Orange Women’s Soccer

This week’s Orange Panther of the Week is senior forward Sullivan Gaddy. It’s the third time that Gaddy has been named Panther of the Week. Gaddy has been one of the most decorated Orange players in the history of the program from the time she first stepped onto the pitch as a freshman. In 2022, as a freshman, she led Orange with 13 goals as the Lady Panthers reached the third round of the 3A State Playoffs. It was the deepest run in the history of a program that started in 1989. Gaddy scored two goals against Harnett Central in the opening round of the state playoffs, a 5-3 Orange win. She assisted on another goal in Orange’s win over Cape Fear in the second round. Last week, Gaddy scored a hat trick as Orange defeated Cedar Ridge in the opening leg of the Hillsborough Derby. On Thursday, the Lady Panthers completed a season sweep of the Red Wolves. Gaddy scored two goals and assisted on another. She also scored four goals in a win over Durham School of the Arts on March 21. Lsat fall, Gaddy also was a manager for the Orange men’s team, which reached the 3rd round of the state playoffs and had the most successful season in school history. As she graduates in June, Gaddy will be remembered as one of the most influential players in Orange soccer history.

Orange Panther of the Week: Sullivan Gaddy

This week’s Orange Panther of the Week is senior forward Sullivan Gaddy. It’s the third time that Gaddy has been named Panther of the Week. Gaddy has been one of the most decorated Orange players in the history of the program from the time she first stepped onto the pitch as a freshman.

Orange women’s soccer senior striker Sullivan Gaddy earned the hat trick as the Lady Panthers rolled past Cedar Ridge 8-0 in the opening leg of the Hillsborough Derby at Orange Soccer Park on Monday night. Gaddy scored the only goal of the first half in the 5th minute off a through pass from Cora Bailey. Orange would pour on seven goal in a span of 23 minutes during the second half to secure its first conference win of the season. It was Gaddy’s second hat trick of the season. Bailey would add two goals in the second half. Caroline Cathey, another senior forward, scored on a penalty kick to put the Lady Panthers ahead 4-0 in the second half. Cathey would assist on Bailey’s first goal. Freshman Ella Mccay scored her fist varsity goal to close out the scoring on an assist from another freshman, Madison Edwards. Earlier in the half, Mccay set up Bailey’s second goal. With two of the top teams in the 3A East Region in the Central Conference, Orange has faced a stacked schedule to being the season. They will look to continue the momentum when they host Walter Williams in Hillsborough on Monday night. The Lady Panthers will travel to Cedar Ridge next Thursday for the second leg of the Hillsbrough Derby.

Orange women’s soccer’s Sullivan Gaddy & Cora Bailey discuss win over Cedar Ridge

Orange women’s soccer senior striker Sullivan Gaddy earned the hat trick as the Lady Panthers rolled past Cedar Ridge 8-0 in the opening leg of the Hillsborough Derby at Orange Soccer Park on Monday night. Gaddy scored the only goal of the first half in the 5th minute off a through pass from Cora Bailey.

There was every reason to think the Cedar Ridge women’s soccer was set to end Orange’s domination in the Hillsborough Derby.

The Red Wolves convincingly defeated Walter Williams 5-2 last week in Hillsborough. The Lady Panthers limped into spring break with an 0-4 Central Conference record after falling to Williams 5-4 in Burlington.

On Monday night, none of that mattered.

Once senior Sullivan Gaddy scored off a breakaway courtesy of a through pass from Cora Bailey in the opening minutes, Orange controlled Cedar Ridge once again.

Gaddy earned her second hat trick of the season as Orange scored seven goals in the final 25 minutes of regulation to defeat Cedar Ridge 8-0 at Orange Soccer Stadium.

Senior Caroline Cathey added two goals, including a penalty kick in the second half. She also assisted on a goal from Bailey that put Orange ahead 5-0. Bailey also scored two goals and opened the game with an assist.

Orange (5-5, 1-4 in the Central Conference) earned its eighth straight win over the Red Wolves with its second-highest goal output of the year. The Lady Panthers scored nine against Durham School of the Arts in the second-opener on March 3.

Orange is 8-0-1 against Cedar Ridge since 2019. The Red Wolves’ last win over Orange came on April 17, 2019.

“I’m never surprised by our conference,” said Orange coach Jacki Mignosa. “It just ping-pongs back and forth as far as who wins, who loses. Cedar is a good team this year. I never underestimate Cedar Ridge because it’s such a rivalry. Everybody is hyped up. I always believe we have very good players.”

The opening five minutes went end-to-end. Orange goalkeeper Alexis Stephens saved a penalty kick in the third meeting, then triggered a transition opportunity which led to Bailey finding Gaddy, who tucked the ball in the right corner of the net.

Gaddy has 12 goals on the season. She has scored 32 goals over the past two seasons.

