ROCKINGHAM — The Richmond Senior High School girls’ soccer team lost a close match against Lee County on Tuesday.
Playing on back-to-back nights and returning to Sandhills Athletic Conference play, the Lady Raiders let two unanswered goals by the Lady Yellow Jackets result in a 2-1 loss.
The Lady Raiders took a 1-0 lead in the 12th minute when senior Michala Nechvilova scored on a free kick from 20 yards out.
Following a foul committed by Lee County, Nechvilova sent a low shot through a wall of defenders that bounced twice and rolled past goalkeeper Cayla Roche. It was her first goal of the season.
Sophomore Allie Rodgers had two shots on goal in the opening 10 minutes, and freshman goalkeeper Quanna Bostic made several athletic saves to keep the Lady Yellow Jackets off the board.
Following a sliding save on Alyssa Martin, the ball bounced loose and was collected by Gillian Garrison in front of the net. Redirecting the shot, Garrison knotted the game in the 25th minute.
Helping the Lady Raiders take a 1-1 tie into halftime, junior outside back Kalei Sriratanakoul made two sweeping saves along the goal line in the closing eight minutes. Both times she cleared the ball back up the field.
In the final seconds of the half, junior Jennifer Gomez found the back of the net for Richmond, but was whistled for being offsides. It was the first of two such calls for Richmond in the game.
“We fought hard and had some chances, but two offside goals put a damper on our spirit a little bit,” head coach Chris Larsen said. “Defensively, we held up and (Lee County) had a dynamic player that was hard to mark and she created a lot of their opportunities.
“The girls played tough, but we were unlucky and came out on the wrong end tonight,” he added. “A call here or there could have changed the momentum. But I was pleased with their effort, and that’s all I can ask for.”
Junior Cheyenne Jacobs and senior Paxlee Faircloth both had chances on frame in the first part of the second half, but couldn’t score. Junior C’Nedra Hinson managed to beat Roche on a play in the box, but was offsides.
Scoring the game-winning goal for Lee County (6-3, 3-1 SAC) in the 63rd minute was Martin, who scored from close range.
Richmond (5-7, 1-4 SAC) will look to round out the first round of conference play with a win next Tuesday against rival Scotland High School (2-6-2, 0-3-1 SAC). Playing on the road, varsity will start at 6 p.m.
Note: The Richmond junior varsity girls’ soccer team’s game against Lumberton on Tuesday was canceled.
