ROCKINGHAM – There was a lot on the line for the Richmond Senior High School varsity soccer team during Tuesday’s match against visiting Sandhills Athletic Conference foe Hoke County High School.
The match between the Raiders and the Bucks was a late-season add on to determine which team would take sole possession of second place in the SAC standings and earn an automatic bid to the North Carolina High School Athletic Association 4A state playoffs. Richmond was also looking to keep its seven-game winning streak alive, which started against Hoke County on Oct. 8.
Unfortunately for the Raiders, they fell to the Bucks 2-1 after the visiting team knocked in a goal in the game’s final 10 minutes. The two squads had split the regular season series with one win apiece, each winning on the road. Tuesday’s loss for Richmond (12-10, 10-5 SAC) put them in third place, which is a jump from a fifth-place finish last season.
Despite his team’s loss in the playoff play-in game, first-year head coach Chris Larsen remained optimistic that the Raiders could slip into the 48-team field afterall.
“I felt going into tonight’s game that our win Monday against Lumberton (High School) should have at least bumped us into the final couple of spots in the playoffs,” Larsen explained. “Right now, we’ll be on ‘bubble watch’ until the NCHSAA releases the official brackets on Wednesday. We played some really tough teams this year, and I think our chances to make the playoffs are pretty good.”
Larsen added that all high school teams across the state have to submit their final records to the governing body by Tuesday night, and that the preliminary playoff brackets will be released Wednesday morning. After they’re review a second time, the NCHSAA will put out the official brackets sometime Wednesday afternoon. If Richmond makes it, Larsen anticipates his team will play Saturday.
In Tuesday’s action, both teams played a scoreless first half, with opportunities to score coming at both ends of the field. It was Richmond that came out of the break to get on the board first, as leading scorer Alexis Gonzalez roped a 30-yard goal into the upper right ninety past a diving Capote Osiel. Gonzalez, who has gone on a scoring tear during the seven-game winning streak, netted the Raiders’ only goal in the 42nd minute off a throw-in from fellow senior Nolan Allen.
Hoke County (16-5, 11-4 SAC) didn’t wait too long to knot the game at one, as senior Josue Soto-Maldonado erased the deficit just 1:52 later. The Raider defense attempted to clear a ball inside the goalie box in front of senior goalkeeper Jackson Haley, but Soto-Maldonado intercepted the ball and blasted it in from close range.
From that point on, Richmond lost its offensive edge and played the majority of the time remaining in its defensive zone. Haley made a couple of tumbling saves, and senior Evyn Brower had two big clears in quick succession to give his team some breathing room.
With just 9:26 left in regulation, the Bucks would net the eventual game-winner, thanks to another miscue in the back by Richmond. Nakya Davila happened to be in the right place at the right time and collected a rebound in front of the net to scoot it past Haley. Allen and senior Carlos Alcocer each made deep runs in the game’s final minutes, but saw their shot attempts trickle wide of the net.
“It was a close one tonight,” Larsen said. “Like any night in our conference, we knew the competition level was going to be tough. We hung with them pretty good in the first half, and I think we dominated in possession and opportunities to score. We looked really good in the first 15 minutes of the second half, and Alexis’ goal was big.
“But then I think some fatigue got to us and we went into survival mode,” he continued. “We only made two mistakes, but (Hoke County) was able to capitalize on both.”
The Raiders will play the waiting game to see what side of the fence they fall on for the state playoffs, as making it will return them to postseason play after missing out last season. Larsen noted his players’ morale is upbeat despite the loss to the Bucks, and he plans to give them Wednesday off after closing out the regular season in back-to-back nights.
ROSports will update Richmond’s playoff status as the NCHSAA makes brackets available.
