Cedar Ridge High School

Payton Wilson: UNC defeated N.C. State 41-10 at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh on Saturday night. Wilson concluded his freshman season with the first interception of his college career, which led to a field goal from Chris Dunn in the 2nd quarter that evened the game 6-6. Wilson also led N.C. State with 14 tackles, including four solo. To conclude his freshman season, Wilson led the team with 69 tackles, one more than sophomore Tanner Ingle. Wilson had 36 unassisted tackles, second on the team. He had five tackles for loss and will likely be included in several year-end awards which will be announced in the subsequent days.

Trenton Gill: The former Cedar Ridge punter was busy during the 2nd half of the UNC game. He had six punts for a 48.3 average. His longest punt was 68 yards, his only attempt over 50 yards on the night. Two of his punts were downed inside the 20-yard line. Gill, who was named to the Ray Guy Watch list last month, was not named a semifinalist. He ends the year with 56 punts for an average of 47.6 yards per attempt. His longest of the year was 75 yards. 24 of the 56 punts were over 50 yards, and 16 of them were downed inside the 20-yard line.

Icez Barnett: Division II Mount Olive defeated Chowan 63-57 on Tuesday inside the Helms Center in Murfreesboro on Wednesday night. Barnett scored two points off 1-of-4 shooting from the field. She played ten minutes. Barnett also grabbed four rebounds and blocked three shots. On Saturday, UNC Pembroke defeated Chowan 55-51 at English E. Jones Center in Pembroke. Barnett played 20 minutes, the most of any of her six games thus far. She went 0-for-5 from the field and finished scoreless, but she did grab two rebounds and dish out an assist. The Hawks are 1-5 overall, 1-1 in Conference Carolinas. Chowan travels to Belmont Abbey on Tuesday.

Kaylen Campbell: The Division III Trinity women’s basketball team routed Sarah Lawrence 68-28 on Monday at Oosting Gymnasium in Hartford, CT. Campbell, a redshirt sophomore, scored seven points off the bench in 15 minutes. She shot 3-of-5 from the field, including 1-of-2 from 3-point range. Campbell also grabbed four rebounds, and was credited with two assists and a steal. The Bantams had a game scheduled against the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts on Sunday, but it was canceled because of winter weather. Trinity is 6-1, has won six in a row and closed out a stretch of seven games in ten days with the Sarah Lawrence win. They travel to Connecticut College on Thursday.

Lionel Reid-Shaw: The former Orange Panther ended his college soccer career with Division III Dickinson College last month. Johns Hopkins defeated Dickinson 2-0 in the semifinals of the Centennial Conference Tournament at Franklin & Marshall University in Lancaster, PA on November 9. Reid-Shaw started at center back. The Red Devils end the year 10-8. Reid-Shaw ends his career with 67 games played. He scored he only goal of his Dickinson career on his senior night game, a 3-1 victory over Muhlenberg on October 30. This season, Reid-Shaw played in 17 games, starting 13. He had one assist in his sophomore year.

Her rehabilitation started with baby tennis, which she started playing at seven years old.

Olivia Ward had a long road back when major thoracic surgery jeopardized her playing career. In February 2018, as she neared the end of her sophomore year, her right hand wasn’t strong enough to hold a tennis request.

Her nerves stopped communicating with her muscles, which required surgery from Thomas D’Amico at Duke University Medical Center, who once performed a similar procedure on former New York Mets pitcher Matt Harvey.

Six months later, Ward returned to reach the 3A State doubles tournament with Alana Lutz. Though she had been a member of Cedar Ridge’s 2018 Big 8 Championship team, she had never qualified for the state singles championships, a goal since she was a middle schooler.

“(In singles), the responsibility is on me,” Ward said. “I can say that I got there on my own because it’s just you on the court against someone else. Going with Alana in doubles was a great experience, and I missed playing without her this year.”

To qualify for the state championships, Ward had to reach the semifinals of the 3A Mideast Regionals. After she defeated a representative from Terry Sanford in the opening round, Ward faced Orange’s Jera Hargrove.

It would be the final match they would ever play against each other, and while it was a rivalry, it was a civil one. They were friends off the court. On September 23, Hargrove defeated Ward 6-2, 6-7 (5-7), 10-4 (10-point tiebreaker in the third set), as Orange defeated Cedar Ridge 5-4 on the Red Wolves’ senior night.

Now, Hargrove was in Ward’s way of reaching the state championships.

“It was bittersweet,” Ward said. “Jera and I have always been, I would say, friends. Every time we play each other, it’s a great match. I wish it would have been both of us going. I wish we went to the same school. We could have advanced to regionals together and wouldn’t have had to play each other.”