Cedar Ridge goalkeeper Ellamarie Perel was busy throughout the first half but limited Orange to just one goal in the opening 40 minutes. Moments after Gaddy scored the opener, Cathey took a pass from Gaddy in the box but got rubbed off the ball by Red Wolves’ centerback Addison Reiniche, allowing Perel to secure the ball.

Following the penalty kick save by Stephenson, Cedar Ridge’s best opportunity to score came from sophomore Kate Finnegan, who took a throw-in from Fleury Nicholson at the top of the penalty area. Stephenson rushed in from the six-yard box to smother the ball. In the 31st minute, Finnegan found Alex Tong, who fed Nicholson from 20 yards away. Her shot floated over the crossbar.

After Orange took a 1-0 lead to the half, Finnegan took a pass from Nicholson and took off on a breakaway but the shot sailed over the net.

In the 55th minute, the dam burst free. Emma Edwards took a pass from Gaddy and found the heart of the net from 15 yards away. Moments later, Stephens got a rare goalkeeper assist when she jump started the offense with a quick pass to Gaddy, who scored her second goal on a breakaway with 22:36 remaining to put Orange ahead 3-0.

After Cathey’s penalty kick, Bailey added her first tally off a pass from Cathey. Gaddy completed her hat trick on an unassisted goal.

Bailey scored her second goal off a pass from Ella Mccay. Later, Mccay scored her first goal off a pass from fellow freshman Madison Edwards.

“I believe we’ve come together as a team and learned to trust each other,” Mignosa said. “They have learned it is better to know and appreciate each other’s strengths and know each other’s weaknesses. The thing is they have to trust and believe each other that they can win.”

Orange will host Seaforth on Wednesday night.

Cedar Ridge returns home to face Person on Wednesday.

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Photo by Bradly Nicholson 

Matchups between Orange and Cedar Ridge come and go. Some are competitive. Some aren’t.

On a night like Wednesday, it serves as a reminder that having the crosstown rivals in the same league can be a wonderful thing.

In what may have been the best matchup in women’s soccer in the history of the rivalry, the two teams combined for four goals in two, 10-minute overtime sessions.

With Orange trailing 5-4, junior Caroline Cathey took a short return pass off a corner kick from Lily Crayton and lofted it up from 25 yards. The ball bent under the crossbar and over the outstretched hands of Cedar Ridge goalkeeper Ellamarie Perel into the nylon. It was the final equalizer in a game full of them.

The game would end in a 5-5 tie, but it was fiercely contested down to the very last second in front of two grandstands full of fans that lived and died with every loose ball at Orange Soccer Field.

In the final scoring attempt, Orange senior Ella Wimsatt sent a long ball that led to a chase between Cathey and Cedar Ridge wingback Rachel Alverson. The two players collided as the buzzer sounded. Cathey was shaken up and was checked on by Alverson and several teammates as the long battle ended.

Orange has now gone unbeaten in its last eight games against the Red Wolves. Cedar Ridge’s last victory over the Lady Panthers came on April 17, 2019.

Cedar Ridge junior Fleury Nicholson finished with two goals. Cathey finished with two goals for Orange (7-4-1, 4-3-1 in the Central Conference).

It was yet another battle in a Central Conference that has turned incredibly competitive over the final weeks of the regular season. Both Cedar Ridge and Orange had wins over defending 3A State Champion Eastern Alamance last week. Orange is currently ranked #10 in the 3A East Region, with Cedar Ridge at #11.

Cedar Ridge appeared set to end Orange’s dominance in the rivalry when they bolted out to a 3-1 lead. Rose Garysmith, a Red Wolf centerback, completed the opening goal when she took a corner kick from freshman Kate Finnegan and kneed the ball into the lower right corner past Orange netminder Makayla Davis in the 16th minute.

Orange’s leading scorer, Elliana Sullivan Gaddy, tied it up after she took a throw-in from Wimsatt and chipped it past Perel from the right corner of the box from 17 yards.

Cedar Ridge had six corner kicks in the opening half. After Wimsatt disposed of a corner by Finnegan, Cedar Ridge’s Katie Paulakonis was grabbed by Orange’s Channing Mahaney in the penalty area, leading to a foul. Nicholson’s first goal came off the subsequent penalty kick, putting the Red Wolves back ahead 2-1.

Orange took the kickoff to the second half and Sullivan Gaddy’s attempt was blocked by Alverson. That sparked a quick Cedar Ridge counter where Paulakonis fed Nicholson, who switched to her right foot for a better angle and fired it past Davis from 19 yards with 38:29 remaining in regulation.

Orange controlled possession for the next few minutes until Cora Bailey scored to put Orange within a goal. Sullivan Gaddy’s corner led to a failed clearance by the Red Wolves. Bailey pounced on the loose ball and drilled it into the heart of the net.

