There’s no such thing as “less is more” in volleyball.

If anything, the decree is “more is more.”

The last time many people from Hillsborough saw Cameron Lloyd in action, she sent a spike that banged off the floor of Kay Yow Court against North Iredell in the fourth set for match point in the 3A State Championship match. It ensured Cedar Ridge’s first state title in volleyball and triggered a roar from the Red Wolves fans in attendance at Reynolds Coliseum that could have been heard in Garner.

It was the first state championship by any female team in Cedar Ridge history. It also set the tone for what has been the Year of the Woman in high school sports locally.

At Cedar Ridge, senior Caroline Fowlkes won the state championship in the pole vault on May 20 at North Carolina A&T University in Greensboro. In February, Orange’s Katie Belle Sikes won the 3A State Championship in the 50-yard freestyle, becoming the first female swimmer in school history to win a state title. As a whole, the Central Carolina Conference has had a state champion in women’s basketball with Northwood. This weekend, the Eastern Alamance softball and women’s soccer teams will also go for state championships after winning their respective Eastern Regional crowns.

After the celebration in Raleigh last November, some of Lloyd’s teammates took their talents to the basketball court. Under head coach Megan Skouby, an assistant for the volleyball team, juniors Julie Altieri and Grace Young played varsity basketball for the first time in their high school careers. Lloyd was in attendance at many games inside Red Wolves Gymnasium as she prepared for travel volleyball season.

Playing with the Chapel Hill Area Volleyball Club, Lloyd’s 17-Black team recently qualified in the Big South National Tournament in Atlanta. Starting June 30, CHAVC 17-Black will compete for the USA Volleyball Girls Junior National Championship in Indianapolis.

Last weekend, Lloyd played in Richmond just days after receiving her trophy from the American Volleyball Coaches of North Carolina for being the 3A State Player of the Year. Last fall, as Cedar Ridge went 31-2, Lloyd set a school record for kills in a season with 360. On August 31 against Person, she became the first Red Wolf in school history to register 500 career kills. For her career, Lloyd has 817 kills, 564 digs, and 152 aces.

Lost in the midst of Cedar Ridge’s state championship win over North Iredell, Cameron Lanier became the second player in school history to reach 500 kills.

Last month, Lanier announced she would commit to play at Elon, becoming the second Cedar Ridge player to commit to a Division I school. Last fall, Young announced her intentions to play at UNC Asheville. Lloyd has yet to make an announcement regarding her college plans.

The theme “more is more” may not be the official motto for Cedar Ridge volleyball when it convenes in eight weeks to start its 2022 season, but it might as well be. The Red Wolves will return all of its rotation players, including Lloyd, Lanier, Altieri, Melissa Benkowitz (an addition from East Chapel Hill that truly made Cedar Ridge nearly impossible to defend last year), Young, Addie Reid (who played goalkeeper with the women’s soccer team this spring) and Anaya Carter (who was back in left field for Cedar Ridge softball).

More is more also describes Coach Fiona Cunningham’s nonconference scheduling philosophy. To prepare for Central Carolina Conference powerhouses Northwood, Person and Orange last year, Cunningham played D.H. Conley, the defending 3A State Champions twice, along with traditional tough neighboring foes Carrboro, Chapel Hill and East Chapel Hill.

On August 23, Cedar Ridge will face D.H. Conley again. That will be the tip of the iceberg as Cedar Ridge goes for a third straight conference championship.

It will also be the final journey together for Cedar Ridge’s Class of 2023, which may go down as the most dominant group in any sport in school history. Lloyd, Altieri, Lanier, and Carter started as freshmen (Young joined the varsity as a sophomore) when the Red Wolves were coming off a 7-15 season in 2018. Together, they have a cumulative record of 58-9. They’ve won 26 consecutive conference games, made three trips to the state playoffs, won two conference titles, a postseason conference tournament, plus the state championship.

And the goal for next fall?

Not one wants to say it out loud yet, at least publicly.

But one could assume that, well, more is more.

In mid-February, there were several first-year varsity players that Orange Baseball coach Jason Knapp thought could rise to the level of being an everyday starter.

