Photo by Justin Webb
For the first time since the founding of the program in 1982, the Orange men’s tennis team will host a match in the state playoffs on Monday.
After finishing third in the Big 7 Conference, the Panthers received a #10 seed and will face Southern Wayne High School in the opening round of the 5A State Dual Team Playoffs in Hillsborough on Monday. Orange finished the regular season 12-5 following a string of 5-4 victories, including two against Durham School of the Arts on April 13.
The winner of the match between the Panthers and the Saints will face Fike during the second round in Wilson.
Carrboro, the lone 4A team in the 5A/4A Big 7 Conference, went 10-0 to win the conference championship. Seaforth came in second at 8-2.
The North Carolina High School Athletic Association finalized its field of 48 teams for the 5A State Tournament on Friday afternoon.
In addition, Cedar Ridge also earned a spot in the state dual team playoffs. The Red Wolves finished with a #17 seed and will travel to Rocky Mount on Monday afternoon. The winner of the Red Wolves vs. the Gryphons will take on top-seeded Western Alamance in the second round.
Orange closed the regular season winning five of its last six matches. Three of the wins came on scores of 5-4. The Panthers won at Northwood 5-4 in Pittsboro on April 9 in a match that had three 10-point tiebreakers. Senior Zachary Cole defeated Ryan McNaught 2-6, 6-3, 13-11.
Orange has started freshman Luke McCrary as its top singles player throughout the season. McCrary has won 16 matches overall, including eight doubles matches with Cole.
On April 15, Orange swept two dual matches against J.F. Webb for its Senior Day. The Panthers won both matches 9-0. Bryson Waters and Jackson Coleman won the only two singles matches contested.
Waters, Coleman, Carson Condon and Cole were the four seniors honored for its final regular season home match. Cole, who has won 16 overall matches this year, will attend Johnson & Wales University in Charlotte, a Division III school, starting next year.
Cedar Ridge closed out the regular season with three straight wins. They defeated the Burlington School 6-3 on April 16. Junior Oliver Rodgers won in three sets over Jackson Noltemeyer 7-6 (7-4), 3-6, 10-5 in a 10-point tiebreaker in #3 singles. Ben Stephenson, at #4 singles, knocked off Benjamin Carew 7-6 (8-6), 6-3. Freshman Cole Wicker won over Jack Sanders 6-4, 6-1 and Red Wolf sophomore Henry Casey defeated Gaines Angyal 6-4, 6-2 as the Red Wolves won the final four singles matches.
Stephenson and Tyler Baker won the #2 doubles match over Carew and Sanders 8-6 to sew up the dual match win. Mithul Vijayakumar and Cole Wicker won the final doubles match over Angyal and Isaiah Carkin 8-3.
Last Monday, Cedar Ridge swept two matches from J.F. Webb, who showed up with two players. Sophomore Danny Dyreng and Rodgers won the only two singles matches for Cedar Ridge. Stephenson and Rodgers then teamed to win the only doubles match 6-1.
Last year, the Panthers won the first state playoff match in the 43-year history of the school, beating Walter Williams at the Burlington Tennis Center. Jackson Coleman, who is now a senior, and Ryan Jouannet defeated Samuel Wolff and Matthew Coble 8-6 in the final doubles match to secure a 5-4 dual match victory and send the Panthers on to the second round, where they would fall to Western Alamance.
Trailing 5-6 and love-40 in the final game, Coleman and Jouannet rallied to win the final three games.
Orange head coach Justin Webb has had a year full of notable accomplishments. In August, he won his 200th match as the head coach of the men’s and women’s teams. In October, the Orange women’s team reached the round of 16 in the state playoffs for the first time ever.
