MONROE, N.C. — Tuesday’s soccer match nearly saw the Richmond Raiders erase a three-goal halftime deficit.
On the road at non-conference East Mecklenburg High School, a late push by the Raiders came up short in a 3-2 loss.
“(East Mecklenburg) caught us on our heels early, but we were able to put two in the back of the net in the second half,” head coach Chris Larsen said. “I told the guys if we break it up by half, we lost the first and won the second half, but that’s not how it goes.
“We knew going into the game it was going to be a challenge, especially going to Charlotte where they play a different caliber of soccer,” he added. “That held true, and I’m hopeful the guys can learn and adjust from this and make us better the rest of the season.”
Trailing 3-0, Richmond netted its first goal of the game in the 50th minute on a penalty kick. Senior Taivansaikhan Jalbasuren, a foreign exchange student from Mongolia, slotted a goal past the keeper in his debut with the team.
Jalbasuren laced his shot on frame, beating the keeper to his left. The PK opportunity came after Jalbasuren was brought down on a foul inside the box.
“He said he woke up this morning and was excited he was going to be able to play tonight,” Larsen commented. “Not many people can say they have an international goal and he was able to check that off tonight.
“We’re excited to have him on the team and experience our season and our culture,” he added of Jalbasuren. “I’m happy for him and the team was really happy for him when he scored, and he should fit in nicely with us this year.”
With the clock winding inside the final 90 seconds, junior Jullian Cline cut Richmond’s deficit to one goal.
A crossing pass was sent into the box from the left side, where Cline corralled it along the far post and slid the shot into the goal for his first of the season.
Senior goalkeeper Ian Williams had the tough task of facing three penalty kick attempts by the Eagles, but stood tall in net, blocking two of them. Larsen noted he was proud of Williams’ efforts, adding it’s not common for a keeper to make multiple saves on PKs.
Richmond (1-2) will gear up for another non-conference match on Thursday, this one at home against Sun Valley High School (1-1). Varsity action will begin at 7 p.m.
JV Raiders stay perfect early
Earning a 2-1 win over East Mecklenburg on Tuesday, the JV Raiders and coach Bennie Howard improved to 3-0 to start the new season.
After both teams played a scoreless first half, sophomore James Eason sent a 35-yard strike into the net to start the second half to put Richmond up 1-0.
East Mecklenburg tied it up a couple of minutes later, but sophomore Noah Williams scored the game-winning goal from 10 yards with seven minutes left in regulation. Goalkeeper Adrian Padron made eight saves.
Richmond’s JV team will also host Sun Valley on Thursday, starting at 5 p.m.
