Cedar Ridge’s defense came up huge in an 8-6 victory over East Chapel Hill on Friday night. It was the Red Wolves first win in varsity football since October 2019. Junior defensive back Justin Hartsell had two interceptions in the second half, including one that set up a touchdown run by James Este Wittinger. The Red Wolves got the game-winning points off a safety when Este Wittinger tackled East Chapel Hill running back Tyonne Hicks in the end zone. The Red Wolves defense forced three turnovers in the second half. Junior quarterback Tom Crawford won his first varsity game for the Red Wolves. To wrap up the win, Cedar Ridge junior Mason Cates picked off a pass. Cates, Hartsell, and Crawford were teammates last season for the Red Wolves when they fielded a junior varsity team. This Friday night, Cedar Ridge will journey to Yanceyville to face Bartlett Yancey, who are coming off a 40-38 loss to McMichael last week in Mayodan. 

Well, Monday nights are free again.

Now that Better Call Saul is done, we can finally officially turn the page to the fall sports season, which has started with abundance across Hillsborough.

To steal a line from Gus Fring in Breaking Bad (you may not want to YouTube this scene if you’re squeamish): well, get back to work.

And what’s changed? In regards to volleyball, not much.

Cedar Ridge had an early stumble in its season-opener against J.H. Rose. Since then, they’ve won over three teams that have each won a state championship with the last five years, each of the matches outside of Hillsborough.

One thing that has changed is the depth of the Central Carolina Conference. In 2021, it was the deepest league in 3A volleyball. Since Cedar Ridge claimed the state championship, Northwood lost all but two players from a squad that went to the Round of 16 in the 3A State Playoffs last year. Person lost nine players from the 2021 squad, which reached the final of the Central Carolina Conference tournament.

It appears that Orange will be the main obstacle to keep Cedar Ridge from winning a third straight conference championship.

It seems that best way to start off a new academic year is by going back to the future and bring back a popular column. Each Monday, we’ll honor the top seven performers from the previous week from Cedar Ridge and Orange High. That’s why it’s called the Magnificent 7.

Unfortunately, we missed the opening week, so we’ll have two columns of the Magnificent 7 to bring you this week. In this one, we’ll focus on the opening week, a time when the Orange men’s soccer team played the first game of the 2021-2022 academic year against Riverside on an unseasonably cool night at Linny Wrenn Stadium in Durham.

1. Gabriel Schmid-Jr. Orange High School. Started the season by winning the Early Bird Challenge Cross Country Championships at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary. Schmid, who finished 2nd in the 3,200 meters in the 3A State Track & Field Championships in May, won the first invitational race in his career. He beat out 177 other runners to take the title.
2. Roman Morrell-Sr. Cedar Ridge High School Finished second at the Early Bird Challenge behind Schmid. Morrell followed that up by winning the Ronald Horton Cross Country Challenge at Northwood in Pittsboro this past Saturday. Last season, Morrell finished in the top 30 in the 3A State Cross Country Championships at the Ivey Redmon Sports Complex in Kernersville.
3. Grace Young-Sr. Cedar Ridge High School: In the opening week of volleyball season, Young had 13 digs and four assists in a win over Apex Friendship. Against J.H. Rose, Young had 17 digs and 14 service receptions. Young is the libero for the Red Wolves who has committed to play at UNC Asheville. She was named the Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week for the opening week of the academic year.
4. Sydney Rogers-Sr. Orange High School: Became the first female to score a point for the orange football team when she kicked an extra point against South Granville. She later kicked an 25-year field goal to give Orange its only lead of the game. Rogers is also playing tennis for coach Justin Webb. In the opening week of the year, she won both of her singles matches as Orange defeated Voyager Academy and Southern Alamance.
5. Ella Caltabiano-Soph. Cedar Ridge High School: Caltabiano won both of her matches in Cedar Ridge’s opening victory of the season against Southern Alamance. Caltabiano won her match at #2 singles 6-0, 6-0. She then teamed with Catherine Ballenger to win at #1 doubles 8-1. Last season, Caltabiano started regularly as a freshman and was named a Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week in the second week of the season.
6. Ella Wimsatt-Jr. Orange High School Led Orange in kills in its season-opening victory over Jordan on August 18. Last season, Wimsatt was second on the team with 104 kills to help Orange reach the second round of the 3A State Playoffs. Wimsatt was also second on the team with 151 digs. The Lady Panthers went to East Chapel Hill for a series of matches on August 19-20 and defeated East Chapel Hill and Western Alamance.
7. Madelyn Horn-Sr. Orange High School: Had a crucial win for the Orange women’s soccer team in a victory over Voyager Academy. She was the only player to win two matches for Orange against the Vikings. Two days later, she won a singles match and a doubles match as the Lady Panthers rolled to a win over Southern Alamance.

