Month: August 2023

It took some waiting for the Orange men’s soccer team to finally gets its season going. Their original season opener was set against Northern Durham last week, but it was postponed twice because of weather. Instead, the Panthers opened at Durham School of the Arts last Thursday and came away with a victory. Emmanuel Mil Cruz headed home a free kick by Traver Bruhns  in the second half to lift the Panthers past the Bulldogs 2-1. Bruins opened the game with the first goal. It was a solid win for Orange, who defeated a DSA team that won 14 games in 2022 and reached the 3A State Playoffs. Orange replaces 13 seniors from last year’s team, which reached the state playoffs for the first time since 2017. The top four goal scorers from the 2022 team graduated. Mil Cruz is the top returning scorer with four goals. Orange dropped its home opener against Southern Durham on Monday night. The Spartans won 4-0. Orange will try to rebound when they face Carrboro at Jaguar Stadium on Wednesday night. On Saturday, the Panthers will travel to WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary to face Pinecrest in the North Carolian Soccer Coaches Association Kick-Off Classic. The Panthers will kick off against the Patriots at 11 AM.

The Cedar Ridge men’s soccer team is off to its best start in 13 years, at least.

On Monday night, the Red Wolves journeyed to Henderson and defeated former conference rival Vance County 3-1. Cedar Ridge is now 3-0 after starting the year with wins over Eno River Academy and Voyager Academy.

Inside Vipers Stadium, sophomore Gael Antunez-Nunez notched his second goal of the season. Last week in a win over Voyager Academy, Antunez-Nunez assisted on two goals in a 4-1 victory over Voyager. Antunez-Nunez also scored in the season-opener against Eno River.

Senior Abazar Babiker added his first goal of the season, while Rudy Fuentes added insurance for the Red Wolves, who claimed its second straight road win. Fuentes had an assist, as did junior Dominic McNerney and sophomore Giovanni Yanez added assists.

Sophomore goalkeeper Erik Galunas made nine saves for his third win of the season. Cedar Ridge will continue its four-game road trip on Wednesday when they face Northwood in Pittsboro. During the summer, the Chargers left the Central Carolina Conference to drop down to 2A to join the Mid-Carolina Conference.

Southern Durham 4, Orange 0: After winning its season opener at Durham School of the Arts on Thursday, Southern Durham defeated Orange in the Panthers home opener on Monday night. The Panthers will travel to recover when they face the Carrboro Jaguars at Jaguar Stadium on Wednesday night.

Women’s Tennis: Orange 5, Riverside 4: In a tight dual match where one doubles tilt decides the whole shooting match, it’s good to have a duo who qualified for the 3A State Tournament last year on your side.

That’s exactly what Orange had against Riverside in Durham last Thursday.

With the dual match all square 4-4, Erin and Shannon Sollars teamed at #1 doubles to defeat Calista Robinson and Jordan Oakley 8-6 to provide Orange a dual match victory in Durham. The Lady Panthers improved to 2-0.

Shannon Sollars, a junior, also won at #2 singles over Oakley 6-2, 6-2.

Senior Makayla Davis won two straight matches on the day for the second time in as many dual matches. Davis captured her singles match over Emma Wilcox 6-4, 6-0. At #2 doubles, Davis teamed with sophomore Molly Kruse over Wilcox and Cynthia Balin 8-4.

Kruse also won two matches. In addition to her doubles win, Kruse won the tightest match of the day against Rachael Ades 5-7, 6-1, 10-3. Kruse has won all four of her matches this year.

Orange returns home today (Tuesday) to face Durham School of the Arts.

Cedar Ridge 8, Voyager Academy 1: The Cedar Ridge women’s tennis team opened the season last week. In its second match, the Red Wolves defeated Voyager Academy. The Red Wolves won five of the six singles matches.

Senior Cameron Mayhew won at #1 singles over Katelyn Hutson 6-1, 6-3. Junior Ella Caltabiano won at #2 singles over Karli McKenna 6-3, 6-0. Junior Adeline Cummings, another returning player from last year, won 6-0, 6-0 over Grace Garrett. Raven Mowles-Airing won at #4 singles over Fiorella Cedeno 6-4, 6-0. Red Wolves senior Annabeth Lundberg won at #6 singles against Jillian Draughon 6-1, 6-0.

Cedar Ridge captured all three doubles matches. Mayhew and Cummings won at #1 doubles 6-4. Caltabiano and Ballenger won at #2 and Mowles-Airing and Lunbdberg prevailed at #3 doubles.

