ROCKINGHAM — Showing improvement in its second game of the season, the Richmond Raider varsity football team lost to David W. Butler High School on Friday.
A 7-7 tie at the end of the first quarter didn’t hold for the Raiders, who lost 40-7 to the Bulldogs.
Butler outscored Richmond 13-0 in the second quarter, before adding 20 more points in the second half.
The Raiders’ lone score came from senior running back Taye Spencer, a 2-yard run to his left with 4.5 seconds left in the first stanza.
The score was set up by a fumble recovery by sophomore linebacker Bobby Little and a 28-yard catch by senior wide receiver Jamarion Bryant.
Richmond had several chances to find the end zone in the first half, including drives that ended at the Butler 24, 26 and 2-yard lines. All three possessions ended in a turnover on downs.
Little added two sacks against quarterback Zach Lawrence in the opening two quarters, and junior defensive end Jacoby Martin had a sack and a blocked PAT.
Spencer led the Raiders with 85 rushing yards on 17 carries, and senior quarterback Emoni McBride went 9-of-25 passing for 120 yards.
Bryant had two catches for 44 yards, junior Jada Zimmerman had a catch for 34 yards, sophomore Travion Smith had one grab for 30 yards and freshman Jayden Hamilton added a catch for 31 yards.
Lawrence recorded four passing touchdowns to four different receivers, collecting 299 passing yards on 21-of-32 through the air.
The Raiders (0-2) will travel to Cardinal Gibbons High School (0-1) next Friday with a 7 p.m. start time.
For a full recap of Friday’s game, and quotes from Till, Martin and Spencer, click here.
Below are photos of Friday’s non-conference game between Richmond and Butler, taken by sports editor Kyle Pillar.