As part of a season-long tribute to the hit Netflix show “Stranger Things,” the Cedar Ridge marching band played Metallica’s “Master of Puppets” during halftime on Friday night.

The Red Wolves football program has been through an upside-down of its own the last few years. They had gone 1,050 days without a varsity win after not fielding a team in 2021 due to a lack of players. (There was a junior varsity team).

Call it fate. Call it karma. Call it good coincidence. But on the night that Cedar Ridge started its tribute to “Stranger Things,” the Red Wolves football team ended its losing streak at, well, eleven.

Junior linebacker James Este Wittinger and defensive lineman Sam Hughes grabbed East Chapel Hill running back Tyonne Hicks in the end zone for a safety with 3:53 remaining to notch the game-winning points as Cedar Ridge defeated East Chapel Hill 8-6 at Cedar Ridge Stadium.

Earlier in the second half, Este Wittinger scored the Red Wolves only touchdown on a 3-yard run. The subsequent two-point conversion failed to keep things tied 6-6.

It was Cedar Ridge’s first varsity football win since October 11, 2019, when K.J. Barnes scored on a two-point conversion with 4:00 remaining after a touchdown run by Isaiah McCambry.

Torrean Hinton was the head coach of the Red Wolves for both wins. For the Chapel Hill victory three years ago, he was the interim coach after Antonio King gave notice on the first day of August practice to become an assistant at North Carolina Central.

Hinton left Cedar Ridge after the Red Wolves hired Corey Lea as its head coach in February 2020. Lea left after 16 months to return to Riverside, paving the way for Hinton to return as permanent head coach last year.

Instead of savoring a win, Hinton was more focused on trying to make victories more common instead of waiting hundreds of days for the next one.

“I feel good that’s now over,” Hinton said. “The game didn’t go as we planned it to go, but sometimes you get a win and that’s the most important thing. I’m happy the kids are happy. They’re very excited about it. To get a varsity win isn’t easy. So the fact that we did come out and get one, that’s why we play.”

The game had other quirks. East Chapel Hill assistant coach Louis Tedder Sr. was coaching against his own son, Louis, Jr. to the truest since of the term. Tedder Sr., who was a member of Cedar Ridge’s staff last season when they fielded a junior varsity team in 2021, joined the staff of new East Chapel Hill head coach Larry Stroud last winter.

Louis Tedder Jr. is an offensive and defensive lineman for Cedar Ridge who is also a heavyweight on Scott Metcalf’s wrestling team.

“I told Louis this week in practice that I couldn’t send him home without a win,” Hinton said. “If he had lost, I know his father wouldn’t have let him hear the end of it.”

On Friday night, the Red Wolves trailed right from the start. Hicks scored on East Chapel Hill’s first drive on a 49-yard end sweep with 9:38 remaining in the first quarter. The Red Wolves’ defense allowed only two more first downs the rest of the game.

The Red Wolves offense, behind 55 yards rushing from junior running back Tyler Fields, looked like a long-distance golfer most of the game: they had no problems driving with a rough short game. The Red Wolves had four drives penetrate the East Chapel Hill 45-yard line in the first half and came away with nothing.

Of Cedar Ridge’s first five possessions, three ended in turnovers.

On the other hand, Cedar Ridge’s defense allowed just 87 yards after Hicks’ touchdown run. On the final play of the first half, East Chapel Hill quarterback Christopher Creamer hit Owen Stout, who briefly broke out in the open before he was tackled by senior safety Matt Turner.

To open the third quarter, Tedder made a big stop on defense to force a Wildcat punt. That led to a steady Cedar Ridge drive, where they kept running up that road, running up that hill, running up that building to the tune of 68 yards on ten plays. After running back Justin Harsett rushed for ten yards, Este Wittinger busted free for 15 yards. Fields reeled off a ten-yard gain to get the ball into the red zone. Este Wittinger scored on a 3-yard run with 3:39 remaining.

The remaining five East Chapel Hill drives all ended in turnovers. Hartsell, also a defensive back, had back-to-back interceptions, the final one on the second play of the fourth quarter for a 41-yard return.

