SOUTHERN PINES — The Richmond boys soccer team didn’t back down from the challenge when it traveled to Pinecrest on Wednesday, but its effort still wasn’t enough to defeat the reigning conference champions on their home field.
It was a physical matchup that went into halftime tied up at 1-all after Patriot sophomore Johnny Grgurevic pummeled a shot into the back of the net in the 14th minute and Raider senior Alexis Gonzalez countered with a header in the 24th.
Grgurevic’s goal came on an assist from teammate Jair Ballesteros, junior midfielder, while Gonzalez was able to outjump three Pinecrest defenders — including its keeper — and poke the ball into a wide-open net with his head.
Pinecrest (4-1, 2-0 SAC) was able to score two more goals in the second half, however, and grabbed the 3-1 victory over Richmond (2-3, 1-1 SAC) in the teams’ first meeting of the regular season.
Jasper Ardinger, junior midfielder, helped the Patriots regain the lead with a goal in the 47th minute — following a dribbling display by teammate Jasper Ardinger — and Braydon Peery, senior defender, sealed the deal for the home team with 9:24 left in the game.
The Raiders will turn right around and host Lee County on Thursday at 7 p.m.
NOTE: The full version of this story will be available for subscribers of the Daily Journal in the print and e-editions on Thursday, August 30, 2018.
Richmond’s Alexis Gonzalez (10) looks to corral the ball in the first half of Wednesday’s match at Pinecrest. Gonzalez was the only Raider to score, his first goal of the season, in the 3-1 loss.