Cross Country: The Cedar Ridge cross country team started its season at the Early Bird Challenge at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary on Saturday. Red Wolves junior Naomi Dyreng finished 10th in the women’s competition among 156 runners. Dyreng came in with a time of 20:58.90. Last year, Dyreng won three Mideast Regional championships in the outdoor track and field championships at Franklinton High School. Dyreng won the 1,600 and 3,200 meters. Dyreng teamed with Abigail Klaitman, Serena Summers and Eliza Klaitman to win the regional championship in the 4×800 women’s relay.

She was also the top female runner for Cedar Ridge at the 3A State Cross Country championships last November at the Ivey Redmon Sports Complex in Kernersville.

Following a fifth-place finish at the East Chapel Hill Wildcat Invitational, the Orange volleyball team won in its first-ever trip to Seaforth.

Senior Ella Wimsatt tied her season-high with 19 kills while sophomore Katie Silcott racked up 37 assists as Orange defeated the Hawks 3-1 on scores of 25-16, 20-25, 25-18 and 25-11.

Wimsatt added 20 digs while sophomore Ava Wilkerson had nine kills and three blocks. The Panthers broke open the first set with a 10-2 run while senior Sadye Porter was serving. Wimsatt had three consecutive kills to put Orange ahead 11-5, leading to a Hawks timeout. Wimsatt had kills on two of Orange’s last three points to wrap up the set 25-16.

After dropping the second set, Orange opened the third with seven straight points, a spree that included three kills by sophomore Aubrey Jordan. Wilkerson took a pass from freshman Sawyer White and dunked it down to put the Lady Panthers ahead 20-12. Jordan finished off the set with a kill off a set from White.

Orange started the fourth set with an 8-3 run, which included aces from Porter and Wilkerson. The Lady Panthers built a 14-6 lead after a 6-1 run that included an ace by Wimsatt and a kill by Jordan. Orange scored the final eight points of the match. Fittingly, it ended with Wimsatt scoring one final kill on match point off an assist from Silcott.

In the East Chapel Hill Tournament, Orange started with a sweep of East Chapel Hill on Friday night. On Saturday morning, Southwest Randolph, the 2021 2A State Champions, swept Orange. Later in the day, Grimsley swept Orange. In the fifth place match, the Panthers defeated Southern Alamance 3-0. The Patriots and the Panthers are now in the Central Carolina Conference.

Orange will return to East Chapel Hill on Wednesday to face the Wildcats.

Cedar Ridge 3, East Chapel Hill 1:

The Cedar Ridge volleyball team has now won 30 consecutive home games after beating former conference rival East Chapel Hill in four sets on Monday night.

Senior Graylinn Serge finished with 15 kills while Rachel Alverson finished with 36 assists. Sophomore Claire Hargett came way with eleven kills as the Red Wolves squared its record to 2-2.

The two teams went back-and-forth in the opening set before the Red Wolves took control with a 13-5 run. Senior libero Caroline Park served while Hargett racked up two kills in the run. An ace by Park led to an Wildcat timeout. Serge delivered an ace to wrap up the opening set.

The second set was even 8-8, but Cedar Ridge went on a 7-2 run. Senior Addie Reid slammed home a kill that left Alverson covering her hands with her mouth in awe to put the Red Wolves ahead 17-12. The Red Wolves scored four straight points behind two kills from Serge to go ahead 21-15. A return by the Wildcats went long on set point to put the Red Wolves up by two sets.

After the Wildcats captured the third set 25-18, the Red Wolves dominated the fourth and final frame. Serge delivered another ace in the midst of a 5-0 Red Wolves run to begin the frame. East never seriously threatened in the final set. Hargett had four kills in the fourth set, while senior Cecilia Kenan had two aces. Hargett slammed down match point on an assist from Alverson.

Last week, Cedar Ridge took the defending 4A State Champions, Millbrook, to five sets in Raleigh. The Red Wolves led 2-sets-to-one after beating the Wildcats 25-20 in the third. Millbrook stormed back to win the fourth 25-12 and captured the final frame 15-9.

On Saturday, Chapel Hill defeated Cedar Ridge 3-0 at Tigers Auxiliary Gymnasium. It was the first time that the Tigers defeated the Red Wolves since 2019, when they were rivals in the Big 8 Conference. Cedar Ridge had won three straight over the Tigers.

