Late goal called off, Raiders edged by Vikings

CAMERON — Everywhere but in the net is where the Richmond Senior High School boys’ soccer team was Monday.

Trying to keep their recent hot streak alive, the Raiders peppered the goal with shots but fell in a close contest on the road at Union Pines High School.

Continuing the latter half of Sandhills Athletic Conference action, Richmond lost 1-0 to the Vikings.

“We gave up a goal early on a questionable handball in the box,” head coach Chris Larsen said. “But we kept fighting because we had more than 75 minutes to play. The guys did a good job of fighting until the very end.

“Noah (Gil) had a couple of 1v1 opportunities in each half that their keeper made some fantastic stops on. I was pleased with our set pieces tonight and the close chances we were able to get with them.”

Union Pines scored the match’s only goal in the fourth minute after what Larsen said was a “questionable handball” inside the 18-yard box.

Taking the penalty shot for the Vikings (7-8-2, 4-3-2 SAC) was Roberto Hilbert, who put the ball low and left past senior goalkeeper Adrian Padron.

Richmond possessed the ball for much of the first and second half in Union Pines’ territory but came away empty.

In the match’s closing 30 minutes, the Raiders had several quality chances on frame. Senior Landon Summerlin sent a free kick into the box that was headed by Gil in the 52nd minute, and on the redirect, junior Elen Fonseca’s shot went just high.

Two more chances over the next two minutes off corner kicks saw bouncing balls inside the danger zone cleared away by the Vikings’ defense.

Padron kept it a one-goal game in the 59th minute, leaping to punch a free kick on frame up and over the crossbar near the upper right corner.

Gil had a pair of chances late, starting with a slide from the left side in the 76th minute. His pass intended for junior Memphis Jacobs nearly got to its mark, but a bang-bang play by the keeper stopped the shot.

Making a run with 80 seconds left in regulation, Gil took a long pass and maneuvered around a defender. Creating space and getting the keeper off his line, Gil booted a shot into the net but was whistled for offsides, another call Larsen said was “questionable.”

“We were everywhere except for the back of the net tonight,” Larsen closed. “It’s not the outcome we wanted but the guys did some good things.

“Our path to the extra games is a little different than we expected, but I think we can make it happen if we continue with this focus and continue playing well these last four ball games.”

The Raiders (4-11-2, 3-5-1 SAC) return home Wednesday to host Lee County High School (8-9, 5-3 SAC). The two teams will begin at 7 p.m.

JV Raiders draw with JV Vikings

An early lead during Monday’s match wasn’t able to be sustained by the Richmond junior varsity boys’ soccer team.

Leading by a goal at halftime, the JV Raiders ended in a 1-1 draw with Union Pines.

Scoring for Richmond was freshman Ari McLendon, who netted a through ball on an assist from freshman Allen Franco.

“In our last three games, we haven’t been playing to our potential,” head coach Bennie Howard said. “We’re trying to figure out what’s going on, but we’re still playing with some individualism and not making the extra pass.

“Now we have to get ready for a home match Wednesday and try to right the ship. We have to play well in our final three matches if we want to have a winning record.”

The JV Raiders (7-6-3 4-2-2 SAC) are also home Wednesday against Lee County. The match is set to start at 5:15 p.m.