RICHMOND — For most soccer teams, a 12-0-0 record that includes nine shutouts would be considered an unqualified success.

Judgment for the Richmond High School girls team, however, is reserved until the end of the Class D state championship game. Last season, the Bobcats nearly won their fourth straight state title during a so-called rebuilding year before falling by a goal to Washburn.

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“Obviously we want to make it to the state championship,” junior Kelsea Anair said. “But we’re got to make it through the regular season first. We’ve got to beat our rivals and everything like that.”

Anair scored four goals to run her season total to 31 in leading Richmond to an 8-1 victory against Rangeley on Tuesday.

This one was as lopsided as the final score. The Lakers didn’t register a shot on goal in the first half and couldn’t handle the combination of Anair and senior Amber Loon.

Loon assisted on all four of Anair’s goals while scoring two herself. Sophomore midfielder Meranda Martin scored the other two goals for the Bobcats while Mary Page Swiney broke the shutout with a second-half goal for Rangeley (6-4-1).

Despite the lopsided score, the Lakers have improved steadily throughout the season and will reach the Western Maine Class D tournament.

“We’re strides above where we’ve been,” second year coach Chip Smith said. “We’re young. Today we started three eighth graders. Young teams make mistakes.”

Many of the Bobcats play soccer year round and participate in a strong summer schedule while the Lakers do not. The disparity in experience showed up, especially in the second half when the Bobcats scored five goals. Freshman keeper Sydney Royca kept the Lakers in the game in the first half with several outstanding saves including back-to-back point blank stops against Anair and Martin.

It took the Bobcats nearly 16 minutes to score, but there wasn’t much Royce could do about it as Martin headed in a ball off Camryn Hurley’s well-placed corner kick. The Lakers hung tough for the rest of the half until the Anair-Loon combination struck in the final four minutes. The pair combined on a nice give-and-go sequence from just inside midfield with Anair finished off the fourth pass to make it 2-0. A minute later Anair crossed a long pass to an uncovered Loon to make it 3-0.er got more than half the goals. They’ve developed a really good chemistry.”

The Bobcats have given up just four goals this season and two of those have come from the Lakers, Swiney cut the lead to 3-1 early in the second half when Richmond keeper Kelsie Obi was caught out of position diving for a loose ball and Swiney scored into an open net.

After that it was all Richmond although the team was missing three starters due to absence or injury.

Anair scored three goals in the second half while Loon added her second of the game on rifle shot from the top of the penalty circle to the left corner of the net. Martin, who controlled midfield with her speed and hustle, capped the scoring with a clean breakaway with 11 minutes left.

Royce finished with 15 saves, 10 in the first half, while Obi made one.

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