Cross Clayton became that player. And more.

After a 13-0, 5 inning loss to eventual 1A Eastern Regional champion Perquimans in Wilson on March 19, Orange limped home with a 3-4 overall record. On the bus ride back, Knapp and his assistants decided to put Clayton into the starting rotation permanently.

From that point forward, Orange went 15-5. They finished with its first outright conference championship since 2016, when Bryse Wilson was a senior.

Clayton, a sophomore, has been named the Central Carolina Conference Pitcher of the Year. The awards are based on a vote of the seven head coaches in the CCC.

Clayton finished 8-3 with a 2.59 earned run average. It was the most wins by a first-year Orange varsity pitcher since Wilson’s freshman year, when he went 11-0 with a 1.05 ERA.

Clayton led the team in wins. He immediately set the pace with a victory in relief during the season opener against Northern Durham on February 28 in Hillsborough. He tossed a clean sixth inning with two strikeouts, while Jackson Berini drove in the game-winning run off a bases-loaded walk. The Panthers went on to win 4-1.

In Orange’s CCC opener against Western Alamance on March 15, Clayton came on in relief of Ryan Hench in the fifth inning of a scoreless game. Facing ten Warriors, he walked just one and struck out five. Berini would steal home in the top-of-the-seventh inning for the game’s lone run, while Clayton retired the Warriors in order in the other half of the frame to take the win.

That was the last time Clayton came on in relief in a conference game. From that point forward, he became the starter in Friday games while Hench remained the top man in the rotation. It was a combination that carried Orange to a conference title.

After the Hilltop Invitational, Clayton started a string of 23 consecutive shutout innings. It started April 8 when Clayton threw a one-hit shutout against Person. Clayton struck out ten Rockets over six innings.

The following week, Clayton had a huge night at the plate in a 3-2 win over Northwood in eight innings. He blasted a solo homer in the second inning. With the game tied 2-2 in the eighth, Clayton belted a walkoff double that hit the centerfield fence to score Neo Best. The following Friday, Orange traveled to the Ronald Horton Baseball Complex, a hitters park that can be a nightmare for fielders. This time, Clayton threw a two-hit, complete game shutout with six strikeouts as Orange came away with a 5-0 win.

Clayton’s biggest gem of the season came against Cedar Ridge on April 21. He delivered a five-inning perfect game, the first perfect game for Orange since Wilson defeated Eastern Wayne in the opening round of the 3A State Playoffs on May 10, 2016. Clayton struck out four Red Wolves as Orange ensured the CCC regular season championship.

Clayton nearly had another shutout in the regular season finale at Eastern Alamance. He went into the seventh inning with Orange leading 1-0. In the seventh inning, the Eagles’ Gage Parsons lined a single up the middle to score Cole McGinnis and even the game 1-1. Clayton would regroup to send the game into extra innings and eventually earn the win after Hench scored off a double play in the top-of-the-eighth inning.

In the 3A State Playoffs, Clayton started against Terry Sanford and had a no-decision. He shut the Bulldogs out through the first two innings on just nine pitches.

Next season, Clayton and Hench are expected to return for an Orange team that finished 18-9 overall, 11-1 in the Central Carolina Conference.

Roman Oguntoyinbo wound up with one more win before his days as a Cedar Ridge Red Wolf are done. On Wednesday night, Oguntoyinbo played in the Bull City All-Star Lacrosse Game at Koskinen Stadium at Duke University. Not only is Roman a lacrosse player, but he is an avid college lacrosse fan and has watched Duke play many times at Kosikinen. Oguntoyinbo played for the Blue team, which defeated the White squad 20-18. After spending this season with a Cedar Ridge team that finished third in the Mid-Carolina Conference, Oguntoyinbo was teammates with several of his league rivals on the Blue Team. That included Sam Havertstrom of Walter Williams, Jack DiFabio of Orange High and Pierce Cook of Northwood. This season, Oguntoyinbo led Cedar Ridge to its first win in the 3A/2A/1A State Playoffs since 2017. When Roman graduates in two weeks, he will continue his lacrosse career at Northfield Mount Herman Prep in Massachusetts. His brother, Leo, watched the Bull City All-Star Game on Wednesday night. Leo Oguntoyinbo will remain in Hillsborough at Cedar Ridge, where he played goalkeeper for the lacrosse team and was a wrestler. 