Though the subsequent Cedar Ridge drive stalled out at the Wildcat 20-yard line, the Red Wolves were winning the field position battle. Turner recovered a botched snap inside the East Chapel Hill 12-yard line midway through the final quarter.

The Wildcats held its ground as Cedar Ridge couldn’t move the ball on the subsequent four plays. East started its next series from its 13-yard line, but the Red Wolves defense was fresher. Este Wittinger wrestled down Hicks for a 2-yard loss. After Creamer was sacked, Hicks took a handoff in the end zone where he ran into traffic. Este Wittiner and Hughes tackled Hicks behind the line of scrimmage to put the Red Wolves ahead 8-6.

Fittingly, junior Mason Cates, who played on the junior varsity team last year, sewed up the win with an interception on the Wildcats’ final drive.

CEDAR RIDGE 8, EAST CHAPEL HILL 6

ECH–6 0 0 0-6

CR–0 0 6 2-8

ECH–Tyonne Hicks 49 run (kick failed)

CR–James Este Wittinger 3 run (pass failed)

CR–Safety, Hicks tackled in end zone

RUSHING–EAST CHAPEL HILL 19-40 TD (Hicks 16-60 TD, Charlie George 1-5, Christopher Creamer 1(-8), team 1-(-17)

CEDAR RIDGE (Tyler Fields 19-55, Mason Cates, 2-20, Justin Harsell 1-20, Keyshawn Mangum 1-(-1), Tom Crawford 3-(-3))

PASSING: EAST CHAPEL HILL: (Creamer 5-19 97 yds 3 INT)

CEDAR RIDGE: (Crawford 4-10 31 yds)

RECEIVING: EAST CHAPEL HILL (George 3-76, Owen Stout 1-15, Daniel Cruz 1-7)

CEDAR RIDGE (Hayden Kirk 3-11, Cates 1-20)

PHOTO BY JACQUES MORIN

Even though his playing days ended long ago, there’s still a competitive fire within Erick Villines.

He played as a defensive tackle at Orange through three different head coaches in three years in the late 1980s. For the past decade, he’s served as a defensive assistant coach for some of the most successful Orange teams in school history.

All of that was a distant memory by late Friday night. As he sat on a bench along the visitor’s side of Culton-Peerman Stadium as the support staff cleaned up around him, Villines just stared at the ground like he was in a trance.

Chapel Hill had just beaten Orange 35-7, its third straight win over the Panthers. No matter what the personnel is, Villines’ competitiveness was a reminder that it’s never fun losing. And it certainly isn’t fun losing to Chapel Hill, a rivalry that dates back to when Orange and Chapel Hill where the only two public high schools in Orange County.

It was the most lopsided win for Chapel Hill over Orange since 2004, when the Tigers shutout the Panthers 48-0 in Issac Marsh’s first game as the Tigers head coach.

For the second week in a row, Orange didn’t score in the second half. Unlike last week, the Panthers looked lethargic offensively, committing six turnovers. Chapel Hill held Orange to 101 yards total offense and four first downs.

“We’ve got to do better in the second half,” said Orange football coach DeVante’ Pettiford. “We did start to get worn out so we’ve got to pick up our conditioning. We’ve got to get in better shape. A lot of our guys are going to start get cramping up. So we’ve got a lot of work to do in that. And I put that on me. We’ve got to do a better job in practice.”

The Panthers played without senior linebacker Jabari Albright, who was injured against South Granville last week. Albright is Orange’s only returning defensive starter.

“It always hurts when you don’t have your leader,” Pettiford said. “He’s the one who communicates and keeps everybody in check. That’s a tough one. Hopefully, he will be back next week.”

At kickoff, the humidity was so stifling that the press box windows grew foggier by the minute, but it sure didn’t prevent the officials from getting flags stuck in their pockets. The two teams combined for 227 yards in penalties. Chapel Hill had two touchdowns called back because of various infractions, including a 67-yard interception return by Maraki Abbo on the final play of the second quarter that would have vaulted the Tigers ahead 14-7 if it wasn’t for a block in the back penalty.

The game was tied 7-7 at halftime and continued the theme of entraining, if strange, games between the two longtime rivals. Late in the second quarter, Chapel Hill’s Isaiah Roberson intercepted a pass and returned It to the Orange 24-yard line. On the next play, Orange’s Hunter Albert picked off a pass at the goal line.

“We did a good job stopping the run early,” Pettiford said. “Then they started opening up and throwing it deeper.”

Earlier in the second quarter, Orange tied the game when quarterback Hank Nunnery threw to Wynston Brown for a 39-yard touchdown pass.