What followed at the Burlington Tennis Center was a grinding two-and-a-half hour match. After Hargrove evened the match with a 6-4 win in the second set, Ward sat down, started eating between sets and then remembered why she had trained to come back 18 months ago.

“It was a mental switch,” Ward said. “I had this feeling the I wasn’t going to lose. I don’t think I played any better or worse. I think it was just my attitude that changed how that third set went. It was worth it just to ride home with my Dad and meet my goal to make states.”

And she did. Ward captured the third set 6-1 to advance to the semifinals. It was a match featuring the two best female tennis players in Hillsborough, and its symbolism wasn’t lost on Ward.

“If I had lost that match, it would have been a loss I would have been happy about,” Ward said. “Because Jera would have been going. Either way, I would have been happy with the outcome. She’s a great player.”

In states, Ward lose to eventual 3A state champion Rose Kennedy of Charlotte Catholic, who lost only five games in four matches.

Last month, Ward signed with Methodist College to play college tennis.

Featuring Marlee Rakouskas, Jaden Hurdle, Rachel Tilley and Ian Johnson.

In this edition of Thanksgiving wishes, we hear from Orange’s Cooper Porter, Grace Andrews and Taylor Montague, along with Cedar Ridge’s Anaya Carter.

In this edition, we ask Orange shortstop Joey Berini, Cedar Ridge volleyball setter ShiLi Quade, Cedar Ridge women’s basketball center Caitlyn Lloyd and Red Wolf soccer midfielder Eh Kaw Hso what they’re thankful for. Wait until the end for a thoughtful answer from one of the athletes.

This week, after I praised them not even 2 weeks ago, Miami decides to go out and lay an egg over at Florida International. I usually don’t give my thoughts on non conference games, but we have an exception for Miami this time. On with the ramble!

Note: Virginia, North Carolina, and Boston College will not have analysis this week as they played non-conference games, neither of which the result was very surprising.

Georgia Tech

Well, well, well. Tech has won a second ACC game. Given, this is more about NC State’s secondary being made of swiss cheese, but more on that later. Even with State’s dreadful secondary, Yellow Jacket QB James Graham had to do something he hasn’t done all season, make the big throws. Tech didn’t do it much, but when they threw the ball it was very effective. Graham slung 3 touchdowns on only 7-15 passing for 129 yards, and Jordan Mason took care of the rest of the offense with his great day on the ground. Not to mention the run game that Graham had as well. Nice job Jackets, now hopefully Georgia shows you some degree of mercy next week.

Louisville

If it wasn’t for Sam Howell at North Carolina, Javian Hawkins would be my frontrunner for ACC Rookie of the Year. Hawkins continued his reign of terror on opposing defenses, gashing Syracuse for 233 yards and 2 touchdowns on 23 carries in a big time victory. If Louisville had a defense worth anything themselves, they may have only been a one loss team this year. Alas, the offense is stuck doing all the work, and they’re still a 7-4 football team going into their rivalry game. This has been a fun team to watch this year and I feel they will be for years to come.

Virginia Tech

Undoubtedly the favorite to win the Coastal now, Virginia Tech thoroughly dominated Pitt in a 28-0 victory at Lane Stadium. Despite the 28 points, it’s not like Tech’s offense did a whole lot in this game, the real story was the Hokie defense strangling Pitt as a boa constrictor does its prey. VT only allowed 177 total yards of offense to the Panthers and only surrendered 8 first downs. That is what we call dominance ladies and gentlemen.

Wake Forest

Wake’s kick coverage against Duke was bad, but everything else was good. Jamie Newman has a new favorite target in Kendall Hinton, and they should have a really good shot to finish with 10 wins with Syracuse and whatever their bowl game is coming up next.

NC State

Everything is still bad in Wolfpack country. The Pack hit a new low with the loss to Georgia Tech and I can’t imagine it getting any better. With Sam Howell slinging it like he is, it could be a long night in Carter-Finley next Saturday with this NC State defense.

Syracuse

The defense is bad. There’s really nothing more to say about ‘Cuse at this point, the offense has put up enough points the past 2 games to win both and they only won one of them. Bowl hopes are gone, and the search for a new defensive coordinator is going to be interesting this offseason. I do however, expect them to play a good game on senior day against Wake Forest. This could be a game that is surprisingly interesting next Saturday.

Pitt

Pitt avoided turnovers for the most part against Virginia Tech, only losing the ball once. However, they didn’t exactly move the ball either. When you only gain 177 yards on the day, you’re not going to win a football game.

