Justin Webb has an old saying about the start of each tennis season.
“The boys freeze and the girls melt.”
When Webb’s Orange women’s tennis team started workouts on August 1, there were eight players practicing in heat indexes in triple digits, even at 6PM. From May-to-July, according to temperatures from Raleigh-Durham International Airport, there were 42 days where the high exceeded 90 degrees. Last year, it was 23.
That’s why it was a present surprise when Orange opened its season against Voyager Academy at home on Monday, the highs more adept to a early October match than a season-opener. The highs were barely in the 80s at match time. In fact, Webb had to open with doubles matches (which usually conclude dual meets) on the other side of the tennis stadium so that the other end could dry up from torrential rain that had fallen in previous days.
Though Webb lost his top five starters from last season, including senior Jera Hargrove (who is headed to Alabama for tennis at Tuskegee University), he did return plenty of veterans who are no strangers to competition. Seniors Sydney Rogers, Katelyn Van Mater and Isabel Jones are all multi-sport athletes who just led the Orange women’s soccer team to its deepest postseason run ever last spring.
After dropping two of the three doubles fixtures, Orange relied on its experience to win five of the six singles matches to defeat Voyager 6-3. Setting the tone was junior Erin Sollars, who won at #1 singles over Voyager’s Katelyn Hutson 3-6, 6-4, 10-3 (10 point tiebreaker for the third set). Erin’s younger sister, Shannon, defeated Cara Frieburger 7-6 (9-7), 6-3.
Senior Madelyn Horn was the only player to win both of her matches on the day. Horn won at #6 singles against Lauren King 6-3, 6-1. She teamed with Jones to take home Orange’s doubles win over Grace Garrett and CeCe Meath 8-6.
Junior Makayla Davis sewed up the dual match win with a 7-5, 6-4 victory over Karli McKenna. Rogers knocked off Garrett 7-6 (7-4), 6-2.
For one of the first times in team history, Orange had to deal with some preseason expectations. In 2021, Orange defeated Wilson Fike in the 3A State Dual Team Playoffs, believed it be the only time in school history that the Lady Panthers won a postseason match.
“Any time you have a good group of girls coming back, that’s always a good thing,” Webb said. “They know the basis, they know the fundamentals. For a lot of players, it’s just a factor of getting back into match play.”
Orange will host Southern Alamance on Thursday.
Cedar Ridge 9, Southern Alamance 0
Sophomore Ella Caltabiano, junior Raven Mowles-Aring and junior Annabeth Lundberg each had two victories as Cedar Ridge opened its season with a win over Southern Alamance in Graham on Tuesday afternoon.
Caltabiano, who played regularly as a freshman, defeated Lexie Hester 6-0, 6-0 at #3 singles. In doubles action, Caltabiano teamed with Ria Ballenger to defeat Faith Moore and Paicey Cameron 8-1.
Mowles-Aring won at #6 singles over Mallory White 6-0, 6-0. At #2 doubles, the tandem of Mowles-Aring and Lundberg defeated Lexie Hester and Maddie Corbett 8-1.
In addition to her doubles win with Mowles-Aring, Lundberg defeated Morgan Isley at #5 singles 6-1, 6-0.
Cedar Ridge’s top singles player, junior Cameron Mayhew, started the sweep with a 6-0, 6-0 win over Moore. At #2 singles, Adeline Cummings won 6-1, 6-0. Catherine Ballenger won at #4 singles 6-0, 6-0.
At #3 doubles, Addie Paine and Molly Alverson defeated Isley and Mallory White 8-3.
CARRBORO 9, CEDAR RIDGE 0
Carrboro, the defending Northern Lakes Conference champion, defeated Cedar Ridge 9-0 on Wednesday in the Red Wolves home opener. Mowles-Aring won six games in her #5 singles match against Kaitlyn Lubell.
Cedar Ridge will host Durham School of the Arts on Thursday in Hillsborough.