For its final drive of the second half, Chapel Hill junior backup Joshua Kelley was replaced Dylan Jones at quarterback, which proved vital.

Chapel Hill was 5-of-6 on third-down conversions in the second half. In its opening drive of the third quarter, the Tigers faced a 3rd-and-13 from the Orange 15-yard line. Kelly found junior Jeffrey Sims, who was pushed down at the one-yard line. Roberson put Chapel Hill ahead for a trail sweep around right end.

On the next play from scrimmage, Chapel Hill’s James Lunsford punched the ball away from an Orange running back, which was recovered by Dyllan Jones. Kelly converted a 3rd-and-13 when he found Jones for a 24-yard gain. After a 14-yard run by Roberson, Kelly found Dylan Evans for a 19-yard touchdown pass. Owen Korntein’s extra point put Chapel Hill ahead 21-7.

Meanwhile, Orange had four consecutive possessions end in turnovers. Late in the third quarter, Chapel Hill’s Idris Webb returned an interception 28-yards for a touchdown. Sachi Alston received a 13-yard pass from Kelley in the fourth quarter for the final score of the game.

Most of the first quarter was played in Chapel HIll’s end of the field. On its second drive, Orange had a 3rd-and-1 from the Tigers’ 45-yard line, but was called for a false start. Nunnery was pressured into an incompletion on the next play.

“I felt we matched up well,” Pettiford said. “I thought we were playing well. At the end of the game, they threw a lot of blitzes at us. We didn’t handle it very well. It’s growing pains, baby. We have a young team. A lot of sophomores and freshmen are starting. But the future is going to be bright.”

CHAPEL HILL 35, ORANGE 7

CH-0 7 21 7-35

OR-0 7 0 0-7

CH–Dylan Evans 29 pass from Dylan Jones (Owen Kornstein kick)

OR–Wynston Brown 39 pass from Hank Nunnery (Sydney Rogers kick)

CH–Isaiah Roberson 1 run (Kornstein kick)

CH–Evans 19 pass from Joshua Kelley (Kornstein kick)

CH–Idris Webb 28 interception return (Kornstein kick)

CH–Sachi Alston 13 pass from Kelley (Kornstein kick)

RUSHING–ORANGE 32-41 (Ja’Ki McDaniels 4-17, Nathan Sorrells 11-16, Derek Yanko 2-15, Wynston Brown 1-9, Jaylen Starks 1-7, Deandre Brown 3-3, Ty Walker 6-(-9), Nunnery 4-(-17)).

CHAPEL HILL 32-112 TD (Kelley 6-30, Roberson 9-27 TD, Drew Allen 4-27, Cayden Forbes 9-22, Joshua Roberson 1-8, Jones 2-1, team 2-(-3).

PASSING–ORANGE 6-17 62 yds TD 4 INT (Nunnery 5-13, 58 yds, TD, 3 INT, Walker 1-4, 4 yds INT)

CHAPEL HILL–15-24 192 yds 3 TD INT (Kelley 9-15 105 yds 2TD, Jones 6-9 87 yds TD, INT)

RECEIVING–ORANGE (Brown 2-46 TD, Nathan Sorrells 2-15, McDaniels 1-1, Shaun Beasley 1-0)

CHAPEL HILL (Evans 6-77 2 TD, Dyllan Jones 2-42, Jeffrey Simms 2-20, Ben Bollinger 2-14, Tarran Keyes 1-19, Alston 1-13 TD, Forbes 1-7

It had been 1,050 days since the Cedar Ridge varsity football team won a game. After not fielding a team last year, the Red Wolves came through in remarkable fashion on Friday night. Joel Gravitte tackled East Chapel Hill’s Tyonne Hicks for a safety with 3:53 remaining in the fourth quarter as the Red Wolves defeated East Chapel Hill 8-6. After East Chapel Hill took a 6-0 lead to the locker room at halftime, Este Wittinger scored Cedar Ridge’s first touchdown of the season. Matt Turner made a huge sack for the Red Wolves to set up the game-winning safety. The victory brought a wealth of memories for Cedar Ridge coach Torrean Hinton, who was the head coach of the Red Wolves for its last varsity win in 2019 when they defeated Chapel Hill. Hinton left Cedar Ridge after the 2020 season, but returned to coach a junior varsity team in 2021. Through the course of an offseason that focused on plenty of time in the weight room and the practice field, the Red Wolves have a cherished victory. They will look for consecutive wins next week when they travel to Bartett Yancey.