Cy Horner: The Division III Methodist lacrosse team has won four in a row. On Saturday, the Monarchs hammered Huntingdon College 13-3 at Monarch Stadium in Fayetteville. Horner came away with the hat trick for Methodist. He also assisted on the game-winning goal from Jay Legg as the Monarchs charged out to an 8-0 lead. This season, Horner has scored 20 goals over 13 games. Against William Peace on March 26, Horner scored six goals in an 18-7 win in Fayetteville, tying a career-high. He also had a hat trick against Averett. