Cedar Ridge Men’s Basketball

Photo by WNC

by Jon Franklin

HOME WRECKED

It’s been a while since I last posted an article here on HillsboroughSports.com. During my period of abeyance, I was very much busy in PA announcing games at Cedar Ridge, occasionally broadcasting Orange and Cedar Ridge games on the website, and of course, working my job in various public services.

Throughout my time writing various editions of The Franklin Mint and on-air, I’ve often recalled fond memories of past games from my hometown of Marion, McDowell County, and throughout Western North Carolina as they are near and dear to me. 

Yet, two weeks ago as a result of the devastation of Hurricane Helene, the areas I called home are almost unrecognizable. In some parts, they’ve disappeared.

Marion, Old Fort, and McDowell County were a part of a huge swath of territory along with Asheville, Boone, Burnsville, Chimney Rock / Lake Lure, Marshall, Newland, Spruce Pine, Swannanoa, and others were devastated due to the immense flooding. Massive recovery and humanitarian efforts are ongoing, continuing to help those ravaged by this terrible event.

In Marion, homes, roads, land, and businesses located near a body of water were decimated as Buck Creek, the Catawba River, Goose Creek, Lake James, Lake Tahoma, Toms Creek, Peppers Creek, and the Second Broad River all sprawled out of their banks, taking out everything in sight. The northwestern part of Marion located along the Catawba near McDowell High School became impassable, cutting off Marion from the northern part of the county. 

Also affected was Old Fort, which also became inaccessible. Old Fort is the location source of the Catawba and the namesake of the mountain on Interstate 40 that was victim of a large landslide, cutting off Western North Carolina to the rest of the state.

In the wake of the devastation, the Baxter plant in the northern part of McDowell in North Cove – manufacturer of 80% of intravenous bags and fluids used in healthcare and McDowell’s largest employer – abruptly ceased production due to mudslides and the floodwaters entering into their sterile environment. The bridges and access roads on all sides of their immense property were destroyed as a result of the nearby raging Peppers Creek and the Catawba’s north fork. Normally, this plant churns out more than twenty million IV bags each day, ranging from half-liter field bags to the six-gallon bags used in dialysis. Efforts at Baxter’s home base in Illinois are ongoing to ramp up production other Baxter plants so that the world’s healthcare facilities are not impacted.

Many of you know that I previously worked for many years as a corrections officer in our state and federal prisons. Oddly enough, the four state facilities that I worked at in WNC while employed with the NC Department of Correction have all evacuated their inmates and relocated them to facilities unaffected. The timetable of restoring power, sewer, and water services to these institutions are unclear as the infrastructure to these facilities must be rebuilt.

Nothing was more crushing than to witness than the total destruction of the villages of Chimney Rock & Lake Lure in nearby Rutherford County. This serene and tranquil area located thirty minutes from my childhood home, was often a fun place to go to during the summer. On a hot day, nothing beat taking a dip in the ponding cold water at the summit of the Hickory Nut Falls or to just take in the views from the rock itself. The Village Scoop was another favorite of mine to enjoy an ice cream after a day of adventure.

Chimney Rock was featured in the 1992 epic film, The Last of The Mohicans that starred Daniel Day-Lewis and was based off of the 1826 novel of the same name by James Fenimore Cooper. Lake Lure was featured in many of the scenes of the 1987 smash romance drama Dirty Dancing, starring the late Patrick Swayze. But after Helene’s fury, the quaint shops, restaurants, and small businesses that lined NC 9 are now reduced to rubble or relocated to the waters of Lake Lure. 

If you’re wondering, I have been in communication with family and friends. My parents are safe, but have slight damage to their home. My sister had major structural damage to her house, but she and her family are also alive and well. Other family and friends are in similar situations, but are safe. As fate would have it, my brother-in-law is one of the leading insurance agents in McDowell County and had been looking forwards to retirement. But now, he has enough work to keep him and his agency in business for an exceptionally long period of time. While my family was relatively unscathed despite being without power and cell phone service for nearly ten days, others are currently without power and cell service, now more than two weeks removed. Other families weren’t so lucky as their homes and roads were obliterated – and even lost loved ones.

But as Western North Carolina was dealt a dirty hand, the rock-solid resolve of its’ people never wavered and became lifelines to their family, friends, and neighbors.

