RAEFORD — The Richmond wrestling team has taking its lumps and bruises this season, but the Raiders finally were able to get the best of a Mid-Southeastern Conference opponent on Wednesday.

The Raiders picked up their first league victory of the season with a 42-36 win over Hoke County.

“All year long, the kids have been competing hard, and I was glad for the them to finally get one,” Raiders coach Ken Neal said.

Richmond (3-14, 1-6 MSEC) won seven out of the 14 matches against the Bucks. Chad Wright at 119 pounds, Wesley Mason at 140, Antonie Bostick at 152 and Tony Mora at 189 all won by pinfall.

In addition, Zack Covington at 125, Jonathon Taylor at 130 and Justin Flores all won their matches by Hoke forfeits.

According to Neal, the Raiders l had to forfeit matches as well at 103, 112, 145 and 171 pounds due to injury, not making weight or simply not having someone in a weight class.

“They had the same problems we had in terms of forfeits, but we were able to outwrestle them in the other matches,” Neal said. “We didn’t do anything fancy, and we concentrated on the things that we haven’t done in the past.”

The Raiders are scheduled to wrestle in the conference tournament at Hoke on Saturday beginning at 9 a.m.

Rockingham splits with Anson

The Rockingham Middle School boys’ basketball team rolled past Anson 69-48 to improve their record to 13-0 on the season.

Dakwa Nichols scored a game-high 26 points, while Jordan Richardson had 13 points, Drew Butler added 11 points and Kenneth Lancaster chipped in with 10 points.

The Rockingham Middle School girls basketball team lost 38-34 to Anson.

Shaquail Wall scored 14 points and Kevyna Stanback had 10 points in the loss.

Rockingham will play host to Hamlet on Monday.

Rohanen rolls

The Rohanen Middle School boys’ basketball team won 38-8 over Ellerbe Wednesday. Damien Brayboy scored a team-high 10 points.

The Rohanen Middle School girls’ basketball team knocked off the Lady Wildcats 34-14.

Kadijah Harrington led the way with 11 points.

The Rebels’ basketball teams will play host to Anson on Tuesday starting at 4 p.m.

Gold boys win second straight

The Richmond Ninth Grade Academy Gold boys basketball team won its second straight since a 76-47 defeat to Scotland on Jan. 12.

The Gold team cruised past Hoke County 73-42 at Rohanen Middle School on Tuesday.

“I tried to change our atmosphere, and stress playing team ball,” Gold team coach Derrick Watkins said. “I’ve been telling our point guard Tuquan McDonald if he can incorporate his teammates, and get them good shots, then it will allow him to get better looks as well. He was feeding our guys in the paint, and they were converting. Right now, our team is playing unselfish basketball.”

Trey Little scored a team-high 20 points, while Jammal Kegler and McDonald both scored 17 points.

The Gold team (6-6) plays at Lumberton today following the girls game.

Gold girls stay perfect

The Richmond Ninth Grade Academy Gold girls’ basketball team continued its unblemished season by improving its record to 9-0 with a 58-28 win over Hoke on Tuesday.

Deshantia Bell, Taylor Diggs and Brittany Hudson all scored 13 apiece in leading the Gold team to victory.

“We hadn’t played in a week-and-a-half, and the girls played good even with the limited practice time,” Gold team coach Daryl Wright said. “We were able to put a lot of pressure on the ball, and we forced 18 turnovers in the first half. Hopefully, we keep playing solid and not overlook any our teams left on the schedule.”

The Gold team play at Lumberton today at 5 p.m.