LAURINBURG — On the brink of defeat Thursday, the Richmond Senior High School volleyball team put together its best rally of the season.
Getting back into the win column was made even sweeter for the Lady Raiders thanks to a season non-conference series sweep over rival Scotland High School.
Trailing by two sets, Richmond dug in and fought back to earn a 3-2 victory, its first five-set contest of the season.
Set scores were 12-25, 17-25, 25-22, 25-20 and 15-13.
In the decisive fifth set, Richmond jumped out to a 9-3 lead and took a timeout when Scotland cut its deficit to 11-8.
Ahead 14-13, Richmond earned the match point when a Scotland hitting error sailed out of bounds across the back line.
“We were down two sets, so I was really proud of the girls for fighting back,” head coach Ashleigh Larsen said. “Winning those last three sets was a really great performance by the team.
“We made our usual mistakes early, but we were able to capitalize on some of Scotland’s. We had some hot hitters tonight, too. Madisen Jackson had herself a game, broke out of her shell and found her swing.
“Riley McDonald had a great game at the net, and KG Smith had a great game serving,” Larsen added. “In the fourth set, KG went on a long serving run that kept us in it.”
Larsen noted that Richmond was able to complete the comeback by fixing its costly mistakes from the first two sets. Another key was “challenging Molly Gallagher at the net,” a player Larsen called a great hitter.
The Lady Raiders, now 6-3 this season, begin Mid-South Conference play at Pine Forest High School (0-8) Tuesday. First serve will go up at 6:30 p.m.
JV Lady Raiders sweep Scotland
It was also a victorious outing for the Richmond junior varsity volleyball team Thursday.
Replicating last week’s meeting, the JV Lady Raiders earned a 2-0 sweep behind scores of 25-17 and 26-24.
“I’m very proud of the girls,” head coach Melissa Dennis said. “The second set was close the whole time and they found a way to keep fighting and earn the shutout.”
The JV Lady Raiders (4-5) also play at Pine Forest Tuesday. The match is scheduled for 5 p.m.
Sports editor’s note: Deon Cranford III contributed to this article.