This week’s Orange Panther of the Week is junior lacrosse midfielder Jake Wimsatt. For the second year in a row, the Orange lacrosse team won the conference championship. Once again, Wimsatt was the face-off ace for the Panthers. He won 85% of his faceoffs as Orange finished 11-0 in the Mid-Carolina Conference. Wimsatt was tied for second on the team with 45 goals in 2022. In the second round of the 3A/2A/1A State Playoffs, Wimsatt scored five goals as Orange defeated Walter Williams 17-10 at Auman Stadium. He had a season-high nine points against the Bulldogs. Wimsatt finished this season with nine hat tricks. He three goals on March 2 as Orange defeated East Chapel Hill 14-11 at Dave Thaden Stadium. It was the first-time ever that the Panthers defeated the Wildcats in lacrosse. The night before, Wimsatt scored four goals in a 19-5 over Vance Charter in the season-opener. Last fall, Wimsatt also played tight end on the Orange football team. He had a long touchdown catch against Western Alamance. Since Wimsatt has been a member of the Orange lacrosse team, the Panthers have been successful, winning five state playoff games. After Orange hosted the 3A/2A/1A Eastern Regional Championship game this year, the Panthers will aim higher for 2023. 

Photo courtesy of Hailstate.com

June 13, 2013.

The date just rolled off Mia Davidson’s tongue during her final postgame press conference as a Mississippi State softball player. That was the date she committed to play softball in Starkville.

That brief moment exemplified Mia and Montana Davidson’s approach to softball, and life in general, that they learned from their father Eddie Davidson when he coached them during tee ball games in Hillsborough and eventually at Orange High.

You did things right or your didn’t do them at all.

On Saturday, Mia and Montana ended their careers at Mississippi State after Arizona defeated the Bulldogs 7-1 to sweep its best-of-three Super Regional Series at Nusz Park in Starkville.

For two players who spent their softball careers taking teams they played on to new heights, a trip to the Women’s College World Series would have been the perfect way to end their careers. Mississippi State has never been to Oklahoma City in the 40-year history of the program.

While they fell short of Oklahoma City, the Davidsons still took Mississippi State softball to another level in their final days with the program.

On Saturday, Arizona defeated the Bulldogs in front of 2,299 fans at Nusz Park, a school-record. The previous record of 2,209 was set the day before in the opening game of the series, one where Mia Davidson game the home crowd one last thrill.

Mia broke open a scoreless game in the bottom-of-the-fifth inning with a solo homer to dead centerfield that banged off a motorized scaffold, sending an ESPN cameraman ducking for cover. It was the 92nd and final home run of her Mississippi State career, leaving her tied for third in NCAA history. It was her school-record fifth home run in the NCAA Tournament and her last hit as a Bulldog.

She could have easily had another home run earlier. In the first inning, Davidson sent a deep drive to centerfield, where Arizona’s Janelle Meono reached over the wall and brought the ball back into the park.

Mississippi State led 2-1 going into the seventh inning before Arizona rallied and evened the game in the top-of-the-seventh. The Wildcats took the lead in the eighth inning off a home run by Izzo Pacho.

In game two on Saturday, Arizona dominated behind pitcher Devyn Netz, who limited the Bulldogs to five hits in a 7-1 Wildcats win. Arizona scored five unearned runs.

Afterwards, an emotional Mia Davidson delivered remarks that went viral almost immediately.

“From the get-go, this is what I set out to do,” Mia said. “I wanted to come to a program and make something off it and leave it better than I found it. I wanted to make sure we had a team that was we over me and make sure that everybody knew that role and had their part. I just know that I gave my all, my heart and my soul since June 13, 2013 when I committed. And I just know that Mississippi State will always have my heart and will always be a home, no matter what. Thank you Coach (Samantha) Ricketts for the opportunity to live out my dream. As a little girl from Hillsborough, North Carolina, I couldn’t ask for anything else from this program, from the school. From John Cohen (Mississippi State Athletic Director), from everybody. All the time, effort, and everything you did to put Mississippi State on the map. I appreciate every single person in this room.”

