ROCKINGHAM — Richmond Senior’s varsity soccer team celebrated a historic win Monday night after besting PInecrest for the first time in a decade.
A goal in each half from Allen Franco helped the Raiders secure the 2-1 victory on their home field against the Patriots.
Patrick Smith had an assist on the second goal.
The Pinecrest players took multiple shots which were blocked or caught by Richmond goalkeeper Eric Legrand, and the Patriots’ only goal was on a free kick by Tyler Kelso in the second half. Legrand had 10 saves.
“It’s been a while,” head coach Chris Larsen said after the win.
Although one game in 2023 ended in a tie, Richmond’s last win over Pinecrest was on Oct. 17, 2016.
“We’ve had some close ones over the last handful of years, but tonight — on Senior Night — these guys were able to do something we ain’t done in a while,” Larsen said. “For those guys, I’m really excited. I’m really happy for them.”
The Richmond Senior varsity soccer team poses for a photo following a 2-1 win over Pinecrest.
William R. Toler - Richmond Observer
Richmond finishes the regular season fourth in the Mid-South 7A/8A Conference with a 4-5-1 record — behind Hoke County (No. 1, 8-1-1), Pinecrest (No. 2, 6-3-1) and Jack Britt (No. 3, 6-3-1) — and an overall record of 11-9-3.
“I think, tonight, we waited until the very last game to finally put together a full match,” Larsen said, “but it’s a great way to finish the regular season.”
Larsen said that with Monday night’s win, Richmond may get the opportunity to host a playoff game for the first time in years. That schedule is expected to be announced Oct. 29.
“At the end of the night, I’m really proud of this senior group,” Larsen continued. “I know some of them got sparing minutes here and there, but as I’ve been preaching to them all year long, it’s a team effort.
“The biggest thing I’m proud of as a coach is that they celebrated as a unit tonight,” Larsen added. “It didn’t matter — junior, senior, sophomore, freshman … they all celebrated the victory together.”
Larsen said he hopes that’s a sign of the things to come “and we can continue this journey for another two to three ballgames.”
The junior varsity team fell 2-1, with Mason Huff scoring a goal in a scramble at the net in the closing minute of the first half. Goalkeeper Drew Moree had eight saves during the game.
The JV team finished the season third with a 6-4 conference record and 13-5-3 overall, behind Jack Britt (No. 1, 9-0-1) and Pinecrest (No. 2, 7-1-1).
Deon Cranford contributed to this story.
See more photos from both games at the RO's Facebook page.
