Cedar Ridge volleyball knew what awaited them on Tuesday night.
Essentially, it was the same group from Orange that beat them three times last season, including in the Central Conference Tournament championship game and the 3rd round of the 3A State Playoffs.
On the other hand, Orange had never played against Dani Solomon. The freshman, combined with established Cedar Ridge veterans, proved to be way too much for the Lady Panthers.
In her first meeting against Orange, Solomon racked up 18 kills while senior Claire Hargett piled up 15 as the Red Wolves staked its place in the Big Seven Conference by sweeping Orange on scores of 25-20, 25-21 and 25-22 inside Panther Gymnasium.
Orange, which was swept by Cedar Ridge in its first meeting last year, fell to 2-4. Senior Ava Wilkerson finished with ten kills.
Cedar Ridge is 6-0 under first year head coach Khoury May.
The student section for Cedar Ridge gradually began to fill as athletes from various sports drove across town after their practices ended. By the time the third set started, a full seven rows were filled with standing Red Wolves behind the visitors bench, shouting “CEDAR RIDGE” during every Orange serve.
“This was awesome,” May said after her first match against Orange. “I liked our fans and their fans and how they filled the gym. It was a lot of fun.”
In four meetings against Orange in 2024, Hargett carried the offensive load as an outside hitter, which led to the Lady Panthers using its depth to gain an upper hand after the first match. Solomon’s immediate emergence has eased Hargett’s workload, which led to the Red Wolves winning the pressure points on Tuesday.
“Dani is great,” May said. “She’s helping our team so much. She’s contributing in amazing ways. I think the team as a unit is all contributing. Everyone on our team is helping us become successful. It’s been a lot of fun to coach them.”
Cedar Ridge senior setter Mia Marty finished with 41 assists.
Orange’s Aubry Hodges and Sawyer White blocked early attacks by Solomon, but it was only temporary. Solomon unleashed a string of four consecutive kills to erase an 11-8 Orange lead in the opening set. Solomon’s strike from the left post triggered a 6-1 Red Wolf run that also included two kills from Hargett and one each from Ellamarie Perel and Addilyn Jackson. Wilkerson reeled off three straight kills for Orange to cut the Cedar Ridge lead to 18-16, but Hargett and Solomon each scored to put the Red Wolves ahead 23-18. An Orange attack went into the nylon to end the set 25-20.
Orange junior Sawyer White, switching between setter and outside hitter, had a big second set. She finished with four kills, three assists, two aces and a block in the frame. White evened the set at 19-19 with a block. That’s when Cedar Ridge senior middle blocker Kayla Stoll came through with possibly the three biggest points of the match, starting with a kill set up by Marty. Stoll immediately stuffed an Orange attack to increase the Red Wolf lead to 21-19, then scored on another spike at the heart of the floor. Solomon registered kills on three of the last four points, including set point as the Red Wolves took the second 25-21.
“Kayla and Ellamarie were very important,” May said. “We had to spread our offense because they knew that our outside hitters were strong and they were pushing over to block them. So the more that we could spread our offense and spread our middles, the more successful we would be.”
There were seven ties in the third set, but Calla Lundberg helped the Red Wolves gain an advantage after an ace to trigger a 7-1 Cedar Ridge spurt. That run included Hargett getting a kill and an ace on consecutive plays.
Orange fought back with five straight points, including consecutive kills from Aubrey Jordan to put the Lady Panthers ahead 15-13. Jackson evened the frame at 15-15 with a two-hand push that bounced on the white end line. An ace by Solomon vaulted the Red Wolves ahead for good.
Once again, Stoll made a play at the net for a 23-20 lead. Perel put the Red Wolves on the verge of victory when she dumped a ball over from point-blank range. Cedar Ridge won when an Orange serve sailed over the end line on match point.
Orange, which has faced D.H. Conley, Green Level, and Green Hope thus far in its nonconfernece schedule, will turn right back around and host J.H. Rose in Hillsborough on Wednesday night. Last year, the Rampants defeated Orange in Greenville in the state quarterfinals in a wild, five-set affair that included a controversial finish.
“We’re playing with a lot of heart,” said Orange coach Hope Heverly. “We’re playing with grit. We still got some areas that we have to work on. But it is technically still in the first month. We’ve had six matches and I’m confident that the girls are going to continue to learn from this. It’s early in the season so I know we’re going to turn it around and we’re going to be looking forward to seeing them at their gym.”