Orange evened the game in dramatic, if somewhat controversial, fashion. The referee’s assistant ruled Orange got the ball on a throw-in with 1:48 remaining. Sullivan Gaddy launched down the right flank and fired in a shot from 20 yards with 1:10 remaining in regulation to tie it up at 3-3.

Cathey gave Orange its only lead of the night when she was fouled by Adelynn Nasseri in the box just 16 seconds into overtime. Cathey scored the penalty kick to put Orange ahead and she fired it into the upper left corner.

Finnegan, who had two assists in the game, took a throw-in and scored in the upper left corner with 3:49 remaining in the first overtime to even it up at 4-4.

Finnegan wasn’t done. With 1:32 remaining in the opening overtime, Finnegan took a loose ball and fed Paulakonis inside the nine-yard box. Paulakonis tucked it in with ease to put the Red Wolves back ahead 5-4.

On the warmest night of 2024, the Orange women’s soccer team pulled off its biggest regular season win in nine years.

Facing Eastern Alamance, the defending 3A State Champions, Orange wilted into a second overtime on Monday night after the Eagles rallied to tie with two goals in the final 23 minutes of regulation.

As has been the case with Orange athletics many times over the past four years, the spark the Lady Panthers needed came from Ella Wimsatt.

With 6:40 remaining in the game, Wimsatt created a turnover at midfield and fed Cora Bailey, who quickly returned the ball to Wimsatt. With striker Elliana Sullivan Gaddy making a strong counter run, Wimsatt supplied a perfect lead pass where only her teammate could catch it. Sullivan Gaddy inherited the ball on a dead sprint on the edge of the box and chipped it over the rush of Eastern goalkeeper Abby Darragh into the heart of the net.

Sullivan Gaddy thrust her arms in the air and hugged Wimsatt after the two combined for what was ultimately the game-winning goal. Senior Makayla Davis would quash the few remaining chances the Eagles had as Orange would hold on to a 4-3 victory. It was the Lady Panthers first win over Eastern Alamance since the two became conference rivals in 2022.

Arguably, it was the biggest regular season win for Orange women’s soccer since they defeated Chapel Hill in a shootout to open the 2015 season. For that year, even nonconfernece games ended in penalty kicks, unlike nowadays. The 2015 team wound up 15-4-2, finishing behind only Cardinal Gibbons in the Big 8 Conference.

Sullivan Gaddy, who leads the team with 15 goals, finished with a brace. Wimsatt assisted on two goals as Orange shook off a disappointing 2-1 loss to Southern Alamance in Graham last week to improve to 6-3, 3-2 in the Central Conference.

“We always learn from losses,” said Orange coach Jacki Mignosa. “We should have won against Southern Alamance. We learned the we all have to play together as a team. Playing as individuals does not win games. I feel like we played as individuals against Southern. Tonight, we played together and it made a huge difference.”

Eastern took an immediate lead when Orange was called for a foul in the box. The Eagles’ Ryan Gibbs cashed in the penalty kick along the near post for the opener.

Orange’s equalizer started when centerback Lily Crayton’s throw0in went to Baily, who bumped it off her chest to Caroline Cathey. On a breakaway, Cathey fired the ball into the upper right corner of the net to tie the game with 30:09 remaining in the first half.

Davis made several huge saves before Orange took the lead. After a foul on Jaylen Crayton, she captured a free kick from 23 yards out. Minutes later, she collided with an Eastern player on a through ball that was supplied by Ryan Gibbs.

“Makayla had a great game tonight,” Mignosa said. “She communicates extremely well from the back, which is very helpful. She’s just learning and working hard every day. I’m very proud of her.”

With 15:56 remaining in the first half, Wimsatt started a counter, negotiating a give-and-go with Sullivan Gaddy. Dribbling free up the field, Sullivan Gaddy fired a shot from 18 yards that went off the hands of Darragh and rolled into the lower right corner of the net to put Orange ahead 2-1.

Centerback Channing Mahaney kept Orange lead with 9:20 remaining in the first half. After Davis made a save on Ainsley Dial, Eastern’s Abby Brinker captured the ball from ten yards away in front of an empty net. But Mahaney cleared the ball off the goal line as Davis was out of position.

Shortly into the second half, Sullivan Gaddy fed Bailey in the middle of the box for an insurance goal to put Orange ahead 3-1.

Dial scored with 7:23 remaining in regulation to even the game 3-3 for the Eagles.

Orange hosts Western Alamance tonight in Hillsborough.

