Month: January 2020

With the Big 8 Conference Championship race boiling down to one match next week, the Orange wrestling team had a successful, if nerve wracking, trip down east.

On Saturday, the Panthers swept all four matches in the Havelock Duals at Havelock High School. Orange captured the final match of the day against Havelock 36-35, with the final match based on criteria. Havelock’s Derek Waiaau pinned Tyler Larkin at 220 pounds to even the match at 35-35, but Orange earned the overall victory after winning eight individual matches to Havelock’s six.

The Panthers improved to 22-2 as they go into a crucial match on Wednesday against Chapel Hill that will likely determine the Big 8 Conference Champion. Orange will go for its 17th consecutive conference championship spanning three classifications.

The Tigers have already defeated Northwood, Cedar Ridge, and Southern Durham.

In Havelock, Orange defeated J.H. Rose 60-21; they romped past Northside-Jacksonville 62-16 and polished off West Craven 66-10.

Brendon Worsham scored four victories on the day, including pinfall victories against Nic Roberts of West Craven in 41 seconds and Zachariah Gallardo-Chism of Northside-Jacksonville in 47 seconds. Biggest of all was a 8-0 major decision over Tate Cringan of Havelock, the third from last match of the day. The extra point from the major decision (worth four points instead of the usual three points for a standard decision) led to Orange winning the Havelock match.

Worsham is now 20-10.

Havelock opened the dual match with a pin by heavyweight Isaiah Verspoor. Dillon Heffernan earned an 11-5 decision at 106. In the tightest bout of the match, Orange’s Joshua Dunn defeated Trey Henke 9-7 in overtime to win at 113.

Havelock took a 12-6 lead when Cody Rutherford scored a pin at 120 pounds. Orange’s Kessel Summer narrowed the Rams’ lead to 12-10 with a major decision victory over Nate Lucio 14-5.

Matthew Smith-Breeden, who won all four of his matches on the day, scored a pin over Jaylen Jarman in 47 seconds. It was the first of four straight Orange wins.

At 138, Orange’s Henry Joubert-Stanzel pinned Collin Jasset in 1:07. Tayton Alvis pinned Havelock’s Austin Dennis in 15 seconds at 145. Noah Davis decisioned Xavier McCullough 13-10.

Havelock’s Gordon Whitfield earned a tech fall at 160, and the Rams’ Gabe Godette pinned Hayden Horne at 170 to cut Orange’s lead to 31-23 going into Worsham’s match at 182.

Switching between 132 & 138 pounds, Smith-Breeden earned a forfeit victory against Rose, defeated Northside-Jacksonville’s Dakar Pearson 11-3 and pinned West Craven’s Tristan Moore in 3:32. Smith-Breeden is now 23-8 with eight pins this season.

Heavyweight Juan Navarro earned three pins on the day. He defeated Daniel Olarte of Rose in 1:48. Navarro finished off Josh Smith of Northside in 1:09. Against West Craven, he pinned Malachi Williams in :47. Navarro is 22-6 with 14 pins.

At 138 pounds, Joubet-Stanzel narrowly defeated West Craven’s Jeremiah Cannon 13-12. Earlier, Joubert-Stanzel compete at 145 pounds and pinned William Denison in 2:14. Joubert-Stanzil is 20-7 with nine pins.

Last Wednesday, Orange defeated Northwood 55-12 in Pittsboro. Nathan Hecht pinned Hue Jacobs in 1:32 to sew up Orange’s first Big 8 Conference win of the 2020s with a pin of the Chargers’ Hue Jacobs in 1:32. It was one of seven pinfall victories for the Panthers. Worsham defeated William Lake in 1:47. Tyler Larkin won at 220 pounds, pinning Chandler Stubbs in 2:57. Tayton Alvis was victorious at 145 pounds over Nathan Davis after a pin at 2:34.

Orange’s Joey McMullin joined elite company on Wednesday night. He scored his 1,000th point against Northern Durham late in the 3rd quarter on a stick back basket. After the game, McMullin was joined by current Orange coach Derryl Britt and former head coach Greg Motley during a ceremony commemorating his 1,000th point. He became the first Panther to score 1,000 points since Connor Crabtree in 2017. McMullin has started since his freshman year, when he scored ten points in his first varsity game in a loss to Lewisville Road during a Thanksgiving tournament at Millbrook High School in Raleigh. Since then, he has been a member of a Big 8 Regular Season Championship team which won three games in the state playoffs. McMullin opened this season by scoring 38 points against Research Triangle. McMullin will continue his senior season on Tuesday night when the Panthers travel to Chapel Hill. You can hear that game on Hillsboroughsports.com starting at 7:30.

