RICHMOND

Recent history has proven that if you try to play an open, end-to-end match with the Richmond High School girls soccer team, you don’t have much of a chance.

One thing you can do? Pack it in.

Searsport did just that in Wednesday’s Class D South regional final and, aside from a couple sequences, was successful. Despite a huge chunk of the ball, Richmond was visibly frustrated and pressing for a goal throughout.

But, like they always seem to do, the Bobcats made those sequences count. Like they always seem to do, they found a way to score and played lockdown defense.

The result was a 2-0 win and a trip to the state final for a seventh consecutive season.

“It was very frustrating,” senior captain Meranda Martin said. “Having lots of people back there, a lot of traffic. You’d get the ball, you’d go to turn, and there’d be three or four people right there around you. It was very frustrating, but we just had to do what we could.”

No. 1 Richmond (16-1) got the shooting spree started early, firing two shots on the No. 6 Searsport (7-10) net in the opening minute. Keeper Brooklynn Alberts quickly realized what she’d be facing all afternoon, saving one take and watching the other sail over the bar.

Like many opponents that visit Richmond High School, the Vikings set up five defenders in front of Alberts at all times to try and combat Martin and the Bobcats’ offense. On one hand, the net was well protected. On the other hand, there was often space on top of the 18-yard box to shoot.

Sophomore Destiny Anair took advantage of the space in the ninth minute, settling a bumpy pass from Caitlin Kendrick and lofting it over Alberts’ head to make the score 1-0. At that point, it looked like Richmond might have a slew of those chances outside the box and that Alberts might be picking the ball out of the net multiple times.

Only the former was true.

The Bobcats went on to take 14 more shots in the first half, putting six on frame and pouncing on a few rebounds. Anair had another long shot saved and a third soar wide of the frame. In the final seconds of the frame, Alberts saved a free kick and kept the score at 1-0.

“We talk about it a lot at practice,” Martin said. “We’re going to see the bunkers a lot. We just preach to everyone we need to swing the ball, switch fields a lot, quickly. We need to drop it back. We need shots from the outside and we need to crash the net. It’s just going to get bobbled around in there and you need to be sniffing around.”

“It’s tough for the kids because obviously we aren’t prolific scorers,” Richmond coach Troy Kendrick said. “We work hard for goals. It was nice to see us creating those good chances. We’re always looking for ‘are we creating, are we getting good looks?’”

More of the same

The frustration carried right over into the second half, as winger Ashley Brown hit the post twice in the opening two minutes. In the 63rd minute, another shot flew off the post and found its way to Martin, who saw her rebound attempt blocked away by Alberts from a few yards out. Still in danger, the ball was redirected toward the frame and narrowly hit out for a corner.

Richmond couldn’t buy a goal.

“I tried to tell myself, too, ‘just relax. Keep your composure. Just keep plugging away and we’ll get that insurance goal.’ So, it was frustrating, but the kids hung in there and worked really hard. I’m really proud of that effort,” Kendrick said.

Finally, after 14 more shot attempts and six corners, the effort paid off. With 4:03 on the clock, Anair whipped in a corner from the far side and watched Martin time her jump perfectly and head it in past Alberts. The way things were going, it was a fitting goal — scored by a fitting player in the final home match of her long career.

“Just a great role model,” Kendrick said of Martin. “She’s a kid you can just hang your hat on. You know she’s never going to quit, she’s going to keep plugging away. I’m happy for her, because she deserves all the accolades she gets. Very positive, very hard worker. You never hear a negative word come out of her mouth.”

Martin played a lot of the match up top, but also moved back into the midfield and aided the defense that kept it all together for the Bobcats. With the all the possession, they held Searsport to just three total shots and one corner.

It was always under control.

“I felt like we had possession most of the time,” senior captain Camryn Hurley said. “That definitely helped with the confidence. We just had to figure out how to swing it and take outside shots.”

One thing the possession did was keep the ball away from Searsport’s Karigen Coffin, who Kendrick said has scored around 80 goals in her career.

“Obviously, going in, we wanted to be aware of the (Karigen) Coffin girl,” Kendrick said. “We wanted possession, keep the ball on the ground, make them chase. The kids did a lot of nice things. They had the right mindset. I think I might have been more impatient than they were.”

Richmond will face No. 1 Ashland (17-0), which downed Madawaska in the Class D North regional final, 3-2, on Wednesday, in the Class D state title game at Fitzpatrick Stadium in Portland at 10 a.m. on Saturday.

No. 1 Richmond 2, No. 6 Searsport 0

At Richmond High School

Searsport	—	0	0	—	0
Richmond	—	1	1	—	2

Goals — (R) Destiny Anair, Meranda Martin. Assists — (R) Caitlin Kendrick, Destiny Anair. Shots on goal — Richmond 17, Searsport 0. Saves — (S) Brooklynn Alberts 15; (R) Sydney Tilton 0. Corner kicks — Richmond 11, Searsport 1. Records — Richmond 16-1, Searsport 7-10. Up next for the Bobcats — Class D state title game on Saturday against Ashland at Fitzpatrick Stadium in Portland, 10 a.m.