LAURINBURG — Cooler heads prevailed for the Richmond Senior High School boys’ soccer team during what turned out to be a physical Sandhills Athletic Conference match Wednesday.
In their penultimate regular season match at Scotland High School, the Raiders used a pair of first-half goals to spoil the Fighting Scots’ senior night comeback attempt.
Tallies by junior Memphis Jacobs and senior Noah Gil kept Richmond ahead for a 2-1 victory.
The tussle between the Raiders and Fighting Scots yielded a total of 10 yellow cards, three red cards and one coach ejection. Richmond had just two of the yellow cards, both given in the second half.
Scotland, which played the final 24:25 down at least one player, held on and managed to score despite the disadvantage.
Two more red cards, one being the result of a second yellow card, in the 68th and 74th minutes allowed just eight players on the field for the Fighting Scots.
The first 15 minutes of the match were dominated by Richmond’s attack. Junior German Fonseca (header) and senior Landon Summerlin each had a shot on or near frame.
Gil put a roller on frame and kissed the left post on a rush two minutes apart. That pressure led to Jacobs’ goal in the 11th minute.
After Scotland failed to clear the ball entirely out of its defensive third, the ball found Jacobs alone in space along the left side of the 18-yard box.
Chipping a shot from distance, Jacobs’ ball sailed into the net along the back post, which he said was intended as a pass for Gil.
The Fighting Scots (2-12-2, 0-12 SAC) then switched momentum and gave Richmond’s defense some unwanted pressure.
Senior goalkeeper Adrian Padron made a stop in the box in the 16th minute and junior defender Phoenix Jacobs used his heel to save a potential goal a few minutes later.
Gil padded Richmond’s lead to two goals in the 35th minute following a foul in the box by Scotland.
Taking the PK, Gil boomed his shot low and to his left to sneak it inside the post.
Padron had to make two saves on a pair of long free kicks in the final couple of minutes of the first half, the second of which he tipped and got a lucky bounce off the right post to keep it out of the net.
A flurry of yellow cards awarded to Scotland is how the second half started, which gave Richmond a couple of looks on net.
In less than a minute on the game clock in the 55th minute, Scotland saw its coach ejected (double yellow) and a player given a straight red card following a tackle.
Most of the action between the two teams focused on the physical play as the Raiders were given yellow cards in the 65th and 72nd minutes. Between those two infractions, another Scotland player was given a straight red card.
The Fighting Scots benefitted as a result of Richmond’s second yellow card.
Taking a free kick from outside the 18-yard box, senior Myles Norton sent a dart that knuckled itself between the outstretched hands of Padron and the crossbar for Scotland’s goal.
One final red card (double yellow) gave the Raiders a three-man advantage on the field. Junior Cayden Gillenwater made back-to-back runs down the right side of the box and put shots on frame, but didn’t score.
For the remaining few minutes of the match, Richmond played keepaway and held on for the win.
The Raiders (5-13-2, 4-6-1 SAC) will close their regular season at home Tuesday against Hoke County High School (9-9-2, 3-7-1 SAC).
Currently, Richmond is fifth in the SAC standings and leads the Bucks by a game. Action will start at 7 p.m.
Sports editor’s note: The Richmond junior varsity soccer team didn’t play Wednesday.