Losses by the Stanford Chargers middle school team can be measured in Cicada Cycles. According to sciencetlinks.com, Cicadas spend years underground and come out like clockwork every 13-to-17 years.

It’s been about 13 years since Stanford wrestling last lost a dual match in the Orange-Person Athletic Conference. After Friday’s 47-46 dual match victory over Stanback at Bulldog Gymnasium, two things are for sure. 1. The day Stanford finally loses, a lot of people want to be the ones to say they were there for it.

2. The once-wide gap between the Chargers and the Bulldogs is narrowing.

Stanford improved to 6-0 with Friday’s win, while also handing the Bulldogs its first loss of the season.

A jam-packed grandstand greeted both teams with nary an empty seat to be found, which led to a heated gym that only increased the intensity. The Bulldogs fans showed up excited, and the buzz around the gym built into a frenzy went 6th grader Mason Pierce immediately scored a takedown on Stanford’s Luke Stitz in the first period in the opening 78-pound match. Pierce gained near fall points in the second and third period for a 13-2 major decision to put Stanback ahead 4-0.

“We weren’t expecting that,” said Stanback coach Grant Gibson. “Mason came to wrestle. We’re really proud of him.”

The lead didn’t last long. At 85 pounds, Stanford’s Wyatt Hendrick scored a pin in 31 seconds and the Chargers took a 6-4 lead.

The Chargers’ Vincent Stevens earned a technical fall at 4:09 with a 15-0 win at 92 pounds.

“He’s a fiery wrestler,” said Stanford wrestling coach Aaron Carr. “He’s one of those guys who can get some momentum going. I’m really proud of him and the work he’s doing.”

Stanback’s Pierce Prescod sent the gym into hysteria with a pin at 100-pounds. Prescod led 8-3 going into the third period. Facing Stanford’s Aidan Cain, Prescod escaped from the bottom position and charged after him like a bull trying to maim a matador—twice. Prescod earned the pin at 4:02 to reduce Stanford’s lead to 11-10.

The Chargers responded with three straight wins. Jared Hutchins, who won the 2019 OPAC Championship at 83 pounds, quickly secured a single-lead takedown to put away his opponent in 1:59 at 108 pounds.

Stanford’s Josh Cowan defeated the Bulldogs’ Lee Oguntoyinbo 6-1. Cowan got a quick go-behind within seconds in the opening period and never trailed.

At 122, Stanford’s Luke Nevius pinned his opponent at 4:10 to build the Charger led to 26-10.

“That was clutch for us,” Carr said. “The guy he was wrestling was fighting hard. We didn’t have any momentum going at that point. If we don’t get a pin there, I don’t know if we can get our guys rolling like we should.”

Stanback’s Kaden Tatro pinned Stanford’s Andre Hill in 1:54, but after the Chargers’ Laurencio Grimaldo got a forfeit victory, Stanford had a 35-19 advantage.

Stanford’s Sasha Van Praag scored a pin at 1:16.

With the match getting out of reach, Stanback’s Marcos Esparza won the most back-and-forth match of the afternoon against Stanford’s Josh Merrill. In the second period, Merrill led 4-1 after a reversal, but Esparza got a reversal just before going out of the circle. Esparza scored an escape point to open the final period, then scored a double-leg takedown to take an 8-5 lead. He wound up winning 8-6.

“It’s never easy here,” Carr said. “

Stanford’s Vincent Joubert-Stanzel got a pin at 172 to officially put the math out of reach at 41-22.

Stanback’s Joe O’Meila earned the final Bulldog pin of the day, and the Chargers forfeited the final two matches.

“I’m proud of our guys,” Gibson said despite the loss. “I’m proud of how we fought all day.”

This week’s Orange Panther of the Week is junior swimmer Matthew Geib. On Tuesday in a dual meet against Chapel Hill and Northern Durham, Geib won the 100 yard butterfly with a time of 52.82. That mark automatically qualified Geib for the 3A Mideast Regionals on January 31 and was nearly three full seconds ahead of the runner-up. Geib finished 2nd in the 100 yard backstroke to his teammate , Noah Jamison. In 2019, Geib set the school record for the 100 meter backstroke at :56.98. Last season, Orange had its best-ever finish in the Big 8 Conference, coming in 2nd behind state powerhouse Chapel Hill. In addition to swimming, Geib is an aspiring pilot. He has already taken flight for various journeys across the area. Orange will return to action next Friday against Riverside and Northern Durham in the Bull City. The Big 8 Championship meet will be held on January 22 at Duke University.