Cedar Ridge will travel to Carrboro on Wednesday before starting conference play against Person next Tuesday in Hillsborough.

Going back to last academic year, this week’s Orange Panther of the Week is Thomas Loch. Through four years at Orange, Thomas was a two-sport athlete with the Panthers. And, during his final days at Orange, he became a head coach. At Orange, he qualified for the Mideast Golf Regionals three times. Loch’s father was the head coach of the Orange men’s and women’s golf teams. Thomas grew up playing golf and continued to lead the Orange men’s golf team during his four years. Thomas was also a three-year member of the Orange men’s basketball team. He scored the final three-pointer for the Panthers during its thrilling playoff game against West Carteret in Morehead City in February. Loch was always a reliable member of a senior class who played regularly down the stretch. In May, Loch became the head coach of the Orange County Hockey Club, a squad comprised of Orange, Cedar Ridge and Eno River Academy players, along with a few others from Wake County. Thomas was also a part of Hillsboroughsports.com, doing play-by-play for softball and baseball. Earlier this month, Loch moved into his dorm at UNC-Chapel Hill, where he will start his freshman year. Last winter, Thomas was a senior on the most successful Orange men’s basketball team since the 2016-2017 season. Hopefully, Thomas will not be a stranger to his friends in Hillsborough, where he constantly played at Occoneechee Golf Course. We wish Thomas all the best in Chapel Hill.

It was a long night in the season opener at Auman Stadium on Friday night, but a gratifying win for the Orange Panthers. Junior quarterback Hank Nunnery threw four touchdowns as the Panthers defeated Southeast Alamance 33-20. It was the first game for the Stallions in program history. Orange captured a victory in the season-opener for the first time since 2017. Orange’s defense sprang out of the gates quickly. Nunnery found Brandon Cummings for a 30-yard touchdown pass. On the next Panther drive, Nate Sorrells caught a 15-yard touchdown pass from Nunnery. Later in the second quarter after Southeast reduced the Orange lead to 13-7, Cummings got free and hauled in an 89-yard touchdown pass. Cummings finished the night with three catches for 129 yards, the leading receiver in the game. Sorrells rushed for a 60-yard touchdown late int the third quarter for the final touchdown of the night. Sorrells rushed for 179 yards. Crawford Farmer also had a touchdown pass for Orange. The Panthers have a winning record for the first time since March 2021. Orange will welcome longtime rival Chapel Hill into Auman Stadium next Friday night. Orange hasn’t started 2-0 since 2016.

Southeast Alamance traveled into Hillsborough knowing they would play its first game in program history on Friday night.

What they didn’t know was, by game’s end, they would feel like they had played their entire inaugural season in one night.

The Stallions and the Orange Panthers labored through a textbook definition 0f a choppy game filled with penalties, incomplete passes and players cramping up nearly every other play in the second half. It added up to an interminable three-hours-and-seven minutes. When the proceedings finally ended, Orange limped away with its first win in a season-opener since 2017.

Junior quarterback Hank Nunnery threw four touchdowns, including an 89-yard catch-and-run to Brandon Cummings in the second quarter, to lead Orange past Southeast Alamance 33-20 at Auman Stadium. Orange running back Nate Sorrells rushed for 179 yards, including a 60-yard touchdown with :30 remaining in the third quarter that put away the win.

It’s the first time Orange has had a winning record since the spring pandemic season of March 2021 when they were 3-2 after a win over Cedar Ridge.

“You take wins as they come,” said Orange coach DeVante Pettiford. “Winning is a lot more difficult thing than people understand. You take them how you get them. I’m proud of the team tonight. They fought hard all four quarters. There were some things we had to weather. We kept fighting and we kept bouncing back.”

Playing without starting center Luke Cecil, Orange’s offense was boom or bust. None of Orange’s 16 drives had more than one first down. In lieu of sustained drives, the Panthers relied on explosion plays and a feisty defense that sacked Southeast quarterback Ryan Dodson nine times.

“When we looked at game tape, we knew that Dodson was their guy,” Pettiford said. “Obviously, they have a couple of receivers that they like. But the quarterback was their guy. So my things was we were going to send pressure as much as we could. Dodson is a very tough kid. We hit him all night long and he kept getting back up. He’s tough as nails.”

Sophomore linebacker Jaylen Starks sacked Dodson on the game’s first play to dd adrenaline to an Orange sideline the was already bouncing off the walls. The Panthers started its first drive at the Stallions 35-yard line. On the second play, Nunnery found Cummings for a 30-yard touchdown pass.

