The Orange women’s basketball team has had three close games to open its Central Conference season with three big wins. On Friday night, the Panthers held on to defeat Walter Williams 46-44 at Panther Gymnasium. After Williams built a six-point lead early in the third quarter, Orange went on a 20-4 run behind balanced scoring from Evelyn George, Maura McMurtry, Shannon Murphy and Mariah Poole. George scored off a strip and steal and scored on a lay-in with 1:06 remaining in the third quarter. McMurtry started the fourth quarter with a three-pointer, followed by another lay-in from Georgia with 6:37 remaining in regulation, Orange’s final field goal of the game. McMurtry finished with nine pints and three assists while Addie Atkins had eight points and seven rebounds. Orange is atop the Central Conference with a 3-0 record with wins over Southern Alamance and Western Alamance. During the Southeast Alamance Holiday Hoopla Tournament in the final days of 2023, McMurtry was named to the All-Tournament team after she scored 12 points in a 48-39 win over Eastern Alamance in the 7th place game. Murphy also scored 12 points for Orange, who won despite not having George in the lineup. The Lady Panthers, under first-year head coach Lemont Jones, are 8-4 and goes into the Cedar Ridge game on a three-game winning streak.