ROCKINGHAM — One of its fiercest non-conference opponents each season snuck out a win against the Richmond Senior High School volleyball team Thursday.
Back on their home court for the first time in over a week, the Lady Raiders battled Uwharrie Charter Academy.
Despite what head coach Ashleigh Larsen called a “close match at times,” Richmond surrendered a 3-0 loss. Final set scores were 19-25, 20-25 and 13-25.
Thursday’s defeat marked the seventh straight loss for the Lady Raiders against the Lady Eagles dating back to the 2021 season.
“In the first set we were down nine points and we were able to come back and close it up a little bit,” Larsen said. “I thought we were going to roll that momentum over into the second, and we did for a little bit, but we got stuck in a serve-receive.
“(Uwharrie Charter) served eight or nine points in a row. I called a timeout in the middle of it but it didn’t help. They were smart and aggressive servers, whether it was top spin or roll.
“I think we made a few mental errors tonight and we weren’t able to get things rolling like Tuesday,” she added. “There are a few things we need to tweak and I hope tonight made the girls hungry going into next week.”
Richmond (3-2) will begin a three-match week Monday at home against Montgomery Central High School (2-3).
In the two-match regular-season series finale, the Lady Raiders will go for the sweep at 6 p.m.
JV Lady Raiders also swept
It was also a tough go for the Richmond junior varsity volleyball team Thursday against Uwharrie Charter.
In their home match, the JV Lady Raiders fell short 2-0. Set scores were 16-25 and 11-25.
“We lost momentum early on and it was hard to get it back,” head coach Melissa Dennis said. “We had some great serves but that alone wasn’t enough to keep us rolling.
“We plan to work hard at practice and are going to get ready for next week.”
The JV Lady Raiders (2-2) will also host Montgomery Central Monday. First serve is set for 5 p.m.
Sports editor’s note: No official stats were available at the time of publication.