ROCKINGHAM — The Richmond Senior High School boys’ soccer team couldn’t recover from early mistakes in Wednesday’s match.
Trying to extend their season-long winning streak to four matches, the Raiders fell behind early and suffered a 3-1 loss to Jack Britt High School.
The Mid-South Conference match started with Richmond down two goals at halftime. The Raiders trailed by as many as three goals before finding the back of the net in the closing 10 minutes.
Scoring Richmond’s goal was junior center back Brian Griffith on a penalty kick.
“Our biggest problem tonight was we got complacent after going on a little winning streak,” head coach Chris Larsen said. “We got away from doing what was making us successful and we got behind the eight ball early. Then when we were able to correct those things, it was just a little too late for us to overcome a two-goal deficit.
“I’m glad we were able to get a goal toward the end,” he added. “We put ourselves in a position to score and were fortunate to draw a foul in the box. Brian made a nice shot and I’m happy for him to get his first goal of the season.”
Jack Britt scored twice in the first half to take a 2-0 lead. The first goal was scored on a low shot inside the box that banged off the left post and angled its way past junior goalkeeper Eric Legrand in the 15th minute.
The Buccaneers’ second goal was a lucky bounce for them in the 25th minute. On a cross in the box, a deflection attempt resulted in an own goal by Richmond.
Richmond had a couple of chances to find the back of the net early in the first half. Junior Cole Lambeth sent a shot whizzing just over the crossbar 40 seconds into the match.
Griffith made a turning shot that went wide a minute before Jack Britt’s first goal, collecting a second-chance opportunity on a free kick by junior Cailin Moore.
Blasting a shot off the bar on a free kick was senior Elen Fonseca Garcia in the 19th minute. Richmond’s last good look came in the closing seconds of the half when senior Memphis Jacobs nearly headed the ball in on a Fonseca Garcia free kick.
The second half followed a similar pattern for both teams. Richmond wasn’t able to make the necessary adjustments at halftime and allowed one more goal.
Jack Britt scored its final goal in the 50th minute. A run into the box created a 1v1 chance and a low shot was squeezed between the post and senior goalkeeper Camden Williams.
Franco helped create the Raiders’ lone goal in the 72nd minute when he made a charge into the box and was fouled. Awarded a penalty kick, Larsen sent Griffith to the line.
Taking advantage of the open look on net, Griffith rocketed a shot to the right side of the net for the tally. It was his first goal of the season.
Other scoring chances in the second half for Richmond included a run on net by Lambeth in the 49th minute that almost saw him connect on a cross from Franco but was scooped up by the keeper.
Later in the 61st minute, senior DJ Gainey chipped a shot over a charging keeper and the defense that missed wide of the net by less than a foot.
In the final three minutes, junior Bryan Mendez Mendoza sent a corner kick from the left side to the back post, but no Raider was able to make contact with the ball.
“We’ll get back to the drawing board tomorrow and see what we can do to fix our mistakes,” Larsen closed. “We’ve got another big match Monday and we’ll see if we can’t get geared up to get back in the win column.”
Richmond (5-7-1, 1-1 MSC) returns to the pitch Monday at Hoke County High School (7-2-3, 1-0 MSC) for another conference contest. Action will start at 7 p.m.
JV Raiders lose first conference match
Taking an early lead during Monday’s conference match, the Richmond junior varsity boys’ soccer let second-half mistakes lead to a loss.
Hosting Jack Britt, the JV Raiders let a two-goal second half lead slip away and end in a 3-2 defeat.
Scoring late in the first half to give Richmond a 1-0 lead at the break was freshman Eduardo Soriano Serrano.
Adding to the lead to begin the second half was sophomore Kerick Hairston Jr., who made it 2-0.
Jack Britt scored three unanswered goals in the second half, including its final goal on a penalty kick with two minutes left in the game after Richmond was whistled for a foul on a slide tackle in the box.
The JV Raiders (7-5, 1-1 MSC) play at Hoke County Monday starting at 5 p.m.
