SOUTHERN PINES — Three days of preparation proved to be more than enough for the Richmond Senior High School football team Thursday, which let its play do all the talking.
Rising to the hype surrounding their Sandhills Athletic Conference rivalry meeting with Pinecrest High School, the Raiders routed the Patriots 36-7.
Thursday’s game was moved up a day due to the threat of inclement weather.
That cut Richmond and head coach Brad Denson’s practice time a day short, while Pinecrest and head coach Nick Eddins had nearly two weeks to game plan for the Raiders coming off a bye week.
Putting the momentum back in their favor with their Moore County neighbor, the Raiders ended a two-game slide to Pinecrest and improved to 42-5 in the all-time series.
The loss for Pinecrest was also its first regular-season loss since Sept. 9, 2022.
Withstanding the constant rain from the outer bands of Hurricane Helene, Richmond used a balanced diet of offense and defense to remain perfect in conference action.
Richmond scored once on the ground and through the air in the first half, and added two rushing scores and a pick-six in the final two quarters.
Both teams had six possessions in the first half and it was Richmond that made its offensive efforts pay off.
Twice the Raiders found the end zone to take a 15-0 lead into halftime.
The Raiders started with the ball and punted after getting to their own 35-yard line. The defense forced a three-and-out on the Patriots’ first drive, which saw Pinecrest backed up on an intentional grounding call.
Junior returner Jayden Hamilton helped set up the first score with a punt return from around midfield down to the Pinecrest 33-yard line.
Seven plays later, a direct snap to senior running back Jordan Bostick saw him plow into a wall of players from two yards out. The ball popped loose and there to recover the fumble in the end zone was senior tiger back Zach Gardner for the touchdown.
Following a successful point-after attempt by senior Billy West, Richmond led 7-0 with 2:38 remaining in the first quarter.
The Patriots’ first half of self-inflicted woes continued on the next drive. A bad snap on third down made it fourth-and-long and resulted in another punt.
Richmond’s defense limited the Patriots’ offense all game and forced three punts, an interception, a turnover on downs and let the clock expire in the first half.
The Raiders’ lone turnover in the game came on the next play when a miscommunication between junior quarterback Domonic Tillman and Bostick resulted in a fumble on an read-option handoff attempt.
Both teams traded the ball back and forth as the clock wound down in the second quarter.
Senior defensive backs Keidreion Crump and Jarah Cook energized the Raiders going into the half with back-to-back plays that yielded a takeaway.
A long pass attempt by Pinecrest quarterback Cody Hansen was batted away on first down by Crump.
A snap later, Cook deflected a pass attempt to Elijah Melton, who managed to hold on near the goal line. Not giving up, Cook popped it loose again and Crump crashed in and picked it off.
Returning it out to the Richmond 28-yard line, Crump gave the Raiders possession with 58.6 seconds to go in the half.
Three plays and 23.3 seconds later, junior quarterback Evan Hodges extended the lead for the Raiders. He dropped a dime over a defensive back to a streaking Keyonta Davis down the right sideline.
The senior wideout hauled it in and sped into the end zone untouched for a 61-yard passing score. It was his third receiving score in the last two games for Richmond.
West lined up for the PAT but was pitched the ball off the snap by Hodges. Zipping through a hole in the line, West successfully converted the fake PAT attempt to make it 15-0 as the clock reached 38.3 seconds left in the half.
Pinecrest tried to move the ball in the closing minute but a stop of third down by senior linebacker K’Mauri Morgan sent Richmond into the break with the shutout intact.
As the rain continued to douse the field, the Raiders continued to pour on the pressure on offense and defense in the final two quarters.
Denson, who calls Richmond’s offensive plays, switched things up late in the third quarter and gave sophomore running back Chance Crowder an opportunity to dance through the Patriots’ defensive front.
Following another turnover on downs by Pinecrest (4-1, 0-1 SAC), Richmond took over at its own 39-yard line. After no gain on first down, Crowder was fed the ball four straight times and found the end zone.
Earning gains of 11, nine and 34 yards, Crowder put the offense at the seven-yard line. On first-and-goal, he took a handoff from Tillman and headed right. Shouldering a would-be tackler, Crowder bulldozed his way to paydirt.
West, who was perfect on PATs despite the driving rain, added another one to build Richmond’s lead to 22-0 with less than a minute remaining in the third stanza.
Junior linebacker Terande Spencer made a tackle on fourth down on Pinecrest’s next series, forcing a turnover on downs and giving Richmond the ball back at its own 25-yard line.
Crowder capped the 75-yard scoring drive a few plays later with the Raiders’ final offensive touchdown.
Shifting his way through the line, Crowder found open space to the right third of the field and turned on the jets. His 45-yard rushing score, coupled with a West extra-point, grew the lead to 29-0 with 9:16 left in regulation.
A worn-down Patriots offense tried to move the ball through the air on the ensuing drive, but a splash play by senior defensive back AJ Covington helped put the win on ice on the next snap.
Jumping a route inside the 40-yard line, Covington picked off a Hansen throw and dashed all the way across the goal line for the house call.
One last West PAT recorded Richmond’s final point to grow its lead to 36-0 with 9:00 to go.
The Patriots managed to thwart Richmond’s try at a shutout with a 16-yard touchdown pass from Hansen to Nate Lowry in the back corner of the end zone.
That score was much too late to mount a comeback attempt, coming at the 4:42 mark of the final stanza.
Now 4-2 overall, and 2-0 in SAC play, the Raiders will begin preparing for their first of consecutive SAC home games starting with Hoke County High School next Friday.
The Bucks (1-4, 0-1 SAC) haven’t played yet this week and are scheduled to play Lee County High School (3-2, 0-1 SAC) Friday.
The Richmond Observer will publish a photo gallery of Richmond’s road win over Pinecrest later this week.
Sports editor’s note: Official stats and game totals were not available at the time of publication.
