ROCKINGHAM - It’s been a while since the Richmond Raider soccer team has been able to play a competitive match, and it was looking forward to getting back in the win column Tuesday after a two-week break following the aftermath of Hurricane Florence.
But he Raiders and head coach Chris Larsen will have to wait for that win, as they dropped a crucial early-season Sandhills Athletic Conference match against Hoke County High School. Behind a gritty effort by the Bucks, Hoke County and head coach Colin McDavid escaped the Raiders 3-1.
Entering the night, Hoke County (8-1, 4-0 SAC) was in second place and undefeated in SAC play, and will remain there as the Raiders’ (4-5, 2-2 SAC) are now in a tie for third place with Lumberton High School. Richmond’s only two conference match wins this season have come against Purnell Swett (8-0) and Jack Britt (3-0).
The Bucks scored the first goal of the night right around the 20-minute mark, as Richmond senior goalkeeper Jackson Haley launched a goal kick which was possessed by Hoke County. Larsen noted the Buck player “dribbled in and made a move around” defender Evan Hudson and beat Haley to break the scoreless tie.
Before the half, it was Richmond’s Carlos Alcocer who would knot the game at one and score the Raiders’ only goal of the night. In the final minute of play, a through ball made its way to Alcocer 35 yards outside the goal, which he launched into the upper right corner of the net. It was his third goal of the season.
“I knew the first half was going to be one of those situations where we haven’t played for two weeks and we were going to have to try and get back in the swing of things,” Larsen said. “It went like I thought it would, and I was happy to be tied with a quality team like Hoke.”
But it was the second half that went to the Bucks, as they scored two unanswered goals to lock up the victory. Richmond allowed a back-post header goal for the eventual game-winner, as Hoke County added an insurance goal in the final 15 minutes on a deflection past Haley.
“You never know how a team is going to respond, having been out of school for a week,” Larsen said of Hoke County, referring to the hurricane. “But it’s no excuse for us. We just didn’t execute plays tonight or follow our game plan. We didn’t win balls out of the air and couldn’t put the ball in the back of the net.”
Trying to make up for lost time over the last two weeks, the Raiders will compete in two more matches this week, both against SAC opponents. Richmond will host Purnell Swett (3-3-2, 1-2 SAC) Wednesday, before going on the road to face Lumberton (5-5-1, 2-2 SAC) for the first time this season. Both games are scheduled for 7 p.m.
“I told the guys we need to sleep on it and refocus for tomorrow,” Larsen concluded. “The more wins we can get now, the better off we’ll be for the playoffs.”
