play, the Lady Raiders took the wind out of Lumberton’s sails in the final two frames. Richmond would win by margins of 12 points and 11 points, respectively, never seeing the match in any danger following the second set.
The Lady Raiders tallied five aces in the fourth set, getting two each from Johnson and junior defensive specialist Emy Cooley. Senior outside hitter Madison Jordan had the other.
“Winning the momentum and keeping up our energy level was huge for us tonight,” Dennis said. “Once we got it, we stayed up. The girls are so resilient and have proven they can battle back after facing a tough set. And we saw that tonight.”
Richmond tallied 41 total kills on the night, seeing junior middle hitter Georgia Grace Anderson rack up a team-high 12 kills. Covington also hit double digits in the category with 11 spikes, and Johnson was right behind her win nine kills.
Entering the night, Anderson and Covington were the top two leading hitters in the SAC. Anderson had a conference-best 75 kills and 40 percent kill percentage, while Covington’s marks of 67 kills and 34.8 percent kill percentage were second.
Maultsby tallied a team-high seven digs from the back row on Thursday, as she also sits near the top of the SAC stat sheet in that department. Prior to the match against Lumberton, the senior libero was third in the conference with 112 digs, just six behind Pinecrest’s Vivian Camplin.
Senior setter Carley Lambeth worked her magic on the floor against the Lady Pirates, setting up 40 assists to her teammates. Averaging eight assists per set, Lambeth is nearly doubling all other SAC opponents in that category with 255 assists ahead of Thursday’s match. Jack Britt High School’s Niecee Perofeta is second with 130 assists.
The Lady Raiders will look to keep the momentum rolling in the right direction and have a chance to hit double digits in wins with three more matches next week. Richmond will host SAC opponent Seventy-First High School (2-4, 2-2 SAC) on Tuesday, and welcome in non-conference Uwharrie Charter Academy (5-3) on Wednesday.
Play will end Thursday on the road at rival Scotland (5-5, 3-1 SAC). All matches are scheduled to begin at 6 p.m.
JV Lady Raiders sweep Lady Pirates
The Richmond junior varsity volleyball team made quick work against Lumberton Thursday, winning in straight sets 25-20 and 25-12.
Improving their record to 5-4 on the year, the JV Lady Raiders saw sophomore Taylor Waitley notch a team-high two kills and add an ace. Sophomore Saniah Durham and Allyiah Swiney each knocked two aces in the win. Richmond will follow the same schedule as the varsity team, with matches beginning at 5 p.m.
