The Richmond boys soccer team expected to face a team with a chip on its shoulder when it traveled to Greenville on Saturday and it found one.

The Lakers had recently been forced to forfeit six of their victories, including a 3-1 decision at Richmond, because they had used an ineligible player.

According to Greenville coach Jeff Richards, the player was ineligible based on his standing at the end of the school year last spring and the coach was not notified. The player, a senior, is eligible to return to the lineup Oct. 5. Greenville athletic director Jeff Stafford, who has held that post for 14 years, accepted blame and resigned 10 days ago.

Greenville was off to an 8-1-0 start and atop the standings in Western Maine Class D before it discovered the infraction. The forfeits pushed the Lakers near the bottom of the tournament standings. As it turned out, none of those incentives were enough as the Bobcats pulled out a 2-1 victory in double overtime and are unbeaten at 10-0-0.

“I was concerned that they would try to make a statement against us and our boys handled the pressure,” Richmond coach Joe Scribellito said. “They knew if they could have beaten us that would be a huge bounce-back for them. We played the game as if the forfeit never happened.”

The Bobcats won the game on Xavier Trask’s corner kick with 41 seconds left in the second overtime.

“It was a crash the goal type of deal,” Scribellito said. “I think it went off Randy Moody.”

Scribellito made some adjustments on offense and defense since the loss to the Lakers. He didn’t feel his team was prepared for the speed of Greenville’s Henry Hersey and Tristan Richards so he adjusted his holding midfielders to limit their touches.

“Hersey and Richards have been working together so long they can read each other’s minds,” he said.

On offense, he moved Moody to the front line to team up with Eddie Stewart and put striker Sam Lorbeski back on defense.

“He’s taken a shine to that,” Scribellito said of Lorbeski. “His quickness in the back is hard to beat.”

The Bobcats face their toughest opponent of the season when they host defending Class C state champion Waynflete.

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Monmouth junior Kyle Fletcher recently broke the school record for goals when he scored the 44th of his career and 12th this season. The old record was held by Kris McCabe.

Fletcher has been the team’s go-to player since he was a freshman. The Mustangs were 2-5-3 entering Tuesday’s game against Wiscasset and Fletcher had all but five of the team’s goals.

“He’s been double-teamed by about every team we’ve played,” said his father and coach Joe Fletcher. “It’s made it a challenge for him. He’s played a lot of soccer over the years and it’s paid dividends. He’s got a good first touch and he’s aggressive. He’s determined, too.”

Once soccer ends, Fletcher plans to do some kettle bell training three days a week in Portland in preparation for baseball, his primary sport.

“He wants to put on 10 or 15 pounds,” his dad said.

In the meantime, the Mustangs still have a shot at the Western C tournament. It could come down to the last game of the season at Winthrop.

“That’s going to be huge,” Fletcher said.

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The Hall-Dale girls soccer team has competed well in the Mountain Valley Conference this season despite having 12 freshmen and six sophomores on its roster. The Bulldogs lost Monday to St. Dom’s but are still 7-3-1 and in the middle of the Western Maine Class C tournament standings.

“It’s a young team that’s just getting used to the system of play and really trust with each other,” Hall-Dale coach Guy Cousins said.

Cousins is starting three freshmen — Emma Begin on defense, Signe Lynch at midfielder and Lilly Ly at forward. Sophomore Olivia Maynard is playing her second season in goal.

“She’s learning how to use her footwork to her advantage and her hands are getting better,” Cousins said.

Maynard also has a strong defense in front of her that includes her older sister Emily, Megan Cope, Begin and Allison Crocket. The Bulldogs are getting a lot of their scoring from junior Maura Stottler who has 13 goals and four assists.

“She’s just got a very quick release with her shot,” Cousins said. “She’s good with both feet. “She’s scored a couple of goals on really nice volley shots out of the air.”

The Bulldogs have three games reaming, including one at unbeaten Monmouth on Oct. 8.

Gary Hawkins — 621-5638

ghawkins@centralmaine.com