ROCKINGHAM — When Kaitlyn Huff scored a one-timer goal on a cross from Jayla McDougald on March 12, 2020, at Jack Britt High School, little did the Lady Raider soccer team know it would be its fifth and final competitive match in over a year.
What was supposed to be a nearly month-long hiatus from sports because of the pandemic, turned into a year of uncertainty surrounding high school athletics, among other aspects of everyday life.
But one thing is certain for sure this spring — the Lady Raiders and head coach Chris Larsen are looking to continue to build on the program’s success from the last handful of seasons.
“The girls are excited to be out here playing, practicing and are enjoying spending time together,” Larsen said. “One good thing is that some of the girls have played other sports (in the fall and winter) and gotten a taste of competition.
“Although some haven’t played since we got home, we’ve had two nice weeks of tryouts and practice. All of the girls have come to practice eager and are encouraged for the season.”
During a year that has tested athletic programs all across the country, Larsen and the Lady Raiders are optimistic about the upcoming 14-game, Sandhills Athletic Conference-only schedule.
Last spring, with a core group of six seniors, Richmond went 2-2-1 and was looking to build off a 15-5 record that landed the Lady Raiders in second place in the SAC standings (12-2 SAC). In 2019, the Lady Raiders secured a No. 8 seed in the playoffs and made it to the second round.
Now with multiple-year starters like Carley Lambeth, Avy Lucero, Aerial Spooner and Valery Standridge graduated, along with contributors Layne Maultsby and Hailey Miller, Larsen is relying on a mixture of a handful of returning starters and an influx of juniors and sophomores.
“The biggest thing is that we lost a year, and we had some girls who needed a year of varsity play as sophomores, which would have really helped our program,” Larsen explained.
“We lost that opportunity, which means there will be some growing pains to get back going, but I expect our players to grow up a lot faster on the field.”
Senior goalkeeper Kelly Hoffman makes a diving save in practice, something she hopes to do a lot of this spring.
Anchoring the team’s defense is three-year varsity goalkeeper Kelly Hoffman, who was named the SAC’s “co-goalkeeper of the year” as a sophomore. Her versatility, shot blocking, movement in net and ability to orchestrate the defense are all things Larsen said will make her a key part of the team.
In her career, Hoffman has made 85 saves (80% save percentage) and allowed just 2.7 goals per match in her 30 career games played. She’s earned four shutout wins and has stopped 4-of-6 penalty kicks she’s faced.
“Being a senior, it’s my job to be a leader and help the defense stop teams from getting down the field,” Hoffman explained.
“We are the last line of defense and it’s important to work together to stop other teams from scoring. I’m going to try and be more vocal this season and we have a chance to be first or second in the conference.”
Larsen said, “Kelly has been our keeper for three years and we expect big things from her She’s the rock in the back, and will need to take on a bigger role and lead the girls this year.”
Richmond runs a mix of a 4-5-1 or a 4-3-3 scheme depending on who the Lady Raiders are playing and the skill level of their opponents. The last line of defense ahead of Hoffman will consist of several players in new roles this spring.
Lucero, Spooner and Standridge were key backs for several years before they graduated, and not playing this season is former center back Abigail Hudson.
Larsen called them “coaches on the field,” but their departure opens the door for players like senior Shelly Hoffman (one of the team’s five seniors), juniors Destiny Barrick, Paxlee Faircloth and Meghan McKenzie, and sophomores Bobbie Faircloth, Gracie English, Cheyenne Jacobs and Kalei Sriratanakoul to find their new starting role between the four defender spots.
Sriratanakoul and Paxlee Faircloth, Larsen noted, played a lot of minutes before the pandemic started and expects all of the backs to gel together nicely this spring. Barrick is a transfer from Illinois who brings more depth to the back line.
Richmond’s midfield, Larsen explained, will be a revolving door of players who have the ability to move the ball effectively and put shots on net. Huff, who is a junior midfielder, had three goals in five matches last year and has 15 goals in her career.
As the team’s facilitator through the center of the pitch, Huff will be given the responsibility to run a potent Richmond offense. Larsen said he expects Huff to “take on a larger leadership role and give what she’s learned to her teammates.”
“It might be a little rough at first, but once we start getting more comfortable and playing more, I think our team will flow really well throughout the season,” Huff said. “With it being a younger squad, we have a lot of room to grow and that will really impact us the next couple of years.
“We are happy to be back and playing high school soccer,” she added. “All of us are having fun right now and we’re going to make the best of our season.”
Another midfielder is senior Caroline Whitley, who signed with Methodist University earlier this month. After sustaining a torn ACL at the beginning of her sophomore year, and missing most of last year because of COVID, Whitley is hungry to get back to full speed and help even out the offensive attack in the middle.
Senior midfielder Caroline Whitley works on ball control and is looking to bounce back after an ACL injury from two years ago.
Larsen admitted until the team gets a couple of games under its belt, there will be many players rotating in at inside and outside midfielder in order to find the best lineup.
Those players include senior Allyson Leggett (three-year varsity player), juniors Stephanie Alvarado, Ellie Buck, Talayeh Covington and Saniah Durham, and sophomores Rylie Bohman Jennifer Gomez, Sheccid Heaton and Karter Walker.
Of that grouping, only Buck, Heaton and Leggett saw varsity minutes last year. The rest are making the jump from junior varsity.
Up top in the primary forward position will be senior Jayla McDougald, who also scored three goals last year. Known for her speed and shiftiness around defenders, she has 10 career goals, seven as a sophomore, in 18 appearances on varsity.
“Jayla has played as our single forward the last couple years and she gets a lot of chances on net,” Larsen said. “She’s fast and has game experience. Because she’s coming off a good basketball season, she can hopefully use that competitive drive to score a lot of goals early.”
Senior Jayla McDougald, who will be Richmond’s primary forward, sends a shot on net during practice last week.
When asked about the other teams in the SAC, Larsen said “the conference is wide open” but expects Pinecrest to be a top competitor.
He added that there are four teams in the conference without JV programs, and he expects the “same types of battles and tough matchups” from last season and said the Lady Raiders will need to show up ready to play each night.
Having traversed a 14-game boys’ soccer season since the middle of January, Larsen said the quick rollover into the girls’ season will help how he and assistant coaches Michelle Denson and Bennie Howard approach situations this spring.
“It’ll take some time to figure ourselves out and build confidence to be competitive, but I do expect us to compete and be in ball games,” Larsen said. “I’m not expecting perfection in the first couple of games, but I’m hoping we can grow up quickly and play really good soccer.
“Our goals are to always be competitive, have fun, and it’s realistic that we can finish near the top of the conference,” he closed. “If they play well, like the boys did, we should be rewarded with a playoff berth.”
The Lady Raiders will play two road matches this week, the first at Purnell Swett on Monday and at Pinecrest on Wednesday. Both are set for 7 p.m. starts.