After Saturday’s game, before they left the field together, Mia and Montana placed their cleats at home plate at Nusz Park and waved goodbye to the fans.

Montana Davidson took to Facebook over the weekend to share her final thoughts.

“Softball was my first love and this sport has given me so much,” Montana said. “That’s why saying goodbye to it is probably one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do, but I can step away knowing that I gave my full heart to this game.”

Montana Davidson graduated from Orange in 2016. She was a career .438 hitter for the Lady Panthers with 26 home runs. In her freshman season, Orange went undefeated in the Carolina 6 Conference.

Mia Davidson graduated in 2017 and led Orange to the 3A State Championship her senior year. Before starting softball season, Mia was a starting center for B.J. Condron’s women’s basketball team, which opened the year with a school-record 21 straight wins. Orange would go on to win the Big 8 Conference regular season and tournament championships.

In a memorable softball season, the Lady Panthers became the first female team in the history of Hillsborough high school athletics to win a state championship.

Davidson set a North Carolina High School Athletic Association career record with 53 career home runs. She was limited to 12 her senior year, mainly because her reputation as a power hitter carried on from coast-to-coast to near comical proportions. In the second round of the 3A State Playoffs, Orange trailed Topsail 2-1 in the bottom of the eighth inning. Davidson stepped up to plate with the bases loaded, where Topsail’s head coach intentionally walked her, willfully surrounding the lead. Kristina Givens drove in Alysann Lloyd for the game-winning run in the next at-bat as Orange won 3-2.

The Pirates didn’t win, but at least Davidson didn’t beat them. Two weeks later, the Piedmont Panthers wouldn’t be as fortunate. In the opening game of the 3A State Championship series at N.C. State, Orange trailed 2-1. With Abby Hamlett at first, Piedmont’s pitcher was instructed not to give Mia anything close to the plate. It didn’t work. Davidson took a fastball and parked it over the centerfield wall to put Orange ahead for good on that night. The following morning, Orange didn’t trail and defeated Piedmont 4-1 to sweep the series.

Mia leaves Mississippi State having set 12 school records. She is the most prolific home run hitter in Southeastern Conference history with 92. She also is the all-time Mississippi State leader in games played, games started, slugging percentage (.775), runs scored (219), RBIs (220), total bases (610), hit-by-pitches (57), runners picked off (13), defensive chances (1753), putouts (1555), and runners thrown out (47).

In the end, the most rewarding thing for Mia was that she got to play with, and leave her cleats at home plate, alongside her best friend.

Marvin Jones: Jones, a former track & field star at Cedar Ridge, recorded his career personal best in the high jump during his final meet with North Carolina Central University. It happened in the NCAA East Regionals at Indiana University. Along the way, he narrowly missed becoming the first North Carolina Central Eagle to qualify for the Division I National Track & Field Championships (Central transitioned to Division I in 2011). Jones finished 13th with a jump of 2.15 meters, or 7.05 feet, tying him with six other competitors. He missed qualifying for the national championships due to a tie breaking procedure as he cleared the height on his third attempt as opposed to his first or second. Jones finished the season with seven top-five finishes. He won the gold medal at the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Outdoor Championships on May 25, after capturing the championship of the MEAC Indoor Championships in February. Jones is the first North Carolina Central Eagle to earn three gold medals since Central went to Division I. He also won the 2021 MEAC Outdoor Championship. This season, Jones also finished first at the Penn Relays and at the Aggie Classic at North Carolina A&T State University.

Jamar Davis: Davis, a former Orange High star in three sports, finished his outdoor track & field season with N.C. State at the East Regionals in Bloomington, IN last week. Davis finished 30th in the long jump at 7.23 (23′ 8.75″) meters. On May 12, Davis finished 7th at the Atlantic Coast Conference Championship at Duke University in Durham. Davis’ best leap was 7.63 meters.