The Cedar Ridge Red Wolves men’s basketball team has gone from 24 consecutive Big 8 Conference losses to back-to-back Big 8 wins. On Friday night, Cedar Ridge put away Northern Durham 76-51 at Red Wolves Gymnasium. It came three nights after Cedar Ridge defeated Orange for its first win at Panther Gymnasium since 2015. Sophomore Derrick Smith had ten points for the Red Wolves. After spending his freshman season on a 1-win team, Smith has been a crucial element in the Red Wolves reaching four wins at mid season. Cedar Ridge is 2-2 in the Big 8 Conference going into Tuesday trip to East Chapel Hill. You can hear that game starting at 7:30 on Tuesday night on Hillsboroughsports.com.

The Cedar Ridge men’s basketball team defeated Northern Durham on Friday night. Mekai Collins was honored before the game for scoring 1,000 points. Listen back to the broadcast here with Tim Hackett!

Joey McMullin deserved better.

It was an achievement that very few Orange players reach: scoring 1,000 points in a career. To do it, you usually have to start playing as a freshman, stay healthy and be successful enough to have a string of postseason games. It hasn’t happened since Connor Crabtree in 2017, when McMullin started as a freshman and the Panthers reached the 3A state quarterfinals.

McMullin entered Thursday’s game against Northern Durham needing only eleven points to reach 1,000, but he wanted more than that.

He wanted to beat Northern Durham and bring an end, as brief as it may be, to the tsunami of bad fortune that has overtaken Orange basketball since Christmas ended.

For much of the night, it felt like McMullin would get his wish and his milestone. McMullin rebounded a missed shot by Hunter Birch and scored on a stickback late in the third quarter for his 1,000th point.

That put Orange ahead by eleven in a game where they had never trailed. In what has become a pattern, the Panthers faltered down the stretch.

Anthony Freeman hit two free throws with :4.1 seconds remaining as the Knights rallied to defeat Orange 60-59. Orange’s Jason Franklin split a pair of foul shots to give the Panthers a 59-58 lead, and missed a 30-footer as time expired.

It was Orange’s sixth straight loss to fall to 7-7, 0-3 in the Big 8 Conference. Since beating Walter Williams on December 18, the Panthers have gone 22 days without a win.

Franklin returned to the Orange lineup after missing three games with an injured back, suffered during the South Granville Holiday Tournament against Franklinton.

After the contest, McMullin was joined by Orange Coach Derryl Britt, former Orange Coach Greg Motley (who is now the head coach at Southern Durham and still teaches a class with McMullin as a student), along with Joey’s parents for a ceremony at midcourt.

Northern (4-10, 2-3) defeated Orange for the seventh straight time. Orange’s last win against the Knights came on December 30, 2009.

McMullin’s had a baptism by fire in his freshman season. He started the first high school game of his career as Orange faces Leesville Road during a tipoff event at Millbrook High School. The Panthers entered the two-day event undermanned. Several Orange football players, such as Ryan Sellers, Kendall Whitted, Eli Haithcock, and Morgan Paschall, weren’t available because they were preparing to face Havelock in the 2nd round of the 3A State Playoffs. McMullin still scored ten points in a 76-65 loss to the Pride.

He had 16 points against Cedar Ridge in an 88-57 win on January 14, 2017 in Panther Gymnasium. He also scored ten points in Orange’s win over J.F. Webb on February 7, which clinched the Big 8 regular season championship.

McMullin started off this season with a career-high 38 points against Research Triangle. He already has six 20-point games this season, including 21 points in Orange’s 82-32 win over East Chapel Hill on December 17.

It won’t get any easier for the Panthers on Friday night. Northwood, riding atop the Big 8 Conference, will visit Panther Gymnasium on Friday night. Coverage on Hillsboroughsports.com will start at 7:30. You can hear the game on the website, or on our Facebook page.

This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is senior basketball forward K.J. Barnes. On Tuesday night, Barnes scored eleven points as the Red Wolves defeated Orange 66-55 for its first win at Panther Gymnasium since 2015. Barnes has starred on the basketball floor and the gridiron for years. In October, he scored the game-winning 2-point conversion in Cedar Ridge’s victory over Chapel Hill in football. This season, Barnes has played an instrumental role as Cedar Ridge has surpassed its win total from all of last season. In his junior season, K.J. didn’t have a varsity football team to play on when the Red Wolves didn’t field a team, but he remained at Cedar Ridge. On Tuesday night, his wait paid off with a hard earned win over a crosstown rival. K.J. Barnes and the rest of the Red Wolves return to action on Friday night when Cedar Ridge hosts Northern Durham.