It wasn’t just another edition of the Hillsborough Derby between the Orange and Cedar Ridge women’s soccer teams at Red Wolves Stadium. It was possibly the highest scoring game ever between the two teams. Orange scored three goals in the opening six minutes, then got the Elliana Sullivan Gaddy scored the game-winning goal for the Lady Panthers with 38:54 remaining in regulation as Orange won 7-5 over the Red Wolves. Sullivan Gaddy finished with four goals, bringing her total to nine on the season. Senior Ella Wimsatt finished with two goals and two assists. Cedar Ridge junior Fleury Nicholson finished with four goals, including a penalty kick in the second half that brought the Red Wolves within one goal. Wimsatt cashed in the final goal for Orange with 46 seconds remaining on a goal from Cora Bailey. Senior Makayla Davis earned the win as the goalkeeper for Orange. There was solid defensive play by freshman Kaylen Crayton, who plays on the backline with her sister, senior Lily Crayton. Orange’s Caroline Cathey scored a goal to put the Lady Panthers ahead 2-1 early. Orange is now 4-2, 2-1 in the Central Conference. They will face Southern Alamance in Graham next Monday. Cedar Ridge will host Northern Durham on Wednesday night at Red Wolves Stadium. 

Orange Soccer’s Elliana Sullivan Gaddy, Makayla Davis & Kaylen Crayton talk win over Cedar Ridge

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After someone stays at one place long enough, it becomes a part of them.

That’s why Katie Belle Sikes was emotional on Wednesday night. Though she dipped into the ocean on family vacations as an adolescent, the 25-yard pool at the Orange County SportsPlex was where she went from just playing in the water to becoming a swimmer.

It all started in 2014. Through her voracious work ethic, Sikes made the SportsPlex the location of her daily routine. For the past decade, she became just as much a part of the SportsPlex as the pool itself. It led to her becoming the most decorated swimmer in Orange High history.

Her final meet at the SportsPlex came during the Central Conference Championships on Wednesday night. She went out as only she can, being named the Conference Swimmer of the Year for the second time.

Sikes led Orange to its second consecutive team championship. The Lady Panthers came away with 417 points. Cedar Ridge, keyed by strong finishes from juniors Sophia Stinnett and Quinn McCrimmon, finished second at 371 points.

“I was super emotional,” Sikes said. “It’s the last time I was going to swim here after so long. It’s really bittersweet. I’m so happy I got to swim here for so long, but the fact that it’s coming to a close is really, really sad.”

Orange had first-place finishes in seven of the 12 events to earn the team title. Sikes broke her own school record in the 200 yard freestyle by five seconds. She touched the wall at 1:53.92. Stinnett finished second at 2:06.14.

Sikes also claimed gold in the 100 yard freestyle, where she is the defending 3A State Champion. She finished at 50.81 seconds. Abigale Robinson of Walter Willams finished runner-up at 1:01.81. Ainsley Rasinske of Orange came in third at 1:03.06.

Sikes ends her career with six individual conference championships. There weren’t any Big 8 Conference Swimming Championships (where Orange competed in 2021) during Sikes’ freshman year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

It was also the final meet at the SportsPlex for Orange senior Riley White, who encouraged Sikes to try swimming when she was still in elementary school.

Riley won two individual gold medals. She claimed the 200 yard individual medley at 2:19.17. McCrimmon earned the silver at 2:31.51, while Rasinske took the bronze (2:37.23). In the 100 yard breaststroke, Riley finished first at 1:13.28. Alejandra Gonzalez, a freshman at Walter Williams, was second while Cedar Ridge sophomore Hala Zafar came in third.

For the second year in a row, Orange’s Piper White won the 50 yard freestyle. This year, White won the sprint at 26:54 seconds. White also won the title as a freshman last year.

For the third time in her career, Stinnett claimed a conference championship. This time, Stinnett won the 500 yard freestyle with a time of 5:31.96. It was Stinnett’s first conference crown in the 500. In 2022 and 2023, she captured the 200 yard freestyle.

Orange junior Zoe Jones earned silver in the 500 at 6:12.50.

McCrimmon won her second individual championship in the 100 yard butterfly. In a tight race, McCrimmon won at 1:04.66, beating Piper White to the wall. White finished at 1:06.80. Jones came in third at 1:08.02.

Last year, McCrimmon took the conference title in the 200 yard individual medley.

Cedar Ridge’s team of McCrimmon, Stinnett, Zafar and Sierra Godfrey won the 400 yard freestyle relay at 4:19.23. Last year, McCrimmon, Stinnett, Zafar and Abbygale Pearce finished runner-up behind a quartet from Northwood.

Orange, the defending 3A State Champions in the 200 yard freestyle relay, won another conference championship. Sikes, White, Rasinske and White took the title at 1:47. 82. Southern Alamance’s Annabelle Hazelwood, Sophia Eusantos, Autumn Barber and Sydney Williams finished second.

F0r the first time in recent history, Orange had a female diver participate in the conference championships. Junior Lily Howard, who had been a swimmer in her first two years at Orange, finished third at 219.75. Western Alamance’s Michaela Bentley won the conference championship with a score of 357.00.