Joey Berini: The East Carolina baseball team won the American Athletic Conference Tournament at BayCare Ballpark in Clearwater, Florida. The Pirates finished undefeated over four games. ECU defeated Houston 6-1 in the AAC Championship game on Sunday. Berini entered the game as a pinch-hitter in the sixth hitter and drew a walk. In the semifinals on Saturday, the Pirates defeated Tulane 8-5. Berini had an RBI single in the fourth inning, driving in Josh Moylan. In the second round, East Carolina rolled past Cincinnati 15-5 in seven innings. Berini entered the game in the fifth inning and played shortstop for the final two-plus frames. He went 0-for-1 at the plate. East Carolina will enter the NCAA Tournament having won 16 games in a row. On Monday, the Pirates received a #8 national seed. They will host the Greenville Regional at Clark-LeClair Stadium starting on Friday. East Carolina will open against Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference champion Coppin State on Friday afternoon at 1 PM. Also in ECU’s region is #2 seed Virginia, who will face Coastal Carolina on Friday night. In addition, Berini is on the roster of the Holly Springs Salamanders of the Coastal Plain League, a wooden-bat summer league. Last season, Berini played for the Asheboro Copperheads of the CPL.

Kate Burgess: The University of North Carolina women’s rowing team ended its season at the ACC Championships in Clemson, SC on Saturday. Burgess was on the Second Four team that finished second racing against Boston College. They finished with a time of 7:56.848. Burgess raced with Lara King, Sarah Redden, Hanna Davis and Julia Louw.

Jaden Hurdle: After finishing her sophomore season at Patrick & Henry Community College, Hurdle was named to the National Junior College Athletic Association East Region first-team. Hurdle, a first baseman, hit .376 over 43 games. She led the Patriots with ten home runs. She was second on the team with 37 RBIs. Hurdle also led the team with 37 runs and four triples. Hurdle graduated from Patrick & Henry in May and will play with Catawba College in Salisbury starting next season.

This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is junior men’s tennis player Josh Mayhew. In just two years at the varsity level, Mayhew has become the first player in school history to reach the 3A State Singles championship match. In fact, he has done it twice. This season carried an extra since of accomplishment for Mayhew. He not only was named the top player in the Central Carolina Conference. Mayhew helped the Cedar Ridge men’s tennis team to the Central Carolina Conference championship. During the regular season, Mayhew was undefeated in singles play. He faced the top singles players in the area and posted wins against competitors from schools like Chapel Hill and Carrboro, which won the 3A State Team Championship. For the second straight year, Mayhew also reached the 3A Mideast Regional Championship singles match. He is the first Cedar Ridge player to accomplish that feat ever. His father, Steve Mayhew, is the head coach of the Red Wolves men’s and women’s tennis programs. Josh’s sister, Cameron, is the top singles player for Cedar Ridge’s women’s tennis team. Josh has lofty plans for his senior season and has already participated in off-season tournaments in Georgia and Greensboro in preparation for 2023. 

While the spring sports season is officially over for Orange County Schools, two local senior lacrosse players will not only extend their careers by one game.

For once, they will be teammates.

Cedar Ridge attacker Roman Oguntoyinbo and Orange midfielder Jack DiFabio have been named to the Bull City All-Star Lacrosse Game, an annual event held at Koskinen Stadium on the campus of Duke University. The 5th annual Bull City All Star Game will be held on Wednesday, starting with the women’s game at 4 PM. The men’s game will follow at 6:30.

Oguntoyinbo and DiFabio were selected to play on the Blue Squad, which will be led by Gordon Galloway, the head coach at Cardinal Gibbons High School.

Across the men’s and women’s games, over 228 players from across the state are nominated by 103 coaches. 118 are selected to play in the two All-Star Games with players ranging as close as Hillsborough, as far east as Wilmington and as far southwest as Charlotte, Weddington and Waxhaw.

Both Oguntoyinbo and DiFabio were standout players during a season where, collectively, Hillsborough lacrosse was its strongest in years. Cedar Ridge hosted its first game in the 3A/2A/1A State Playoffs since 2017 and defeated Western Alamance. For the first time ever, Orange hosted the 3A/2A/1A Eastern Regional Championship at Auman Stadium.

