Month: December 2022

This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is senior men’s basketball guard Colton Taylor. This season, Taylor is the leading scorer for the Red Wolves under first-year head coach Mike Jones. On November 21, Taylor scored 15 points as the Red Wolves defeated the Durham School of the Arts 58-50 at Red Wolves Gymnasium, which was Jones’ first win as the coach of Cedar Ridge. In a stacked Central Carolina Conference, Taylor has stood toe-to-toe with some of the best players in the Central Carolina Conference. On December 9, Taylor scored 15 points against Person, ranked the #2 team in the 3A East Region by MaxPreps. Last season, Taylor led Cedar Ridge averaging 13.2 points per game. Taylor scored in double-figures in the Red Wolves last 15 games of the 2021-2022 season. In the Central Carolina Conference Tournament quarterfinals, Taylor scored a career-high 27 points against Person in Roxboro. Taylor also led the Red Wolves in scoring in wins over East Chapel Hill and Voyager Academy on December 2. Taylor was an All-Central Carolina Conference selection last year. He’s also a faithful member of the Wolfpack, the cheering section of the Cedar Ridge volleyball team who journeyed from location to location wherever the Red Wolves played, providing a home court advantage even when they weren’t in Hillsborough. Cedar Ridge will continue its season against crosstown rival Orange on January 3 at Red Wolves Gymnasium. They will face Franklin Academy in Hillsborough on January 5.

The Orange men’s basketball team danced underneath the Mosstle Toe and relied on Isaiah Sleighmour to secure its ninth victory of the season. In its final game before Christmas, the Panthers cruised past Southern Alamance 80-63 at Panthers Gymnasium on Wednesday night. It was the return of junior Ryan Moss,who missed the first eleven games of the season after undergoing surgery on a torn meniscus. In his first game back, Moss scored a career-high nine points, all off of 3-pointers. Senior center Isaiah Seymour provided a punch down low for the Panthers will three rebounds in the opening three minutes. He finished with three points. Orange has already surpassed its win total for all of last season. Sophomore Xandrell Pennix led the Panthers with 19 points. Freshman Coleman Cloer had 14 points, while senior Darius Corbett added 13 points, tying his career-high. The Panthers will now focus on the South Granville Holiday Invitational, where they will play in the Columbia Bracket. The Panthers will start play against East Wake on Wednesday night at 7 PM at South Granville High School. The winner will face either South Granville or Cary in the semifinals. Northern Durham, Wake Forest, Sanderson and Green Level are also included in the eight-team tournament. The Panthers are 9-3.

Joey McMullin: The Sandhills Flyers Community College men’s basketball team ended 2022 with four consecutive wins. The Flyers defeated Lenoir Community College 107-80 in Kinston. McMullin scored nine points in 15 minutes off 4-of-11 shooting from the field. On December 10, the Flyers routed Thomas Nelson Community College 73-47 in Pinehurst. McMullin scored eight points over 21 minutes. He also grabbed three rebounds and dished out two assists. On December 13, Sandhills defeated Shooting 4 Greatness 101-76 in Pinehurst. McMullin scored 18 points on 7-of-8 shooting from the field. He also had two rebounds and two assists. On December 15, the Flyers nipped Pitt Community College 89-87 in Greenville. McMullin scored eleven points on 4-of-10 shooting from the field. Sandhills led by as many as 17 points before holding on to win. Through 14 games, McMullin leads the team averaging 14.1 points per game. He had a season-high of 22 points in another win over Pitt Community College on November 16. The Flyers will have several games streamed on ESPN+ in 2023. The Flyers are 12-2 overall, 1-0 in Region X of the National Junior College Athletic Association.

Connor Crabtree: Crabtree has started his senior season with the Richmond men’s basketball team. After missing the opening six games, Crabtree made his debut in a 90-67 loss to Toledo at John Savage Arena in Ohio on November 30. Crabtree played one minute. Crabtree scored three points in four minutes in Richmond’s 82-52 win over Drake at the Robins Center on December 10. In a 77-48 win over Fairleigh Dickinson on December 13, Crabtree had three rebounds over nine minutes. He also had an assist. In a 85-67 loss to Clemson in Greenville, S.C. last Saturday, Crabtree scored two points in eight minutes off 1-of-3 shooting from the field. Richmond is 5-6 and will play its Atlantic 10 opener on December 31 at George Mason.

