Orange Women’s Basketball

This week’s Orange Panther of the Week is sophomore basketball forward Evelyn George. On January 6, George recorded her second double-double of the season as the Lady Panthers defeated Person 60-23 in Roxboro. George finished with 20 points and ten rebounds. On January 3, George had 13 points and eight rebounds as Orange defeated Cedar Ridge 56-32 at Panther Gymnasium. Last season, George played regularly as a freshman alongside her older sister Samantha George, who is now at Duke University. This season, George has eight games where she scored in double-figures. She had her first double-double of the season in the semifinals of the Eastern Guilford Holiday Invitational when she registered 14 points and 12 rebounds as Orange defeated Walter Williams 53-47. The next day, Orange would win the tournament championship when they defeated Northeast Guilford 46-25. George scored eleven points against the Rams. George was named to the All-Tournament team. Orange appears poised to make the 3A State Playoffs for the third time in four years. The Lady Panthers will travel to Cedar Ridge on Friday nights George looks to continue a strong season.

There were plenty of ways the Orange women’s basketball team’s game against Western Alamance could have gone on Friday night.

The way it went was the most surprising to just about everyone in attendance, including Orange coach B.J. Condron.

When the Lady Panthers faced Western Alamance in Elon on December 13, Orange never led and lost 58-39 at Coach Erma Adams Court.

On Friday night, Orange (10-9, 3-4 in the Central Carolina Conference) trailed for all of 30 seconds the whole night, pushed its lead to as much as 23 points, and dominated the Warriors 71-54 at Panthers Gymnasium in Hillsborough. Orange’s front-line tandem of senior Erin Jordan-Cornell and sophomore Evelyn George each finished with double-doubles. Jordan-Cornell came away with 17 points and 14 rebounds. George had 15 points and 15 rebounds, including six on the offensive glass.

Two weeks ago, Western Alamance was the #1 team among RPI in the 3A East Region. Even after a loss to Northwood last week, the Warriors still came into Friday night ranked #5, the highest of any team in the Central Carolina Conference.

Whatever led to Orange’s best win of the season, it wasn’t over preparation. The Lady Panthers hadn’t played in ten days. It’s previous performance was a flat effort against Eastern Alamance where the Eagles won 49-37 in Mebane. This week was filled with exams, which limited practice to just one hour on three separate days.

“In some ways, I was surprised,” Condron said. “This was exam week. Coming off a tough loss, we had a lot of time to think about to think about it. I wasn’t sure how our players were going to react to that. I think that Eastern Alamance game helped refocus us.”

The Warriors (14-4, 4-3) perimeter-oriented offense, led by guard Allie Sykes, Emma Johnson and Bri Pulliam, hit ten 3-pointers in the first matchup against Orange last month. On Friday night, they finished with just five.

Western Alamance’s Allie Sykes gave the Warriors its only lead of the game with a scoop shot ten seconds after the jump ball. Orange responded moments later when freshman Attie Atkins drained a 3-pointer in transition off a pass from George, and the Lady Panthers didn’t trail again. Jada Reed added another 3-pointer to spark an 13-4 Orange run, which included a pair of lay-ins by Jordan-Cornell and a 3-pointer by Nikayla Whitted.

Orange led 15-4 at the end of the first quarter. Orange had a 20-2 run that blew the game open in the second quarter and pushed its lead to as many as 23. Sykes got the Warriors’ only field goal of the frame, a 3-pointer. George and Jordan-Cornell led several transition opportunities that pushed Orange’s lead to 33-13 at halftime.

Tina Bowers, who led Western Alamance with 19 points, scored 18 in the second half. She was more aggressive after intermission winding up with 15 foul shots. Western Alamance made a charge, but the closest they could get was cutting Orange’s lead to 57-45 after a free throw by Amelia Weaver with 5:12 remaining in the fourth quarter.

As Orange did for much of the night, the Lady Panthers got a key basket off an offensive rebound. This time, Jordan-Cornell took a miss by Atkins and scored on a stickback. Atkins followed with a free throw with 4:35 remaining.

Western Alamance’s Cayden White scored on her own 2nd chance field goal, but Jada Reed knocked down a 3-pointer off an offensive rebound by George to put things out of any conceivable danger.