In his final season at Cedar Ridge, Oguntoyinbo scored a career-high 78 goals and 51 assists. In his final game at Red Wolves Stadium, Oguntoyinbo scored a career-high nine goals and dished out two assists. Cedar Ridge defeated Western Alamance 18-5 for its first win in the state playoffs since 2017, when they won the 3A/2A/1A Eastern Regional Championship.

In his final regular season game, Oguntoyinbo scored seven goals in a 8-2 victory at Carrboro. He had 13 hat tricks in his senior season, starting with four goals in a season-opening 10-8 win at Jordan. For his career, Oguntoyinbo scored 119 goals, 95 assists and 214 points. His career shooting percentage is .704.

DiFabio filled a critical need for Orange on faceoffs, an area where the Panthers had the advantage in almost every game this season. Lining up as a midfielder along the wing, DiFabio helped Orange win 77% of face-offs during 2022, a season where the Panthers went undefeated in the Mid-Carolina Conference. It was the second straight year where Orange won a conference championship.

DiFabio, the son of Gwen and Mike DiFabio, had 24 ground balls over 13 games in his senior season. That included four ground balls in a 19-5 win over Eastern Alamance in Mebane, which wrapped up the conference championship for the Panthers. DiFabio, whose mother played basketball and softball at Orange, was in his second season at the varsity level. He has announced plans to attend N.C. State after graduation from Orange next month.

The Bull City All-Star Game is an event reserved exclusively for seniors. Also included on the Blue Team will be Northwood’s Pierce Cook, an All-Conference defenseman who helped the Chargers finish second in the Mid-Carolina Conference this spring. Walter Williams’ Samuel Haverstrom, who has announced plans to attend Widener University in Chester, Pennsylvania, and midfielder McIver Oakley were also selected for the Blue Team. Oakley has been accepted at Appalachian State.

Breyden Harrison, who helped Middle Creek win the 4A State Championship on May 21, was also picked for the Blue Squad. Harrison had a hat trick as the Mustangs defeated Cardinal Gibbons to win the 4A Eastern Regional Championship on May 17. Harrison had another hat trick in a 9-8 win over Weddington for the state title at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary.

The women’s game will feature several players who played in the State Championship game between Cardinal Gibbons and Charlotte Catholic on May 21. Gibbons’ Georgia Sobocinski, who had four points in the Crusaders’ 13-11 win for the state championship, is on the White Team roster. So is defenseman Kira Dann, who registered ten ground balls for the Crusaders this season.

On the Blue Team, Cardinal Gibbons’ Sydney Calabrese and Maddie Gillmore made the team. Calabrese had two goals in the state championship game.

Beyond where the eye can see below Memorial Stadium at Walter Williams High School, there’s a creek running underneath.

It extends through the football field, which is also shared by the men’s and women’s soccer teams, and runs all the way west to the baseball stadium.

When someone tosses a rock inside a creek, it can cause a minor ruffle in the water, depending on the current and the size of the stone. Most years, the end of the Orange women’s soccer season barely creates a ripple. Other spring sports at Orange, like baseball and softball, are almost annually in the playoffs and deep playoff runs are common.

Which is precisely why this Orange women’s soccer team will go down in the annals as something special. Late last week, after the Lady Panthers’ stunned Cape Fear 5-2 in Fayetteville to reach the 3rd round of the state playoffs for the first time ever, it grabbed the attention of the school. Motorists along Orange High School Road saw “Go Orange Soccer” spelled out in bright Orange and Black plastic cups at the entrance of the student parking lot. It was still there on Memorial Day, nearly a week after Walter Williams ended Orange’s season.

After the Bulldogs emerged 3-2 with the win at Memorial Stadium last Tuesday, a steady mist fell onto the field as Orange head coach Jacki Mignosa held her postgame huddle in front of the strongest turnout of Panther fans for a road game all season. There were tears among some players that is standard for any team that just had it season end. The damp weather couldn’t dose the fire in the eyes of several starters who watched Williams’ players celebrate. They wanted to secure Orange’s first-ever trip to the state quarterfinals. Just because time ran out didn’t mean their emotions were empty.