My home church, Marion’s New Manna Baptist Church, along with other places of worship in McDowell, have stepped up to support their own by transforming their facilities into shelters serving hot meals, receiving and distribution centers for food, water, and supplies, and becoming relief stations for first responders and linemen. Other relief agencies such as Baptists on Mission, Hearts with Hands, and Samaritan’s Purse are supplementing their efforts by ensuring their work is not in vain or depleted of resources. 

Such supplementation came from our nearby area. Lee’s 24-Hour Towing of Durham, has utilized their fleet of trucks to haul trailers of food, water, and supplies all over the mountains. Fredrickson Aviation based out of Timberlake, has airlifted supplies to inaccessible areas of WNC using the Burlington-Alamance Regional Airport as their hub of operation. 

But come Hell or High Water, the work must continue to help our families, friends, and neighbors in Western North Carolina.

If you have supported any these causes by donating blood, food, water, supplies, finances, or even your time to help load a vehicle with supplies, I can speak for the thousands of Mountaineers to say thank you for supporting some of the finest people you’ll ever meet. If the roles were reversed from our area, they would be the first to help us in our time of need. Please continue these efforts as they have a long road ahead of them. 

This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is men’s basketball center Harrison Perel. This season, Perel was the leading rebounder with 9.6 board per game as the Red Wolves pulled some big surprise wins. He was also the leading shooter on the team firing at 40% from the field. He was second on the team with 9.1 points per game. Perel also led the team with 1.2 blocks per game. In the Red Wolves stunning win over Person on January 2 in Hillsborough, Perel had seven points and eleven rebounds, despite the presence of the Rockets big men Lance Clarke and Romello Snow. In the Red Wolves win over Chatham Central, who entered the game undefeated, Perel had six points and eight rebounds. Against Jordan-Matthews, Perel had ten points and ten rebounds. Perel remained a steady presence throughout the course of his two years at the varsity level under head coach Mike Jones. Perel averaged 7.2 points and 6.8 rebounds in his Cedar Ridge career. His season-high came against Jordan-Matthews with 19 points on November 27 in Siler City. He also had eight double-doubles this season and played his best basketball as his career ended. Against Walter Williams, Perel had 16 points and 12 rebounds. He recorded double-doubles in three of his last four games. Perel’s younger sister, Ellamarie, is the starting goalkeeper for Cedar Ridge’s women’s soccer team.

Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week: Harrison Perel

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This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is senior men’s basketball guard Landon Dalehite. In January, Dalehite spearheaded the Red Wolves to two upset wins. On January 2, Dalehite scored 12 points as the Red Wolves upset Person 48-41 at Red Wolves Gymnasium. With Person leading 38-34, Dalehite drained a 3-pointer with 4:07 remaining in the fourth quarter. From that point forward, Person didn’t score agains as the Red Wolves gained a critical Central Conference win. The following week, Cedar Ridge upset previously undefeated Chatham Central 53-52 in overtime. Dalehite scored seven points. On Tuesday night, Dalehite led Cedar Ridge in scoring with 15 points. Since Christmas, the Red Wolves haven’t had all hands on decks because of injuries, illness and defections. But Dalehite has been there at every game. The son of Danny and Beth Dalehite, Landon is a two-sport athlete. After basketball season ends, Landon will suit up to play left field for the Cedar Ridge baseball team. Last year, Dalehite was a starter for a Cedar Ridge team that earned an automatic bid to the 3A State Playoffs. Dalehite’s sister, Tori, was a two-time Big 8 Conference champion in softball who also played volleyball and basketball at Cedar Ridge. She’s entering her senior year at UNC Greensboro. Dalehite will celebrate senior night later this month with plans to pull more upsets on the hardwood before his time is done. 

Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week: Landon Dalehite

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From the start of this season, Cedar Ridge men’s basketball coach Mike Jones has touted freshman point guard Jordan Jacobson as a rising star. On Monday night, Jacobson showed why Jones is so enthusiastic. He scored the game-winning three-pointer with :5.4 remaining in overtime as the Red Wolves defeated previously undefeated Chatham Central 53-52 in overtime. Not only did Jacobson hit the game-winning shot, but he also put the game into overtime with a 16-footer with :8.1 remaining to even the score 46-46. Jacobson had a career-high 12 points. Braeden Wilbourn paced Cedar Ridge with 18 points. Chatham Central led 43-36 with 3:51 remaining before the Red Wolves finished regulation with seven consecutive points. Wilbourn scored on a lay-in off an assist from Jacobson to start the comeback. Then Wilbourn hit two free throws off a technical foul to put the Red Wolves within a bucket. After Jacobson knocked down the 3-pointer in overtime, Wilbourn sealed the game with an interception of a skip pass by the Bears. Afterwards, Jones called it the Red Wolves best win of the season. Last week, Cedar Ridge upset Person at Red Wolves Gymnasium. Cedar Ridge will return home tonight (Friday) against Eastern Alamance for a doubleheader. The women’s game will be at 6PM while the men’s game starts at 7;30. 