Orange has now won five of its last six games as they prepare to face Walter Williams on Tuesday night in Hillsborough. It will be the third matchup between the Lady Panthers and the Bulldogs in five weeks.

On December 16, the Lady Panthers played without Jordan-Cornell in Burlington but still fought all the way to the end. Williams had enough bodies to prevail 50-45.

12 days later, Jordan-Cornell was back for a rematch in the semifinals of the Eastern Guilford Holiday Invitational in Gibsonville. Jordan-Cornell and George each scored 14 points as Orange rode out a 50-45 win over Williams. The Lady Panthers eventually carried home the tournament championship.

ORANGE 71, WESTERN ALAMANCE 54

WESTERN ALAMANCE  6    7    18    23–54

ORANGE                          15   18   17    21–71

WESTERN ALAMANCE–Emma Johnson 10, Bri Pulliam 4, Allie Sykes 14, Tina Bowers 19, Cayden White 2, Mia Napier 2, Amelia Weaver 3.

ORANGE–Jada Reed 12, Addie Atkins 14, Evelyn George 15, Erin Jordan-Cornell 17, Nikayla Whitted 8, Maura McMurtry 1, Marshea Byrd 2, Katelyn Van Mater 2.

3-point goals: Western Alamance 5 (Johnson, Pulliam, Sykes 2, Bowers) Orange 6 (Reed 3, Atkins 2, Whitted)

This week’s Orange Panther of the Week is senior women’s basketball senior Erin Jordan-Cornell. On December 28, Jordan-Cornell was named the Most Valuable Player of the Eastern Guilford Holiday Invitational Tournament in Gibsonville. During the championship game against Northeast Guilford, Jordan-Cornell scored 13 points and grabbed nine rebounds as the Lady Panthers took the championship 46-25. Jordan-Cornell also had 14 points and 14 rebounds in a 53-47 win over Walter Williams in the semifinals. Jordan-Cornell has had two double-doubles this season. She also had 22 points and ten rebounds in a 72-34 win over Durham School of the Arts on December 9. This fall, Jordan-Cornell was named All-Central Carolina Conference in volleyball as Orange reached the second round of the 3A State Playoffs. She helped Orange to its most successful season in 14 years. Orange won 19 games. Jordan-Cornell is also a student advisor for the North Carolina High School Athletic Association, where she helps advocate for student-athlete awareness. Jordan-Cornell has been an advocate for all of Hillsborough sports during her time at Orange. She will try to help Orange’s women’s basketball team reach the state playoffs for the third time in four years starting on Friday night when the Lady Panthers host Western Alamance.

This week’s Orange Panther of the Week is senior basketball guard Nikayla Whitted. On December 6th, Whitted set her career-high with 14 points in Orange’s 41-36 win over Carrboro. On December 2, Whitted scored  eleven points as the Lady Panthers defeated Riverside 46-8 in Durham. Last week, Whitted was named to the All-Tournament team for the Eastern Guilford Holiday Invitational in Gibsonville after Orange won the championship. Whitted started the tournament with eleven points as the Lady Panthers defeated The Burlington School on December 26. Presenting the award to Whitted was Orange guard Jada Reed, who has been teammates with Whitted since they played together with the Orange Parks and Recreation Department. Both have started each game this season for Orange. Last week’s tournament win for the Orange women’s basketball team was its first tournament championship since the 2017 team won the Big 8 Conference Tournament. The Orange women’s basketball team was the only basketball team in Hillsborough to reach the state playoffs last year. This year’s team will look to reach the state playoffs, as well. The Lady Panthers will host Cedar Ridge tonight at Orange High Gymnasium.

GIBSONVILLE–It is a precious thing to go home with a tournament championship.

Plenty of great basketball players for Orange High, regardless of gender, spent their entire careers without winning one.

The Orange women’s basketball team faced the challenge of living up to the moment of a championship game on Wednesday night. The last time Orange reached a tournament final, it was 2018, when the Lady Panthers lost to Ravenscroft in the Granville Central Holiday Invitational in Stem.

Facing Northeast Guilford in the Eastern Guilford Holiday Invitational championship game, Orange coach B.J. Condron let his players know how much it meant to him. He showed up in a tie, which he usually only wears to graduation ceremonies.

