SOUTHERN PINES — The Richmond Senior High School soccer team wouldn’t let its run through the Sandhills Athletic Conference tournament end without a fight.
The No. 3 Raiders played their “best game of soccer” all season according to head coach Chris Larsen, despite falling to No. 2 Pinecrest High School 2-0 on Tuesday.
The semifinal match saw both squads battle for dominance, seeing the first 40 minutes of play remain competitive and go scoreless. Two small miscues by the Raiders in the second half would see the Patriots advance to the SAC tournament title game against No. 1 Hoke County High School.
“The guys knew what was on the line, and I told them if we could play without making any mental mistakes, we could play with anyone in our conference,” Larsen said. “And they proved that to themselves tonight.
“It was an evenly matched game and we really played our style of game,” he continued. “We had some opportunities and scoring chances in both halves and that’s all I could as for. Whether this is our last game, or next to last game, the guys played their best game of soccer in a long time.”
Richmond (10-10-2) now finds itself sitting on the fence in a waiting game that will see if the Raiders make it into the NCHSAA 4A state playoffs. As of the most recent power rankings, Richmond sits a handful of slots out of the top 48 teams.
Despite being outshot 8-1 in the first half, the Raiders leveled the playing field with the Patriots with several strong runs to the net. Senior Luke Hawks had two corner kick attempts, sophomore Alex Medina had a free kick on frame and junior Noah Aiken entered the zone on a rush but saw the ball swiped away by goalkeeper Hunter Johnson.
Richmond starting goalkeeper Jay Ammons kept the ball out of the net, but suffered an injury midway through the half and didn’t return. Replacing him was sophomore Jaden Wilson, who made a nice diving save on Binka Woody on a free kick in the 37th minute.
When the halftime buzzer sounded, the shutout by Richmond’s defense made it the first time in the last 15 halves (seven and a half games) that it kept the Patriots (21-2) out of the scoring column.
The momentum the Raiders had garnered in the first half was slowed in the first minute of the second half when Judas Villegas took a pass from Jair Ballesteros inside the six-yard box and put it past Wilson in the 41st minute.
Trailing by a goal, Richmond had several second-half opportunities that just didn’t come to fruition. Junior Hector Castro sent a rocket on frame off a pass from senior Lee Hayden, but Johnson laid out to make the save in the 44th minute.
Hayden had a scoring chance of his own but missed the frame, and Richmond’s last best attempt came from senior Noah Jordan, who redirected a cross from Luke Hawks with his head, seeing the ball scoot wide left in the 64th minute.
“We didn’t change a lot up, it was just our focus was that much better,” Larsen commented. “The guys knew it was going to be an uphill battle, and tonight they played quality soccer for 75 minutes. We just didn’t get rewarded with putting the ball in the back of the net.”
Ballesteros would net the late insurance goal in the 74th minute, collecting a pass from Tre’sean McKoy inside the box. He turned and put the ball past Wilson along the lower left post.
With 2:44 left in regulation, Larsen gave his senior players a moment of recognition when he subbed them all out of the game together.
“I wanted to give them the recognition they deserve in case this is our last game,” Larsen said of the decision. “There’s a chance we make the playoffs, but I wanted to give them a chance to come off together one last time as a unit.
“What most of them have done the last four years has been appreciated,” he closed. “Even though we didn’t win, I think the guys saved their best game for their possible last one. They played from the first whistle to the final whistle regardless of what the score was. I’m proud of each of them for leaving it all out on the field.”
The NCHSAA will release its official playoff brackets on Monday, with the opening round set to begin on Wednesday. The Raiders are hoping to slide in late, so Larsen said it will be “business as usual” following a day off from practice on Wednesday.
ROSports will update the Raiders’ standing when the playoff seedings are announced.