Joshua Jackson: During the summer, Jackson joined the Division III Brevard men’s basketball program. He has not played in an official game as of yet. The Tornadoes are 3-6 overall and will start play in the USA South Athletic Conference against Mary Baldwin College on January 4 in Staunton, VA.

Aaliyah Harris: The Division III Randolph-Macon women’s basketball team earned several victories as the calendar turned to December. The Yellow Jackets have On December 7, Randolph defeated Randolph-Macon 50-43 at Giles Gymnasium in Lynchburg, VA. Harris, a freshman, played 14 minutes and had three points and three rebounds. Randolph-Macon has won three in a row, including a victory in the opening round of the Daytona Beach Shootout over Wisconsin-Oshkosh. The Yellow Jackets will face St. Robert in the semifinals on Wednesday.

Braden Homsey: The Division III Ferrum College wrestling team competed in several dual matches as the autumn wound to a close. On November 30, the Panthers defeated Greensboro College 35-11 at Royce Reynolds Family Student Life Center Gym in Greensboro. It was Ferrum’s first-ever match as a member of the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. Homsey didn’t compete against the Pride. On December 7, William & Lee defeated Ferrum 27-7 at Duchossois Athletic and Recreation Center in Lexington, VA. Competing at 197 pounds, John Ryan Sedovy defeated Homsey 6-4 in the first sudden victory round. Homsey, now a senior, is 4-3 on the season. The Panthers will compete in the Citrus Invitational at the Broward County Convention Center in Ft. Lauderdale, FL starting December 29.

Kate Burgess: During the fall, Burgess was named a co-Captain for the North Carolina rowing team. Burgess, who was a basketball center and cross country runner for Orange, is a senior with the Tar Heels. As a junior, Burgess competed in nine races for UNC. She finished first agains UCF and second against Tennessee in the First Varsity 4+ boat at the UVA Invitational. Burgess notched a second place finish against Boston College last April in the First Varsity 4+ boat. UNC will start its next rowing season in the spring.

This week’s Orange Panther of the Week is freshman men’s basketball forward Coleman Cloer. Through eleven games, Cloer is the leading scorer for the Orange men’s basketball team as the Panthers are 6-3, its best start in four years. On November 29, Cloer sank two free throws with :7.2 seconds remaining to give the Panthers a 67-66 win over Franklinton. It is still the only loss the Rams have suffered this year. On Friday night, Cloer scored a career-high 26 points in the Panthers 66-59 win against Walter Williams. On Tuesday, Cloer had 15 points as the Panthers won its Central Carolina Conference opener over Western Alamance. Orange has already won five road games this season, two more than they had all of last year. Cloer is one of three freshman who start for Orange, along with Kai Wade and Mason Robinson. The younger brother of former Orange High quarterback Garrett Cloer, who went on to play tight end at Cornell. Coleman Cloer will continue his freshman season on Wednesday night when Orange faces Southern Alamance in Hillsborough. The Panthers will start play in the South Granville Holiday Tournament next Wednesday. They will face East Wake in the opening round.

Though there are some things different with the Orange wrestling team this year, the winning continues.

Orange will go into Christmas with a 9-0 record in dual matches. The Panthers, who have won 18 of its last 19 conference championships, is 4-0 in the Central Carolina Conference with dual matches against Person, Eastern Alamance and Northwood coming up in 2023.

On Saturday, the Panthers claimed its first team championship in an individual tournament this season. For the second year in a row, Orange won the Eagle Invitational at Eastern Alamance High School in Mebane.

Four Panthers won their individual weight classes. Dillon Heffernan, who reached the Eagle Invitational championship match at 120 pounds in 2021, rolled to the title at 145 pounds. Heffernan, who finished second at the Jim King/Orange Invitational on December 3, defeated Jace Rich of Southern Alamance 9-4 in the final. Heffernan, 14-1 on the year, pinned Cameron Stokes of Bartlett Yancey in 1:15 in the opening round. In the semifinals, Heffernan defeated Darius Evans of Northern Guilford 6-3.