Duke

Congratulations on not being terrible? Then again, half of Dukes 27 points came on kickoff returns so I wouldn’t exactly say their offense is where it needs to be. Duke may not be terrible, but they’re still bad.

Miami

Hey Miami, next time you play Florida International, don’t get down by 20 points in the 4th quarter before you decide to try. Because of this loss, Manny Diaz will probably be out of a job and the Hurricanes program will continue to be stuck in the eternal pit of mediocrity the entirety of the conference outside of Clemson is also in that same pit. It’s official Miami, you’ve never been back, and you won’t ever get back.

Football Power Rankings

1. Clemson, duh.
2. Virginia Tech
3. Virginia
4. Wake Forest
5. Pitt
6. Louisville
7. North Carolina
8. Florida State
9. Boston College
10. Miami
11. Syracuse
12. Georgia Tech
13. Duke
14. NC State

Football Predictions

Virginia Tech at Virginia: Virginia Tech, 24-7

Wake Forest at Syracuse: Syracuse, 38-35

Clemson at South Carolina: Clemson, 42-10

Georgia at Georgia Tech: Georgia, 41-0

Louisville at Kentucky: Louisville, 48-27

Boston College at Pitt: Pitt, 31-21

Miami at Duke: Miami, 21-17

Florida State at Florida: Florida, 38-24

North Carolina at NC State: North Carolina, 41-20

Last week’s predictions: 7-1

Season total: 30-18

Basketball Power Rankings

1. North Carolina
2. Duke
3. Virginia
4. Louisville
5. Syracuse
6. NC State
7. Florida State
8. Virginia Tech
9. Georgia Tech
10. Notre Dame
11. Miami
12. Pitt
13. Clemson
14. Boston College
15. Wake Forest

Basketball Predictions

Virginia Tech v. Michigan State (Maui Invitational): Michigan State, 85-71

Colorado v. Clemson (MGM Resorts Main Event, Las Vegas): Colorado, 70-59

Alabama v. North Carolina (Battle 4 Atlantis): North Carolina, 77-64

Oklahoma State v. Syracuse (NIT Season Tip-Off, Brooklyn): Syracuse 65-60

NC State v. Memphis (Barclays Center Classic, Brooklyn): NC State, 82-71

Tennessee v. Florida State (Emerald Coast Classic: Niceville, FL): Tennessee, 66-62

Last week’s predictions: 5-1

Season total: 16-3

The youth of the Cedar Ridge wrestling team was on display during the Red Wolves Invitational this weekend.

Though the Red Wolves didn’t have any individual champions in the 15-team event on Saturday at Cedar Ridge Gymnasium, freshman Fernando Martinez made an instant impression. Competing at 106 pounds, Martinez won two matches to advance to the championship final.

On Saturday morning, Martinez defeated Derrick Laycock of Person 18-10. In the semifinals, Martinez pinned Trinity’s Chris Grubb in 5:41 to advance to the championship. Joey Bruscino of Southeast Guilford claimed the 106-pound title via pinfall.

Red Wolf junior Cutter Tate also reached the championship final, this time at 195 pounds. In the semifinals, Tate pinned Nisaiah Childers of Salisbury in 49 seconds. Ayden Privette of Trinity coined the championship over Tate.

Five Cedar Ridge wrestlers placed. At 170 pounds, senior Wuffin Ryrick finished 3rd. Rick opened with a quarterfinal pin of East Forsyth’s Ian Sawyer in 46 seconds. After Trinity’s Sebastian Talent prevailed in the semifinals, Ryrick pinned Barltett Yancey’s in 1:00 to reach the consolation final. Ryrick defeated Southeast Guilford’s Ethan Cox to sew up a third place finish.

Senior Alex Christian came in fourth at 182 pounds. Christian pinned Chastin Hawkins to open in 1:06. After falling in the semifinals, Christian pinned Alston Jackson of Carrboro in 4:06 to move on to the consolation final. Trinity’s Tristian Brewer won the 3rd place match.

Junior Daina Pritchard also advanced to the consolation final at 132 pounds. In the opening round, Pritchard pinned Carrboro’s Ezra Sartor in 1:20. Will Lewis of Western Harnett defeated Pritchard in the quarterfinals. Pritchard bounced back to win consecutive matches in the consolation bracket. He pinned Ayden Flanagan in 1:12, then finished off West Johnston’s Chris McHenry in an 11-0 major decision. A North Carolina High School Athletic Association rule prohibits wrestlers from competing five times in one day, so Pritchard’s third place match against Will Lewis of Western Harnett was declared a double forfeit.

Trinity won the Red Wolves Invitational team event with 217 points. Southeast Guilford came in 2nd with 171.5 points. Cedar Ridge finished 5th at 137 points.