There was also the elephant in the room of Orange losing its starting goalkeeper with the game in the balance. Tied 1-1 with 32:03 remaining, Abby Monteith sprinted to the edge of the box for a loose ball, which wound up being blown dead for offside. In the process, Monteith collided with a Williams’ player and a teammate and immediately grabbed her right knee. It forced her from the game. Less than 90 seconds later, Williams’ Olivia Vandre headed in a corner kick for the game-winning goal.

Four minutes later, Williams’ Vanessa Wright sent a long shot into the net from 23 yards to extend the Bulldog’s lead to 3-1.

Despite losing Monteith, Mignosa refused to use her injury as an excuse.

“Their goalkeeper made a ton of good saves,” Mignosa said. “We kept pounding and I’m proud of them for doing that. It’s never just the goalkeeper’s fault. It’s the mistakes made at midfield and then defense. The goalkeeper is just the last person. We talk about that a lot as a team.”

And it showed. Trailing 3-1 with 28:00 remaining, Orange was the aggressor for the balance of the game. Freshman Elliana Sullivan Gaddy scored off a breakaway when she moved in against Williams’ goalkeeper Tahani Villines. Initially, Villines made the save, but Sullivan Gaddy chipped in the rebound with 21:14 remaining.

Senior Bella Brown nearly added the equalizer. Off a long throw-in by Sydney Rogers from midfield, Sullivan Gaddy sent a cross to Brown, who had a shot from the penalty spot. It was also the dampest part of the field, which prevented Brown from getting much steam on it. Villines captured the ball diving to her right.

With 10:00 left, sophomore wingback Channing Mahaney found Sullivan Gaddy on a clearing pass. Sullivan Gaddy had a strong shot from ten yards, but Villines denied her with a diving save.

“I tell them all the time ‘no regrets,'” Mignosa said. “Don’t come off this field with regrets. You gotta play hard. Any substitution I make, I make it to the best of my ability. And there’s no regrets. I don’t like to live that way. I don’t like to think ‘what if?'”

After Williams’ Lila Fleming opened the scoring off an assist from Vandare with 27:44 remaining in the first half, Brown tied the game for Orange. Sullivan Gaddy found Brown, who dribbled into the right edge of the box and fired it in off the hands of Villines.

Orange kept the pressure coming based off the attack of junior Sydney Rogers, whose is the fourth member of her family to play with the Lady Panthers. Her older sister, Jordan, recently graduated after playing four seasons at Division III William Peace University in Raleigh.

“She’s always been a strong player since her freshman year,” Mignosa said. “I was lucky enough to coach her two older sisters. She’ll be amazing her senior year.”

Next February will feel different for Orange women’s soccer. There will be higher expectations. Bella Brown, who was second on the team with ten goals and 27 points, is the only senior with substantial playing time graduating. Sullivan Gaddy, who led the squad with 13 goals and 31 points, will return. So will Rogers, a healthy Monteith, freshman Caroline Cathey (five goals) and rising senior Allison Torkewitz.

“We’ll absolutely miss Bella,” Mignosa said. “But we’re a young team. I told them that after the game. Now we have this expectation and the younger kids are going to have to step it up. Because now I’m expecting us to go even further.”

This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is junior golfer Bradley Monschein. Earlier this month, Monschein qualified for the 3A State Golf Championships at Pinehurst #6. Over two days against the best competition in the state, Monschein was one of 84 golfers to qualify for the state championships. He was the only one from Hillsborough. On May 2, Monschein finished tied for 19th at the Mideast Regionals at The Valley Golf Course in Burlington. This was the second year in a row that Monschein had qualified for the regionals. It was the first time he qualified for the state championships. Monschein had a 4.33 grade-point average at Cedar Ridge. In addition to his accomplishments in the classroom, he finds time to play golf about six times a week during the season. Most notably, he enjoys playing at Occoneechee Golf Course in Hillsborough.  Monschein made the All-Central Carolina Conference team for the second year in a row. He also played junior varsity baseball during his sophomore season. Faced against competition from Western Alamance this year, Monschein looks to improve for a solid senior season under Cedar Ridge men’s golf coach Chris Casey.