At the end of the night, Jada Reed’s name wasn’t included on the All-Tournament team. But it should have been.

The Orange senior scored 13 points, tied with teammate Erin Jordan-Cornell for game-high honors, and also had two steals. Reed held the Lady Rams’ leading scorer, Tayana Jean-Joseph, to only eight points.

The game itself was anticlimactic. The Lady Panthers (7-8) won 46-25 at Eastern Guilford High School. Orange held the Lady Rams to a season-low in points.

“I think all of our players, at one point or another, really shined,” Condron said. “They all added something to come out of here with a championship.”

Jordan-Cornell was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player. She scored in double-figures in all three games over three days. Jordan-Cornell, who was named All-Central Carolina Conference in volleyball this fall, had eleven points and eight rebounds against the Burlington School on Monday morning. In the semifinals against Walter Williams, Jordan-Cornell had 14 points and 14 rebounds.

“Erin has battled through so much,” Condron said. “I know she’s had to fight through injuries. She’s been frustrated. She’s been able to stay on the court and I’m glad she’s been able to reap some rewards from that because she works extremely hard. She’s put in a lot of work over the last four years so it’s good to see her get rewarded.”

Orange senior guard Nikayla Whitted and sophomore guard Evelyn George joined Jordan-Cornell on the all-tournament team. Whitted scored eleven points against the Burlington School on Monday. She added seven points in the win over Williams.

George finished with a double-double against Williams with 14 points and 12 rebounds. George, whose older sister Samantha was in the stands on Wednesday night while on winter break from Duke University, had eleven points and eight rebounds in the championship game.

After an emotional win against Williams on Tuesday, Orange was slow out of the gates against Northeast Guilford. The Lady Rams scored the opening field goal when Jean-Joseph sank a pull-up jumper. Orange reeled off the next six points and took a 10-7 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Reed had seven points in the second quarter, including a floater that sailed high through the air and dropped through the twine while getting fouled by Kiyah Sherman to put the Lady Panthers ahead 17-11.

After Jean-Joseph knocked down her only 3-pointer of the half, Reed scored again off an offensive rebound and dribbled down the paint for a lay-in. Reed drained another 3-pointer in the final minute of the first half, while sophomore Addie Atkins knocked down two free throws at an empty lane following a foul after the buzzer sounded to put Orange ahead 24-14 at halftime.

Orange held the Lady Rams to only three field goals in the second half. George had an early three-pointer to put the game out of range and send the Lady Panthers back to Hillsborough with a championship.

“When you come into a holiday tournament, your goal is to come out with two wins, at worst,” Condron said. “To come out with the championship is good for our confidence. We played some tough teams early on so it’s kind of hard to see we’re improving. I’ve told the team we are improving. We’re just playing some really good teams. Hopefully, this will give us some momentum going into the rest of the conference season.”

ORANGE 46, NORTHEAST GUILFORD 25

ORANGE–Nikayla Whitted 5, Jada Reed 13, Addie Atkins 2, Erin Jordan-Cornell 13, Evelyn George 11, Marshea Byrd 2.

NORTHEAST GUILFORD–Kiyah Sherman 7, Autumn Clark, 4, Tayana Jean-Joseph 8, Natalia Bemnet 2, Tamera Anderson 4.

3-POINT GOALS: ORANGE 2 (Reed, George) NORTHEAST GUILFORD: (Jean-Joseph).

The Orange women’s basketball team went home from Gibsonville with hardware. The Lady Panthers captured the championship of the Eastern Guilford Holiday Invitational with a 46-25 win over Northeast Guilford on Wednesday night. Jada Reed had her best game of the tournament with 13 points. Orange senior center Erin Jordan-Cornell also scored 13 points. Jordan-Cornell, Nikayla Whitted and Sophomore Evelyn George were named to the All-Tournament team. Jordan-Cornell was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player. Whitted scored five points in the championship game. She scored seven points in the win over Walter Williams. It was the first time since 2017, when they won the Big 8 Conference Championship. It was a well-earned championship for the Lady Panthers, who won three games over three days against The Burlington School and Central Carolina Conference rival Walter Williams. Orange coach B.J. Condron won a tie for the contest as he does whenever the Panthers play in a tournament championship game. It was a title earned for the Orange seniors: Jordan-Cornell, Reed, Whitted and Katelyn Van Mater. Orange will continue its season on January 3 with a home game against Cedar Ridge on Tuesday at 7.