Last year, four Red Wolves placed in the top five. Only Darius McLeod reached an individual final.

Across Hillsborough, the Orange wrestling team started its season with the Orange duals, an event where the Panthers compete in four dual matches against non conference opponents. Orange went 4-0.

The Panthers defeated North Davidson 64-12. In round 2, Orange won over Raleigh Sanderson 69-21. The tightest match of the day came in round 3 when the Panthers held off South Stokes 50-24. In the finale, Orange cruised past Chatham Central 75-6.

As with Martinez, a freshman was the star of the day at 106 pounds. In his varsity debut, Dillion Heffernan went 4-0 on the day. Heffernan, who wrestled at 90 pounds last year at Stanford Middle School to help the Chargers to the OPAC Championship, earned a forfeit win in his first varsity match against North Davidson. Heffernan put Sanderson’s Fletcher Kays on his back for his first varsity pin. He also pinned South Stokes’ Kendell Caudill and Chatham Central’s Michael Downing.

Heavyweight Juan Navarro started his senior year with four wins, two via pinfall. 220-pounder Tyler Larkin earned three victories, including a pin of Chatham Central’s Jarrett Marsburn.

Junior Kessell Summers, who qualified for the 3A State Championships in February after a 3rd place finish in the Mideast Regionals, started the campaign with two pins in his only matches on the day.

Orange will face East Chapel Hill, Person and Cardinal Gibbons in the Thanksgiving Quads on Tuesday night at Panther Gymnasium.

Payton Wilson: After he missed the Louisville game on November 16 with an injured shoulder, Wilson returned to the lineup for the N.C. State football team on Thursday night in Atlanta. Georgia Tech defeated the Wolfpack 28-26 in Bobby Dodd Stadium. Wilson finished with seven tackles, including a half-tackle for loss. The loss ended any chance of the Wolfpack making a bowl game. Wilson is second on the Wolfpack with 55 tackles. Only sophomore safety Tanner Ingle has more. He also has five tackles for loss and three pass breakups. N.C. State will face North Carolina next Saturday in Raleigh to end the year.

Trenton Gill: The former Cedar Ridge kicker had three punts against the Yellow Jackets. He averaged 40 yards per punt with one downed inside the 20-yard line. Gill also had six kickoff for with two touchbacks.

Keshawn Thompson: The FCS Campbell Camels ended the season with a 41-31 loss to Charleston Southern at Buccaneer Field in Charleston, S.C. Thompson had two tackles against the Buccaneers. Thompson concludes the campaign with 24 tackles with one for a loss. After a 6-1 start, the Camels end the year on a four-game losing streak. They went 3-3 in the Big South Conference.

Adam Chnupa: The FCS Elon Phoenix concluded the season in thrilling fashion on Saturday. Skyler Davis kicked a 35-yard field goal with 41 seconds remaining as Elon defeated Towson 25-23 at Unitas Stadium in Towson, MD. Chnupa was credited with a tackle on special teams, the first tackle of his college career. Elon ended the year 5-6, 4-4 in the Colonial Athletic Association.

Icez Barnett: The 2019 Orange High graduate scored her first college points on Saturday. Division II Chowan edged North Greenville 76-75 at the Helms Center in Murfreesboro. It was Chowan’s Conference Carolinas opener. Barnett played nine minutes off the bench, scored four points and grabbed five rebounds, four of them offensive. She also had two steals. The Hawks are 1-3 and will host Mount Olive on Tuesday.

Kaylen Campbell: The Division III Trinity women’s basketball team won two games in the Gordon College Classic at Bennett College in Wenham, MA this weekend. On Friday, the Bantams defeated New England College 68-56. Campbell played seven minutes as a reserve and didn’t score. On Saturday, Trinity defeated Gordon 68-57. Campbell didn’t play in the game. Trinity has won five in a row and will play its seventh game in ten days against Sarah Lawrence College on Saturday.

Lauren Cates: As mentioned in Wednesday’s update, the Wake Technical Community College women’s basketball team defeated Lenoir Community College 88-51 on Wednesday in Kinston. Cates, who graduated in June, finished with 12 points on 5-of-15 shooting from the field. She was 2-of-5 from 3-point range and one of four Eagles in double figures. Cates also had five rebounds, four assists and two assists. Through seven games, Cates has started every contest for the Eagles. She’s averaging 11 points per contest and shooting 42.5% from 3-point range. Wake Tech returns to action against Spartanburg Methodist on December 2.

Madison Wardlow: After she played in some of the opening game of the season for Guilford Technical Community College, Wardlow is out right now with a leg injury.