RAEFORD, N.C. – The Richmond Senior High School boys varsity soccer team spent Friday and Saturday on the pitch, seeing its first rounds of live action ahead of the fall 2018 season.
The Raiders travelled to rival and reigning Sandhills Athletic Conference champion Pinecrest High School Friday morning for a full 80-minute scrimmage, and followed up with two 40-minute matches in the Hoke County High School jamboree Saturday.
Going 1-2 on the weekend, Richmond lost a close match to Pinecrest 3-0, before bouncing back in its first contest Saturday with a 1-0 win over Red Springs High School (Robeson County). The Raiders played Hoke County tight, but fell to the host Bucks 1-0.
For first-year head coach Chris Larsen, he would have liked his team to net more goals, but the weekend was more about his team applying his new 4-5-1 and 4-3-3 schemes, and using the three scrimmages as growing moments.
“All in all, it was a successful two days for us,” Larsen said. “It took the guys some time to wake up during the first 15 minutes (of each match), but from that point on we played pretty good soccer. As a team, we’re feeling out some of the small tweaks, and we had a few opportunities to score. We just didn’t put the ball in the back of the net — which is understandable early in the season with a new group of guys.
“The mindset in a scrimmage is to put yourself in different situations,” he added. “I tried to put guys out on the field close to a starting lineup, and they worked well together. I’ve got to think ahead about possible injuries and subbing in games, so I used this weekend to play around with guys in different roles. In soccer, you have to play more than one spot, so it was nice to force guys into uncomfortable situations, and it was a really good learning experience for me and the players.”
Against the Patriots on Friday, the Raiders started off the first half with a strong performance through the first 20 minutes. Richmond was down a handful of players, and Larsen substituted freely to get guys experience in different positions and situations.
Pinecrest’s Jasper Ardinger broke the scoreless tie roughly 20 minutes into the match, as he beat senior goalkeeper Jackson Haley with a grounder inside the box. A couple of minutes later, Ardinger netted his second goal, this time lacing a shot from the top of the 18-yard box. The 2-0 score would hold until halftime.
The Raiders got a chance to get on the board early in the second half, as rising senior Nolan Allen was fouled in the box. Larsen opted for fellow rising senior Evan Hudson to take the penalty kick, but Hudson’s shot went wide left of the frame. Pinecrest’s Nick Vences finished the scoring in the final five minutes of the match with a chip shot from inside the box.
Back in action less than 24 hours later at the Hoke County jamboree, which featured the junior varsity team as well as seven other schools from the region, the Raiders continued to work on creating team chemistry, which is something Larsen hopes will drive his team’s focus.
Opening with the Red Springs Red Devils, who went 8-9-2 in 2017, it was rising senior Jose Fonseca who would net Richmond’s only goal in the three-scrimmage span. Playing 10-minute halves, Richmond dominated ball control for most of the match, and Fonseca was rewarded early in the second half when he netted a grounder from in front of the net.
Minutes later, both Fonseca and rising junior Joey Nicholson had header attempts from close range that just sailed wide of the net. In the match’s closing moments, rising junior Luke Hawks made a run on net and was fouled just outside the box, setting up a free kick opportunity, which Larsen elected for Fonseca to take. His shot was blocked in front, but the scoring chances were there for Richmond.
After a short hiatus, the Raiders faced SAC opponent Hoke County. Richmond fell by a single goal, and Larsen noted that his team “made an early mistake in the back and gave up an easy goal.” But after the goal, the Raiders “held their own” and made “smarter plays” and “had opportunities to score.”
With the regular season fast approaching, the Raiders will use the coming week to finalize their preparations for a busy three-match week starting next Monday. Richmond opens the season with three straight non-conference opponents, starting on the road with the Central Academy of Technology and Arts on Monday, Aug. 20, at 6:30 p.m.
Then the team will return home for Porter Ridge (Wednesday, Aug. 22; 6:30 p.m.) and Pine Forest (Thursday, Aug. 23; 6 p.m.)
“I think they did pretty good for our first weekend,” Larsen concluded. “We were able to figure out the goal with what we need to do, which is a learning process. But the guys are buying in, and we’ll continue to work on some things in practice.”
Note: The junior varsity team, coached by first-year head coach Tad Hamilton, was also in action at the Hoke County jamboree. Richmond won both of its matches, defeating Hoke 3-1, and Scotland High School 2-1.