GIBSONVILLE–B.J. Condron will be in a tie and slacks on the sidelines Wednesday night.

That’s not an everyday occurrence for his Orange women’s basketball team. Or even a monthly one.

The first time he wore a tie as a head coach was on December 31, 2015. It was Condron’s first tournament championship game. Going into the Eastern Alamance Holiday Hoops Tournament in Mebane, Condron promised his team if they reached the championship game, he would show up better attired than usual.

Sure enough, after Orange defeated Cardinal Gibbons in the semifinals, Condron used a few gift cards he received for Christmas and purchased new threads at Tanger Outlets. He not only coached in a tie that night, he also celebrated in one.

Games come and go in basketball, but playing for a tournament championship is special. So Condron sets the tone.

Condron’s current edition of the Orange women’s basketball team reached a holiday tournament championship game for the first time since 2018 on Tuesday night and gained a measure of revenge in the process.

Orange, just eleven days after losing to Central Carolina Conference rival Walter Williams, defeated the Bulldogs 53-47 in the semifinals of the Eastern Guilford Holiday Invitational. The Lady Panthers will face Northeast Guilford in the championship game on Wednesday night at 7.

Senior center Erin Jordan-Cornell, who missed the first game against Williams, had 14 points for the Panthers (6-8). Sophomore forward Evelyn George also scored 14.

Orange reached its first championship final in any tournament since 2018, when they played for the championship of the Granville Central Christmas Tournament. Ravenscroft defeated Orange for the title.

On December 18, Williams held off Orange 49-45 in Burlington.

“We came out in the first half ready to play,” Condron said. “Obviously, having Erin back helped us out a lot. We got shaky at the end. Williams did a heck of a job pressuring us and making shots. We were lucky to make some free throws, but not all, and close it out.”

The Bulldogs, who had defeated Orange four straight times, made a furious comeback after trailing by as many as 14 points in the second half. Briahna Scott, who appeared to be on a one-woman mission to lead the Bulldogs into the championship game, had 20 points for Williams, 13 in the fourth quarter.

George scored ten points in the first half and knocked down some crucial free throws in the final minutes after the Bulldogs narrowed Orange’s lead. George, a sophomore, is the team’s leading rebounder who had 13 against the Burlington School on Monday.

“I think Evelyn has an instinct for the ball,” Condron said. “When you watch her, I think she tries to position herself on defense and anticipate when the shot goes up. She can jump. We have tall players, but in terms of a vertical leap, she’s one of our best jumpers.”

Orange didn’t have a field goal in the opening 4:43 of the fourth quarter, which allowed the Bulldogs to climb within five points after a lay-in by Jordan Taylor. Lady Panthers Sophomore Addie Atkins responded with a clutch three-pointer, her second of the game, to bring Orange’s lead back to nine points.

Scott wouldn’t let the Bulldogs die quietly. She scored off a strip and steal for a lay-in, then stole the subsequent inbounds pass, was fouled and sank two free throws to cut the Orange lead to 46-41 with 2:46 remaining.

Williams missed various opportunities to draw closer, including several shots from point-blank range. Orange’s Nikayla Whitted made them pay with a dagger of a 3-pointer with 1:30 remaining to extend Orange’s lead to 49-41.

Orange played its best half of the season in the opening 16 minutes. After senior Jada Reed fed Whitted on a lay-in to complete a 2-on-1, Orange led 22-11. Williams coach Jason Cheek immediately called timeout and turned his volume tone to 11 in a full-throttled scolding of his team audible to everyone within the gym.

Seven different Lady Panthers scored in the first half. There were three lead changes in the opening four minutes, but Orange didn’t trail again after the first quarter.

ORANGE 53, WILLIAMS 47

ORANGE: Evelyn George 14, Erin Jordan-Cornell 14, Jada Reed 3, Nikayla Whitted 7, Addie Atkins 8, Maura McMurtry 3, Marshea Byrd 2, Katelyn Van Mater 2.

WILLIAMS: Kamryn Russell 8, Jainasia Bailey 8, Scout Winter 3, Briahna Scott 20, Regan Averett 2, Jordan Taylor 6.