Shortly after starting workouts last fall, it was apparent the Cedar Ridge wrestling team had something special. Those feelings turned out to be prescient as the Red Wolves have captured the Big 7 Conference championship. On Wednesday night, Cedar Ridge finished an undefeated conference season with a 77-0 win over South Granville in Creedmoor. To put the cherry on top of the sundae, Cedar Ridge also defeated Northern Durham 66-12 in its final nonconference regular season dual match. Freshman David Angel earned two technical falls, beating South Granville 18-2. He also defeated Mason Winstead of Northern Durham 18-2. Senior Isaiah Crain pinned Evan Zollo of South Granville in 5:20 and defeated William Gardner of Northern Durham 16-4. It is a gratifying championship for the Red Wolf seniors, who have helped make Cedar Ridge the most dominant wrestling program in all of Orange County. When they entered school as freshman in 2022, Orange had never lost to Cedar Ridge. Now, the Red Wolves have defeated the Panthers three straight years. The Red Wolves It’s the third regular season championship in school history for Red Wolf wrestling and it’s second in three years. It goes along with the 2023 Central Conference Tournament championship they won at Orange High School. Cedar Ridge is expected to host the opening rounds of the 5A State Dual Team Tournament next Saturday inside Red Wolves Gymnasium.
