On the verge of becoming the first Cedar Ridge wrestler with 100 career wins since 2007, junior Fernando Martinez has earned another honor.
Martinez was named the Central Carolina Conference 106-145 pound Wrestler of the Year and was named to the All-Conference team. It follows a season where Martinez won the 3A Mideast Regional Championship at Union Pines High School in Cameron. He was the only grappler from Cedar Ridge or Orange High Schools to place in the 3A State Championships. Martinez defeated Union Pines’ Jayden Crawford 9-7 to win the 113-pound Mideast Regional Championship on February 12.
A week later, Martinez finished fifth in the 3A State Championships at the Greensboro Coliseum. He pinned Skylar Oxford of West Carteret in 3:57 in his final match of the year. It was the best finish by a Cedar Ridge wrestler in the state championships since Adam Howard, who finished 5th at 152 pounds in 2013.
This season, Martinez finished 42-10 to place his career record at 97-26. Martinez’s sophomore year was limited to 24 matches due to the pandemic. If he had a standard season in 2020-2021, chances are he would be knocking on the door of the school record for most wins, held by Chandler Collins with 166 victories from 2003-2007.
As it is, Martinez is in sixth place on Cedar Ridge’s all-time wins list, one victory behind Darius McLeod, who competed from 2015-2019.
Joining Martinez on the All-Central Carolina Conference team for wrestlers at 106-145 pounds was Cedar Ridge freshman Leo Oguntoyinbo. Competing at 132 and 138 pounds, Oguntoyinbo opened the season with three wins as the Red Wolves defeated Person, Jordan and Panther Creek in a quad-match at Red Wolves Gymnasium on November 17. Oguntoyinbo is also the goalkeeper for the Cedar Ridge lacrosse team.
Orange had five wrestlers named All-Conference at 106-145 pounds: Kale Womble (113), Braden Crawford (120), Dillon Heffernan (126), Jared Hutchins (132), and Avery Clark (145).
Womble went 18-11 as the Orange wrestling team advanced to the Eastern Regional championship match in the 3A State Dual Team Tournament. Womble pinned Northwood’s Sunday Oo to help the Panthers beat the Chargers 45-27 in the opening round in Hillsborough.
Crawford qualified for the state championships as a freshman. He went 31-15 in his opening season with the Panthers. Crawford finished fourth in the Eastern Alamance Invitational in Mebane on December 18. He went on to finish third in the Quentin Crosby Invitational at Grimsley High in Greensboro. At the Mideast Regionals, Crawford came in fourth.
Heffernan was the runner-up at 126 pounds of the Mideast Regionals. He ended the year 26-9. Heffernan, a junior, won the 126-pound championship at the Crosby Invitational, defeating Allen Cohen of Morehead High 6-5 in the final. Heffernan came in third at the Jim King/Orange Invitational on December 4. At the Eastern Alamance Invitational, Heffernan came in second place.
Hutchins, a sophomore, finished third in the Mideast Regionals, winning the consolation final match over Finnius McCafferty 10-6. He ended the year 28-10 after winning two matches in the consolation round of the state championships. Hutchins won the championship of the Crosby Invitational at 132 pounds, defeating Donovan Edwards of Southwest Guilford 10-4 in the final match. Hutchins also came in third at the JKO, as well as second place at the Eastern Alamance Invitational.
Clark went 24-13 in his senior season. He reached the state championships after a third place finish in the Mideast Regionals. Clark came in fourth in the JKO. Clark came in third place at the Eastern Alamance Invitational. In the state dual playoffs, Clark pinned Wilson Fike’s Jackson Davis as the Panthers won 51-24 to advance to the regional semifinals.