Acoya Isley, who lost in the championship match last year in Mebane by one point via sudden victory, won the 195-championship by winning three matches, none of which went beyond the first period. Isley defeated Jeremiah Lumpkins of Walter Williams in :56 seconds to take the title. In the semifinals, Isley pinned Chase Crews of Northern Guilford in 1:15. In the opening round, Isley defeated Jesus Ponce of Graham in 23 seconds. Isley, who finished 3rd in the Mideast Regionals last February, is 13-1 with 12 pins this season.

Orange’s Elijah Acosta captured the 220-pound championship. In the final, Acosta pinned Cameron Pettigrew of Western Alamance in 3:22 to improve to 14-2 on the season. In Friday’s opening round, Acosta pinned Wesley Reece of Cummings in 59 seconds. In the semifinals, Acosta defeated Wade Cash of Northern Guilford 9-5.

Acosta, who won the 220-pound championship of the JKO in 2021, captured the Eagle Invitational for the second straight year. In 2021, Acosta won all three of his matches via pinfall en route to the title.

Braden Crawford, the second-seed, captured the 126-pound championship. In the final, Crawford scored a technical fall over Alex Porter of Grimsley 17-1. Crawford battled back to reach the final. In a dramatic semifinal, Owen Adkins of Northern Guilford led Crawford 7-4 with time running out in the final period before Crawford scored a pin at 5:52 to advance to the championship match. In the opening round, Crawford pinned Riley Neil of Southern Alamance in 26 seconds.

The Panthers had several grapplers finish in second place. Senior heavyweight Hugo Vasquez scored pins in each of his first two matches. Vasquez defeated Chatham Central’s Adin Holton in 58 seconds in the quarterfinals. In the semifinals, Vasquez defeated Justin Booker of Southern Alamance in 3:26. In Saturday’s title match, Noah Lumpkin of Northern Guilford held off Vasquez 4-2. Vasquez, who won the heavyweight championship of the 2021 JKO, is 9-4 with five pins so far this season.

At 113 pounds, Orange’s Aidan Sierra had his best finish of his young career. Sierra opened by pinning Toriana Murphy of Williams in 1:09. In the semifinals, Sierra pinned Southern Alamance’s Aiden Cameron in 1:50. Grant McCord of Greensboro Grimsley defeated Sierra in the championship match by technical fall.

Orange’s Sam Crawford reached the championship match at 152-pounds. Crawford pinned Jeremiah Baptiste of Western Alamance in 33 seconds of the opening round. He pinned Zyneal White of Burlington Cummings in 3:06 in the semifinals. Cohen Beane, the fifth-seed, of Northern Guilford defeated Crawford via pinfall in the title match.

Anyone who even casually attends Orange wrestling matches won’t have to look hard to find something different this year. There isn’t a Shriner sitting along the mats.

Bobby Shriner, the longtime head coach at Orange who amassed over 500 wins and five state championships, retired in 2017. His son Nick served as an assistant for four seasons, but left to become the head coach of the Orange Middle School Chargers this year.

Orange Middle feeds directly into Orange High School.

It marks the first time there hasn’t been a Shriner matside for Orange wrestling since 1988.

“He’s still going to be helping out with us whenever he gets a chance,” said Orange coach Spenser Poteat, who wrestled and coached alongside Bobby Shriner. “Hopefully, he can get our feeder program get back to where it was.”

Orange will compete in the Tiger Holiday Invitational at Chapel Hill High School starting on Friday.

There wasn’t any need for a big pep talk from Megan Skouby on the night of their Central Carolina Conference opener.

Her Cedar Ridge women’s basketball team still looked motivated enough against Person in Roxboro, where the bleachers spill right onto the edge of the floor and the gym gets very loud when it’s full. Despite the circumstances, Cedar Ridge convincingly defeated Person 58-27 on December 9.

It was only afterwards that Skouby learned something from Jeff Young, the father of guard Grace Young, that caused her to raise her eyebrows.

Cedar Ridge had just ended a 39-game conference losing streak. It was their first conference win since February 8, 2019, when the Red Wolves defeated East Chapel Hill 36-35 at Wildcats Gymnasium. In fact, back then Cedar Ridge played in the Big 8 Conference, as opposed to its current home, the Central Carolina Conference.

Overall, the Red Wolves ended a 19-game losing streak.

