ROCKINGHAM – The Richmond Raider soccer team faced a known enemy to open their season on Tuesday, skipping a half-time tie against Lumberton High School in the final 40 minutes.
The Raiders went 1-1 with the Pirates at halftime, but three unanswered goals from Lumberton in the second half resulted in a 4-1 defeat.
Head coach Chris Larsen noted that while the team didn’t get the result they wanted, playing a tough first game will serve as a learning experience for the Raiders.
“I saw some things tonight that I wanted to improve through our scrimmages and training,” said Larsen. “We did some good runs and had more chances than last year.
“The boys played well and knocked the ball down but we just fell asleep in the second half,” he added. “Tonight will help us move forward when we play in a tough conference that could have some tough nights against good teams.”
Lumberton took an early lead in the 14th minute when Junior Alexis Lopez hit senior goalkeeper Ian Williams with a roll into the back corner of the net.
Only 47 seconds later, senior striker Luke Williams signed up for the Raiders. In a counterattack from midfield, senior Alex Medina threaded a pass through the traffic to Williams on the right side of the 18-meter space.
Williams, who led the Raiders by 12 goals last year, took a touch and fired a shot from 15 yards to the far post to tie the game in a knot.
“Alex is always looking for me and I just did my run and he found me,” Williams explained. “It was a great pass and I scored the goal.”
Richmond had a few other chances in the first half, including a Williams free kick that sailed over the bar. Senior Justin McDougald shot a shot from the far left in the 35th minute and Junior Jeremiah McLean missed from a corner.
Senior midfielder Alex Medina, 6, was credited with assisting in Tuesday’s loss. (Kyle Pillar / The Richmond Observer)
The Pirates broke the game in the first seven minutes of the second half and scored two goals. Junior Jair Santos and Senior Julian McGarahan scored in the 45th and 48th minutes, respectively.
After a 3-1 deficit, Medina gave the Raiders two chances for a free kick in the 50th minute and sent the first shot on the frame before missing the rebound.
A few minutes later, senior colleague Pedro Molina missed a shot to the left, and Richmond’s last big chance was a Medina one-hopper for the keeper in the 53rd minute.
Lumberton’s final goal came in the 67th minute, a transfer from senior Ashton Sumpter after a corner kick from the left.
“We have to learn to communicate with each other, which we didn’t do tonight,” said Cody Eason, a senior midfielder. “When Lumberton put the ball in we couldn’t clear it, so we have to work on making that better.
“I think we will continue to grow together as a team,” he added. “As seniors, we have to get things done that we haven’t done well in practice.”
At the beginning of the season, Larsen said that Tuesday’s game also gave him the opportunity to further evaluate the line-up and make the necessary adjustments.
“We have good starting players with 11, 12 or 13 players that I can move,” remarked Larsen. “Luke and Alex picked up where they left off and made some good follow-up passes. The guys who played last year also put on weight and played well.
“It’s a learning curve right now, especially when we get going,” he continued. “Our backline played pretty well as they were a whole new group apart from one man.”
The Raiders (0-1) will play another non-conference match on the streets at Pine Forest High School on Wednesday. Varsity, looking for his first win, starts at 7pm
“We’ll have a quick turn and play in Pine Forest and hopefully take a win,” concluded Larsen.
JV Raiders defeat pirates in the opener
The Richmond junior soccer team won a season opener against Lumberton on Tuesday. The JV Raiders won 4-2.
Sophomore James Eason scored three goals in the win while his sophomore Samuel Hawks was credited with a record when Lumberton scored an own goal.
Both JV Pirates goals came on penalties from Jan Carlos Martinez. Richmond goalkeeper Edwin Estrada stopped on Martinez’s third PK attempt.
Coach Bennie Howard and the JV Raiders (1-0) will also play in Pine Forest on Wednesday from 5 p.m.
