ROCKINGHAM — After a countdown over the last two weeks that has seen many worthy moments and games highlighted, only one can be the Top Sports Story of the 2019-2020 high school sports year.
And for anyone sitting, or standing, inside Raider Stadium on a brisk fall night on November 29, the top spot of this year’s countdown shouldn’t come as any surprise.
When the third round of the North Carolina High School Athletic Association 4AA West playoffs rolled around, the stakes were high and Richmond was ready to avenge a loss from the previous season during the same round against the same opponent.
No. 4 Myers Park High School came to Rockingham to play the No. 1 seeded Raiders, and although the Mustangs had a halftime lead, a 22-point second half by the home team led to a green and gold victory.
Junior quarterback Caleb Hood was instrumental in mounting the comeback win, rushing for a career-high four touchdowns against Drake Maye and Myers Park. The 35-32 victory moved Richmond onto the West Regional Championship against Vance High School, the first appearance for the Raiders since 2008.
Not only was the play on the field electric, but Raider Stadium was filled with nearly 10,000 fans, making the atmosphere one of the most raucous all season. With the help of their fans, the Raiders outscored Myers Park 22-11 in the second half to secure the win.
Head coach Bryan Till said the turning point was when Richmond’s defense limited the Mustangs to a 33-yard field goal with 2:22 left in the third quarter, which put the visitors up 24-13.
Hood eclipsed the goal line for the fourth and final time of the game with 3:34 left in the fourth quarter, and a Trevor Moss PAT gave the Raiders the lead for good.
“(Tonight) makes a statement of the hard work these kids are willing to put in to beat a top quality opponent,” an elated Till said after the game. “It makes the statement we can play with anybody. But more than that, it means we won the third round and we better get ready for next week.”
Below is the link to the game story, complete with postgame video interviews, written by sports editor Kyle Pillar for the Nov. 30, 2019 edition of the Richmond Observer:
Note: A series of "honorable mentions" will be featured in the coming days of moments that just missed out on the Top 10 Sports Stories countdown.
