Home Local Sports Goals galore: 8 Raiders score in mercy-rule win over Uwharrie Charter

Goals galore: 8 Raiders score in mercy-rule win over Uwharrie Charter

Junior Landon Summerlin (3) scores his team-high second goal of Wednesday's 9-0 win. (Kyle Pillar, sports editor)

ASHEBORO — The Richmond Raider soccer team found the back of the net in waves on Wednesday.

Playing their final match of the second week of the season at Presnell Park, the Raiders took a non-conference meeting with Uwharrie Charter Academy by a final score of 9-0.

Using eight different scorers, the Raiders notched their first mercy-rule victory since March 8, 2020, an nine-goal victory over Seventy-First High School. The game-ending goal was scored with six minutes left in regulation.

It was the first goal of the season for six of the eight scorers — seniors Gio Armenta and Sam Hawks, juniors Noah Gil, Matthew Leggett and Landon Summerlin, and sophomore Memphis Jacobs.

Senior Jesus Castro netted his second goal, while fellow senior James Eason notched his team-leading third goal of the fall.

Summerlin scored twice to lead the team, while Jacobs added two assists. Hawks finished the match with one assist.

Coming off a pair of shutout losses, the Raiders reentered the win column with three goals in the first half and six tallies in the final 40 minutes of play.

Senior Sam Hawks (5), who had a goal and an assist, nets his first goal of the season on Wednesday. (Kyle Pillar/The Richmond Observer)

It didn’t take long for the Raiders to score, using an aggressive attack to put pressure on the Eagles’ defense, which remained a constant throughout the match. 

Gil became the first of three Raiders to score in the opening half in the seventh minute. Finishing a run into the box, Gil blasted a shot from a tight angle inside the 6-yard box that deflected off the keeper’s lower body and into the goal. 

Richmond continued to pepper the goal the rest of the half, putting 14 total shots on net. Castro led the team with three shots in the early going.

Eason and senior Vernan McDonald both went wide left before Richmond found the net again in the 20th minute. 

This time it was Jacobs, who ripped a shot from 20 yards. He arced the ball into the upper left corner past the keeper.

Summerlin gave the Raiders a three-goal cushion going into the break with another long-distance goal in the 30th minute. Creating space, he used his left foot to send a strike into the net from 25 yards out.

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Junior Noah Gil (11) watches as his goal crosses into the net in the seventh minute. (Kyle Pillar/The Richmond Observer)

The Raiders capitalized six more times on just eight recorded shots in the second half. Castro’s four total shots led Richmond, while Eason, Hawks and Summerlin all finished with three shots.

Richmond’s defense limited Uwharrie Charter (2-1) to just four shots during the game.

Five minutes into the second stanza, Summerlin found twine for the second time. Jacobs, who earned his first of two assists, slid the ball across the box to the left side. Taking a touch, Summerlin booted a low shot into the goal.

In the 47th minute, Castro joined the scoring when he finished a solo run down the middle of the field. He blasted the ball from the top of the 18-yard box and scored just under the crossbar.

Hawks, who had been around the goal all night, was rewarded in the 56th minute. Jacobs started a give-and-go inside the box for the assist, which was finished by Hawks past a sliding defender on a low shot to the right side. 

Leading 6-0, Richmond netted its final three goals in a nine-minute span between the 63rd and 74th minutes.

Eason finished off a play set up by Hawks, who sent the ball to the top of the box after making a run down the left side. Scoring from 15 yards out was Eason.

Leggett’s goal came in the 67th minute when his shot hit a defender and was redirected into the net. Capping the win was Armenta, who tallied a goal from 20 yards out on a strike.

Junior goalkeeper Adrian Padron played the majority of the match between the posts. Completing the team’s first shutout of the season for the final third of the game in net was senior Edwin Estrada.

Sophomore Memphis Jacobs (4) had a goal and two assists in Wednesday’s win. (Kyle Pillar/The Richmond Observer)

The Raiders (2-2) will travel again on Monday to non-conference Sun Valley High School (1-1-1) and begin at 7 p.m.

Sports editor’s note: The Richmond junior varsity soccer team (1-1-1) didn’t play on Wednesday and will return on Monday at Sun Valley. Play will begin at 5:30 p.m.



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Kyle Pillar is a 22-time North Carolina Press Association award-winning sports editor with The Richmond Observer. Follow the sports department on X @ROSports_ for the best in-depth coverage of Richmond County sports.