“I didn’t realize that until Jeff told me,” Skouby said. “I was like, ‘Oh. Well. Alright.’ I was pretty surprised but I’m happy we were able to win. Just trying to build a program back up year by year. It’s a good thing for us to get that win in the conference and we’re going to go from there.”

Guard Amiyah Ware, in her second game in a Cedar Ridge uniform, led the Red Wolves with 18 points. Freshman Jamee Rose Watson added 17 for Cedar Ridge (1-8, 1-1 in the Central Carolina Conference).

Ware, a junior, transferred from the Burlington School over the summer. She tore her ACL last spring and still plays with a brace on her right leg after six months of rehabilitation.

“Amiyah brings a calming presence to the team,” Skouby said. “She’s a great ball handler so it gives us that element that we really haven’t had before. She just knows the game so well that everyone kind of feeds off of her.”

For twin sisters Cierra and Cameron Copeland, it was a particularly gratifying win. Two years ago during the pandemic, basketball season started amid a cloud of uncertainty. Virtually no fans were permitted to attend games locally or in neighboring school districts. Games were often cancelled or moved with less than 24 hours notice.

Because of injuries, illness and player departures, Cedar Ridge barely had a women’s basketball squad in 2021. More often than not, they suited up only five players for games–the bare minimum allowed to field a team. Two of those players were Cierra and Cameron Copeland, who fought against the odds every night through an 0-8 season. If one of those five players fouled out, which happened several times, Cedar Ridge would be forced to play 5-on-4.

When Skouby, a former center at Iowa, took over the basketball team the following summer, her first job was simple: get more players.

She says, perhaps half-jokingly, that she’s relied on “harassment in the hallways.”

Sometimes, she’ll see a student of above average height walking down the hallways, point to them and, if she doesn’t know their names, say directly “You! You need to play basketball.”

Skouby, an assistant coach in volleyball, talked Young and Julie Altieri to play basketball shortly after the volleyball team won the 3A State Championship in the fall of 2021. When Young played against Durham School of the Arts in the 2021-2022 season opener, it was the first time she had played a basketball game since elementary school.

Some didn’t even have that much experience.

“I think a lot it has to do with the relationship I have with the kids,” Skouby said. “I’m able to joke, I’m able to keep that lightness. But I’m also serious about wanting them to get better everyday. The kids respect that. I have some kids in my science class and they come over and I talk to them.”

Her in-house recruiting efforts have paid dividends. For the first time in years, Cedar Ridge has a junior varsity team, as well as a varsity squad with 15 players.

“I think our confidence is getting better,” Skouby said. “We work everyday to try and make sure them to teach them that if you’re open, you have to shoot it. That’s the only way we can score. Before that, it was that game where they didn’t really want to shoot it because they didn’t want to be responsible Now, the kids realize that I’m not going to hold them responsible if they miss.”

At first glance, it’s an interesting time to take over a women’s basketball program. Northwood, who defeated Cedar Ridge on Friday, are the defending 3A State Champions.

Skouby isn’t living and dying with every win or loss right now. While she’s played in NCAA Tournament games and has been an assistant coach on a state championship volleyball squad, her focus isn’t purely on the scoreboard.

“I don’t really look too far into what our competition is going to be,” Skouby said. “I look in terms of what we can improve on each day. I tell them that I don’t always expect them to go out and beat the socks off of people. I expect them to go out and get better than the last game or the last practice.”

Orange brought its block party to venerable Bulldogs Gymnasium in Burlington on Friday night and came away with a win in its final conference game of 2022. The Panthers defeated Williams 66-59. Orange held the Bulldogs to only three field goals in the fourth quarter mainly because of stellar defensive work by sophomore Freddy Sneed and freshman Mason Robinson. With Orange trailing 47-44 going into the fourth quarter, Xandrell Pennix drained a 3-pointer to open the final frame. Orange coach Derryl Britt played three freshmen most of the fourth quarter. Coleman Cloer led all scorers with 27 points, while Kai Wade added 23. Robinson, another freshman, and Sneed both came up with huge blocks throughout the second half to offset the Bulldogs big bodies inside. It was Orange’s fifth road win of the season, more than the previous two seasons combined. Orange will have one more game before Christmas. They will face Southern Alamance on Wednesday night in Hillsborough. Then the Panthers will start play in the South Granville Holiday Tournament on December 28 when they open with East Wake in the opening round.