LUMBERTON — Richmond head wrestling coach Richard Kerekes said the Raiders battled hard against two of the top teams in the Sandhills Athletic Conference on Wednesday.
Competing in a tri-match against host Lumberton High School, the Raiders dropped both of their respective matches to the Pirates and Pinecrest High School.
To open the match, Richmond faced the Patriots and lost 60-24, before closing the night with a 69-6 loss to Lumberton.
“This was one of our tougher tri-matches we’re going to see,” Kerekes said. “Pinecrest is always top notch and Lumberton has a solid lineup.
“Just the fact that we won three matches shows we’re progressing where we need to be,” he added. “I’m proud of the way the guys wrestled tonight.”
The Raiders forfeited the 120, 195 and 285-pound matches against Pinecrest, and the 120, 182 and 285-pound contests against the Pirates. Kerekes said giving those 18 points to both teams hurt Richmond’s chances out of the gate.
In their first match against Pinecrest, the Raiders earned 12 points in forfeits and 12 points with two pinfall victories. Richmond earned six forfeit points in the 106-pound match, and freshman Aiden Rountree was awarded a forfeit win in the 113-pound contest.
Sophomore Messiah Shaw faced Jarom Williams in the 152-pound match. Trailing 0-4 after the first two-minute round, Shaw managed to flip the script with a pin on Williams, holding him to the mat with 22.4 seconds remaining in the second round.
Sophomore Messiah Shaw pins Pinecret’s Jarom Williams in the 152-pound contest. (Kyle Pillar)
Also earning a pinfall win over his respective Pinecrest opponent was senior 170-pounder Kaden Walker. Squaring off against Tristan Nieves, Walker made quick work and pinned his opponent with 44.1 seconds left in the first round.
Picking up Richmond’s lone win in its second match against Lumberton was junior Daniel Griggs. Competing against Andre Bethea in the 220-pound match, Griggs pinned his Pirate opponent with 41.0 seconds remaining in the opening period.
Other Raiders to hang tough against the Pirates were Walker, junior Andres Sanchez (126), sophomore Naaman Perakis (138) and freshman Braxton Jenks (160).
Walker went all three rounds with Darionte McLaurin, and held a 9-7 lead after two rounds, but lost 10-12.
Sanchez was pinned with just over a minute left in the second round by Matthew Foil, Perakis lost by pinfall to Evans Ivey with 58.9 ticks left in the second and Jenks came up short in the third round, getting pinned by Joshua McLaurin with 1:08 remaining.
Junior Daniel Griggs (left) takes down Lumberton’s Andre Bethea just before his pinfall win in the 220-pound match. (Kyle Pillar)
“Kaden wrestled really well tonight against two of the toughest kids he’ll see in his weight class,” Kerekes said. “Our guys who won tonight worked their butts off, and Messiah and Daniel both did really well.
“We are a young team that’s gaining experience,” he closed. “For not having a club team or a middle school program this year, our guys are holding their ground. We are giving teams like Pinecrest and Lumberton a fight who have had feeder programs.”
On Tuesday, the Raiders also wrestled two non-conference matches in a tri-match against North Moore High School and Uwharrie Charter Academy.
The Raiders split the night, beating North Moore 51-24, before failing to register a point against Uwharrie Charter in a 0-84 loss.
Against the Mustangs, Richmond had six forfeit wins, two pins and a minor decision. Perakis (138) pinned Landon Hussey and Jerry Cogg (285-pound) won by pinfall over Kevin Avella.
Picking up a 9-6 decision and three more points for the Raiders was Griggs, who held on to defeat Nathan Rogers.
Now 6-4 overall, and 3-2 against SAC opponents, the Raiders will return to the mat next Tuesday at home.
