CHARLOTTE — Not backing down from a challenge Tuesday, the Richmond Senior High School boys’ soccer team made its opponent “earn” a playoff win.
Returning to the NCHSAA postseason for the first time since 2020, the No. 20 Raiders and head coach Chris Larsen were on the brink of advancing past the first round of the 7A West bracket.
Playing at No. 13 Ballantyne Ridge High School, an unfortunate call, coupled with two late goals, led to the Raiders’ exit in the first round with a 2-0 defeat.
Tuesday’s match between Richmond and the Wolves was the second meeting this season, and like Larsen predicted earlier in the week, the Raiders played much better this time around.
When they played Aug. 28, Ballantyne Ridge defeated the Raiders 10-1, Richmond’s largest margin of defeat all season. Using that as motivation, the Raiders stuck with the Wolves in the playoffs, and at times, controlled the match’s tempo.
“Nobody really had us in this match and thought tonight was going to be a cake walk,” Larsen said. “The biggest thing is I’m so proud of the guys for the way they played tonight. We played them 0-0 through the first half and kept them scoreless to almost the midway point of the second half.
“This is a testament to the hard work the guys have put in throughout the year. To come back and play a team that beat us by our largest margin of defeat all season, and play them closely until the final minute of the match, that says a lot about our growth as a team.
“You never want to lose the last ball game, but to go out like this, I take it as a high note,” Larsen continued. “It was probably our best game we’ve played the last couple of weeks. It’s something the other team had to earn and we made them do that tonight.”
Ballantyne Ridge (12-7-3) scored the match-winning goal in the 56th minute and added an insurance goal with 51.2 seconds left in regulation.
A strong defensive effort in the first half by the Raiders saw them defend an aggressive Wolves attack, but kept them in check to take a scoreless draw into the break.
Senior goalkeeper Eric Legrand stopped a pair of shots from distance in the opening eight minutes, including a second-chance opportunity. Sophomore Allen Franco had Richmond’s first look on goal, a corner kick that was headed away in the 12th minute.
Two more key saves by Legrand over the next couple of minutes featured him using his body to deflect a tight-angled shot a few yards from the net. That led to the first of three consecutive corner kicks for the Wolves, all of which were defended and cleared by Richmond’s defense around the 17-minute mark.
Junior Kevin Diaz Lopez was the front man for the Raiders in the match, using his speed up top several times to start scoring opportunities on net. His first quality chance came in the 18th minute when he made a turning shot near the top of the box that was saved.
In addition to the defense’s solid work for Richmond, senior holding midfielder Elen Fonseca Garcia made numerous possession-changing plays against the Wolves. In the 21st minute, he made an initial clear in the danger zone, which was followed by a one-handed punching save by Legrand on a counterattack.
What proved to be a physical match that was allowed to be played out by the officials, Richmond committed a foul a foot outside the 18-yard box in the 25th minute. The Wolves’ free kick was sent in on frame, but junior outside back Cailin Moore was the first player to corral it and clear it.
The Raiders’ best chance on goal in the first half came in the 35th minute, courtesy of Franco and junior Patrick Smith. Franco made a run deep into the right third of the Wolves’ defensive zone and sent a dart across to Smith along the back post, which was headed just wide of the mark.
Standing tall in the final four minutes of the half, Legrand made a toe save on a hard shot that sent the ball wide of the mark and he saved a one-hopper from distance inside the final 30 seconds.
It was the Raiders who started the second half with the offensive momentum, led by the feet of senior Memphis Jacobs and Diaz Lopez in the 44th minute.
Gaining possession near midfield, Jacobs finessed his way through a horde of defenders to allow Diaz Lopez to make a backside run. Jacobs threaded a pass to Diaz Lopez, who went 1v1 with the keeper and scored on a low, hard shot from 10 yards.
But while the Raiders celebrated, the officials waved off the goal after Diaz Lopez was said to be offside.
Undeterred, Richmond kept up the offensive pressure and registered a shot by junior Ashton Mabe two minutes later that was just left of the netting.
Legrand, who faced many more shots than Richmond put on the opposing goalkeeper, made an athletic one-handed save a couple minutes later that was cleared by senior outside back Phoenix Jacobs.
Unfortunately, following another diving save that saw Legrand redirect the ball with his right hand, the Wolves scored the eventual game-winning goal in the 56th minute. The defense couldn’t clear it in time and Ballantyne Ridge scored on the second-chance opportunity from close range.
On the ensuing kickoff, Diaz Lopez again found himself in the danger zone with the ball, but his 1v1 rush was stopped by a sliding keeper.
In the closing 20 minutes of the match, Moore made another crucial clearing attempt when he slid near the goal mouth to knock the ball out of bounds. Senior outside back Cole Thrower and junior center back Brian Griffith contributed to several other plays that kept the Wolves at bay.
Legrand made a handful of athletic saves, again using his body to stop a barrage of shots inside the 18-yard box.
Smith had an arching shot in the 73rd minute that sailed toward the net but was caught by the keeper. Still trailing by a goal, Larsen moved more players into attacking positions but the Raiders couldn’t score.
The Wolves’ second goal came inside the final minute on a rush down the right side that was well-placed in the upper left corner along the back post.
Richmond’s last chance to score came on a corner kick with 10 seconds to play, but the Wolves’ defense cleared it out.
“I thought we had the first goal of the match with Kevin’s shot, but he was a step or two offside,” Larsen commented. “We had another great chance with Patrick on the back post in the first half.
“I’m proud of the seniors,” he concluded. “Each of them did what was asked of him, whether that was as a role player or otherwise. They’ll be missed as part of our program but I’m glad they got to experience playoff soccer to end their career.”
Looking ahead, Larsen said he’s excited about the group of returning players who will get the opportunity to “fill those roles” left vacant by the seniors.
The Raiders finished the 2025 season with an overall record of 8-13-2, three wins more than last fall. Richmond was fourth in the 8A/7A Mid-South Conference with a 3-6-1 record.
Across its 23 matches, Richmond averaged 1.52 goals per match and allowed 2.48 goals against per match.
Leading the team in goals during his final season was Jacobs with seven goals. Diaz Lopez was second with six goals and junior Cole Lambeth had four goals.
The Richmond Observer will publish an article when the All-MSC team is released.
Sports editor’s note: A numerical roster for Ballantyne Ridge was not available on MaxPreps.