Orange’s Garrett Sawyer sacked Dodson on the next Southeast drive, sending the ball to the ground. Orange freshman Tyreek Battle recovered the fumble at the Stallions 37-yard line. After Sorrells rushed for a 32-yard gain to move the ball into the red zone, Nunnery searched for Cummings again. Instead, the pass wound up in Sorrells hands, who ran it into the right corner of the end zone from 15 yards out. Tyler Narold’s extra point put Orange ahead 13-0.

For anyone looking to win bets in the year 2040 across bars in Haw River, the first answer to the trivia question “Who was the first Southeast Alamance player to score a touchdown?” is Tryon Squires. After Antonio Williamson intercepted an Orange pass in the second quarter, Dodson found Squires for a 33-yard touchdown pass. Cruz Nelms’ extra point put the Stallions deficit at 13-7.

Through the early portion of the second quarter, the Panthers offense struggled. Backed up to its 11-yard line, Orange caught lightning in a bottle when Nunnery found Cummings over the middle. Cummings outran the rest of the Southeast defense for an 89-yard touchdown.

“I was running out of gas towards the end,” Cummings said.

“That was a game-changing touchdown,” Pettiford said. “They had a lot of momentum at that time. When he broke that, he was able to increase our lead and get a lot of things in our favor. Brandon does that every day in practice. I’m glad it finally happened on Friday night.”

In the second half, the two teams traded three-and-outs over the first few drives. The Stallions blocked a Narold punt at the Orange 14-yard line. On 4th-and-9, Dodson hit Squires in the right corner of the end zone. Nelms’ extra point reduced Orange’s lead to 20-13.

Once again, Orange found another big play. After a 17-yard run by Jaylan Starks, Nunnery found Crawford Farmer over the middle for a 46-yard touchdown catch.

Southeast narrowed the gap again with a 10-play, 59-yard drive that appeared dead when Dodson threw an incomplete pass on 4th-and-9 from the Orange 11-yard line. But the Panthers were called for a roughing the passer penalty. On the next play, Dodson found Williamson on a 6-yard touchdown pass.

The Stallions were within one score at 27-20, which meant it was time for another Orange big play. This time it was Sorrells, who streaked ahead for 20 yards. After an injury timeout, Sorrells took a toss and outran the field 60 yards for the game’s final score.

In the fourth quarter, sophomores Kayden Bradsher and Hunter Albert each had interceptions for the Panthers. Albert’s pick at the goal line ended the final Southeast drive of the night and ensured Orange’s second straight home win dating back to last season.

ORANGE 33, SOUTHEAST ALAMANCE 20

SA–0     7      13    0-20

OR–13   7      13    0-33

Orange–Brandon Cummings 30 pass from Hank Nunnery (kick blocked)

Orange–Nathan Sorrells 15 pass from Nunnery (Tyler Narold kick)

Southeast Alamance–Tyron Squires 33 pass from Ryan Dodson (Cruz Nelms kick)

Orange–Cummings 89 pass from Nunnery (Narold kick)

Southeast Alamance–Squires 13 pass from Dodson (kick blocked)

Orange–Crawford Farmer 46 pass from Nunnery (Narold kick)

Southeast Alamance–Antonio Williamson 6 pass from Dodson (Nelms kick)

Orange–Sorrells 60 run (kick failed)

RUSHING–SOUTHEAST ALAMANCE 37 carries–30 yards (Daniel Booker 7-37, Jerry Sims 3-11, Trey Van Dusen 1-7, Damonte Corbett 6-0, Treygan Lucas 3-0, Dodson 17-(-25)

ORANGE– 25 carries–183 yards TD (Sorrells 14-179 TD, Jaylan Starks 4-22, DeAndre Brown 3-9, Daylin Ford 1(-2), Nunnery 3-(-25).

PASSING–SOUTHEAST ALAMANCE 15-40 178 yards 3 TD 4 INT (Dodson 15-39 178 yards 3 TD, 4 INT, Van Dusen 0-1)

ORANGE (Nunnery 8-20 201 yards, 4 TD, INT)

RECEIVING: SOUTHEAST ALAMANCE (Sims 6-38, Squires 5-110 2 TD, Williamson 2-21 TD, Corbett 1-5)

ORANGE: (Cummings 3-129 2 TD, Farmer 2-49 TD, Sorrells 2-18 TD, Kayden Bradsher 1-5