LAURINBURG — The Richmond Senior High School boys’ bowling team saw its season-long winning streak come to an end Thursday.
Back on the lanes for the first time since before holiday break, the Raiders suffered a pair of losses to Scotland and Pinecrest high schools.
Entering the meet, Richmond had won four consecutive matches.
Competing in their fourth Sandhills Athletic Conference dual-match of the season, Richmond lost 3-2 to the Fighting Scots and 5-0 against the Patriots.
“Today was just one of those days where we couldn’t pick up the momentum and keep it going,” head coach Chris Larsen said. “If we could have kept some of the middle games against Scotland closer, we may have been able to pick up another point or two.
“We are still in a pretty good position as we head into the final third of the season,” he added. “We’ll use this as a learning opportunity and correct some things for next time.”
Between the two matches, Richmond closed 67.8% of its frames (59-of-87).
Senior James Eason led the team with an .833 closing percentage, followed by junior Landon Summerlin (.750) and junior Sam Thompson’s personal best .739.
Raiders edged by Fighting Scots
Despite a season-high 16 spares against Scotland, Richmond came up short. Game scores were 159-157, 141-204, 179-163 and 124-178 for a final pin total of 603-702.
The difference maker in the loss was the combined -117 pin differential between the second and fourth games.
Unable to complete the season sweep of the Fighting Scots, the Raiders closed 28-of-42 frames (66.7%) and added a dozen strikes. Richmond averaged 150.8 pins per game to Scotland’s 175.5.
Summerlin led the team with a .830 closing percentage, shutting down seven of his eight frames. He rolled four strikes and added three spares.
Also bowling four strikes apiece across the four games were sophomore Azariah Daniel and Thompson in the anchor. Daniel had a spare and a .625 closing percentage to with his season-high in strikes, while Thompson notched two spares (60%).
Eason impressed with a .750 closing percentage, dropping a trio of spares in his four frames. Senior Jabari Douglas and junior Landon Taylor both closed half of their frames with two and four spares, respectively.
Richmond suffers first shutout loss to Patriots
During the teams’ first meeting to open the season, the Raiders lost by just one point. But Thursday’s match ended in a shutout loss behind scores of 155-191, 177-197, 163-188 and 164-188 for a total of 659-767.
Richmond upped its closing percentage to .689 as a team with 16 strikes and 15 spares, averaging 164.8 pins per game. But that was no match for the Patriots’ average score of 191.8.
Thompson remained in the anchor spot and went 11-for-13 (85%) with a team-high five strikes and a season-best six spares.
Taylor followed with a season-best four strikes and added a spare. Eason rolled a season-high five spares and tacked on two strikes to close 83% of his frames.
Summerlin repeated his four-strike performance and recorded one spare, as he and Taylor both went 5-for-8. Daniel and Douglas closed out the scoring with a strike and a spare and a solo spare, respectively.
The Richmond boys’ bowling team (4-4) will continue SAC regular-season action next week in Aberdeen. The Raiders will face Pinecrest and Hoke County starting at 4 p.m.