Cedar Ridge men’s basketball’s Jordan Jacobson & Braeden Wilbourn talk with vs. Chatham Central

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Even in the darkest hole, you’d be well advised to never count out Cedar Ridge men’s basketball this season.

It wouldn’t make much sense to think that Cedar Ridge could take down Chatham Central on Monday night, especially when the Bears came into the game 12-0.  Chatham’s first win came against Cedar Ridge, 65-48, on November 21 in Bear Creek.

Since then, the Bears had beaten ten of its twelve opponents by double-figures. Only Seaforth (64-57) and Southeast Alamance (69-64) had given Chatham Central a competitive game.

Yet not only did the Red Wolves pull off a 53-52 upset in overtime on Monday night at Red Wolves Gymnasium, but it was a freshman who paved the way.

Jordan Jacobson drilled the game-winning three-pointer with :5.4 seconds remaining in overtime to lift the Red Wolves to its third win of the season. In the final sequence, Cedar Ridge’s Landon Dalehite had an open look from the left elbow but missed a three-pointer. The Red Wolves Braeden Wilbourn attempted a catch-and-shoot on the rebound, but it was blocked by the Bears’ Aidan Johnson. Cedar Ridge center Hayden Kirk knocked the ball back to Jacobson on the wing for the game-winning shot.

Jacobson was responsible for the game going to overtime in the first place. He drained an 18-footer with :8.1 remaining in regulation to even it up at 46-46. The Bears’ Reed Albright missed a three-point attempt over Dalehite at the fourth quarter buzzer.

The Bears’ final chance to win was intercepted by Wilbourn, who swiped a skip pass and dribbled up the floor untouched. As the clock ran out, a triumphant Cedar Ridge coach Mike Jones thrust both of his fists into the air in jubilation for possibly the biggest win in his second year on the job.

“We’ve got so much more confidence now,” Jones said. “I’m so proud of my guys. They were down in the fourth quarter but they never got down on themselves. I knew Jordan was ready to take those shots. He has the confidence to do that. I love my team.”

Wilbourn led Cedar Ridge with 16 points. Jacobson had a career-high 12 points.

Jeremiah Young came off the bench to lead the Bears (13-1) with 17 points. Albright added 13.

Wilbourn started overtime with a beautiful spin move down the lane for a lay-in. Albright responded with two free-throws to even the game at 48-48. It appeared Dalehite would have a chance to put the Red Wolves ahead by three when he drove the lane for his own lay-up, but he was called for a charge as he collided with Johnson.

Chatham Central’s Luke Gains split two free throws to put the Bears ahead 49-48. Wilbourn responded with a gorgeous lay-in off the dribble.

While the Bears have a wide array of outside shooters, for a fleeting moment it appeared their hero would be Logan Maness, who drilled a 3-pointer from the left corner with 1:01 remaining in overtime. It was Maness’ only points of the game and vaulted the Bears ahead 52-50.

Cedar Ridge trailed 30-26 at the half. The Bears increased its lead to 43-36 with 3:51 remaining after a 15-foot jumper by Young. Jacobson started the comeback with a lay-up on a dribble drive. Dalehite blocked a shot by Alrbright on the next Chatham possession and fed Jacobson, who hit Wilbourn down the floor for another lay-in. Seconds later, a Chatham Central reserve who never played in the game was hit with a technical foul after he yelled something to an official about the lack of a foul call on Dalehite’s block.

Two free throws by Wilbourn cut Chatham Central’s lead to 43-42 with 2:36 remaining.

The Red Wolves will face Orange tonight in Hillsborough. While the Red Wolves will be underdogs, it’s something that Jones won’t worry about after a memorable Monday night.

“This win stomps that Person win,” Jones said. “This was a bigger one.”