LUMBERTON — In the first set of Tuesday’s varsity volleyball match between Lumberton and Richmond, Lumberton’s 17-9 lead had shrunk to 17-15, prompting Pirates coach Mackie Register to call timeout and talk to his team.

The Pirates responded, scoring four straight points out of the timeout and finishing the set on an 8-2 run en route to a 3-0 win over the Raiders, with set wins of 25-17, 25-17 and 25-14.

“We just got a little lackadaisical in (the first set),” Register said. “We wanted to focus back on, make sure we were talking, make sure a good pass, and go back to the things that got us that lead.”

“The biggest thing that changed is just talking,” said senior August Smith, who had three service points just after the timeout. “What we’ve been lacking all year, in my opinion, is just communication, so just calling for the hit, calling if you have it, and just saying what you see. I’ve been telling the girls, if everyone can say what they see, we’ll have a good season.”

Lumberton (3-2, 3-2 Sandhills Athletic Conference) moved into fourth in the SAC two matches from the season’s midway point, dropping Richmond to a tie for fifth (2-3, 2-3).

“This is going to be very critical for us to make the playoffs,” Smith said. “We knew we had to beat Richmond here; we always say protect our house and get a few on the road, and you’ll be in a good spot.”

The Pirates led the second set 8-3 but Richmond took the lead at 14-13. Lumberton finished with a 12-3 run to win the set 25-17.

In the third set, the Pirates turned a 10-8 lead into 17-10 advantage, then got to the doorstep of victory when a 7-0 run made it 24-12; Lumberton won the set 25-14 to clinch the match.

“I think we did better this game than previous games; instead of having that little weak area right in the middle, we stayed steady the whole time,” Smith said. “We have to keep that up.”

Smith had 16 assists and Tyler Coker had nine digs and 17 service points as the Pirates showcased a strong passing ability.

“That’s the identity of our team,” Register said. “I’ve told them all along ‘we’ve got to be a good passing team to be good,’ and tonight we communicated well, passed the ball really well. If we can continue that, we can make some noise in the conference.

Keke Lawrence had seven kills for the Pirates, Ayden Bullard had five and Peyton Brooks had four. Diamond Harris had two kills.

“We had them back on their heels most of the game, at least hitting on them, and they never could set,” Register said. “They have some good hitters, but you never could see that tonight because we had them back on their heels.”

In the JV match, Richmond won 2-0 with set wins of 25-20 and 25-12.

Thursday, Lumberton travels to Scotland, who suffered its first loss Tuesday against Pinecrest.