ROCKINGHAM — The script was flipped Wednesday during Richmond’s second meeting this season with Southern Lee High School.
The Lady Raider soccer team evened its series with the Lady Cavaliers, earning a 5-2 victory on their home pitch.
A night after netting nine goals against Scotland High School, Richmond showed off its ability to score from distance. The win also put an exclamation point on the Lady Raiders’ Sandhills Athletic Conference schedule.
Senior Ashly Gonzalez and junior Jentry Denson each scored two goals from long range, and senior Mariana Mendez added the other tally.
The Lady Raiders held a 2-0 lead at halftime and outscored Southern Lee 3-2 in the final 40 minutes of play.
Richmond’s passing was on point in the first half, which led to open lanes and opportunities on net. Senior Hanna Smith and sophomore Colbie Covington each had two shots on goal in the opening eight minutes to set the tone.
A hustle play in the keeper’s box saw sophomore Mariana Gonzalez take a shot from close range that was stopped after she lost her footing.
Senior goalkeeper Sa’Quanna Bostic faced one quality shot in the first half, diving to her right to deflect the ball wide in the 23rd minute. The Lady Raiders’ defense blocked numerous shot attempts and kept Southern Lee out of its attacking third.
Ashly Gonzalez broke the scoreless tie in the 30th minute with her first goal of the night and third of four goals in two matches. Collecting a pass outside the top of the 18-yard box, she sent a low strike through traffic that banged off the left post and into the net.
Keeping the attacking pressure on, freshman Erin Drumwright nearly scored when her shot sailed over the bar a few minutes later.
With the clock winding inside of two minutes, Denson stopped a clearing attempt and took two touches to create space for her first goal. Sending a shot on net from 35 yards, Denson made it 2-0 when the goalkeeper deflected the ball up into the crossbar, which then cascaded into the net.
Southern Lee (12-5-1, 6-3-1 SAC) upped its intensity in the second half, forcing Bostic to make a pair of quality saves in the 57th and 59th minutes. The first one saw Bostic make a sliding stop coming off her line and the other was a punch save on a free kick that was on net.
Just over a minute after freshman Mavery Hooks nearly scored on a back post run, Denson recorded her second goal of the match in the 69th minute. Taking a free kick from 40 yards, Denson sent a dart into the back of the net that was perfectly placed between the keeper and the crossbar.
The Lady Cavaliers cut their deficit back to two goals with a tally in the 70th minute, but Mendez opened the lead back to three goals in the 71st minute. Collecting a loose ball inside the 18-yard box, Mendez had enough power on her shot to get the ball into the net after deflecting off the keeper.
Another flurry of offensive action resulted in the final two goals of the match, one for each team.
Gonzalez gave the Lady Raiders their largest lead of the night with her second tally in the 76th minute, a blistering shot from 30 yards that the keeper never saw. Southern Lee’s final goal was scored less than a minute later.
With the win, the Lady Raiders ended their SAC schedule with a 5-7 record and currently sit in fifth place.
The Lady Raiders (8-10-1, 5-7 SAC) will close out their three-match week Friday with a non-conference home match against Clinton High School (10-7-2). Action will start at 6 p.m.
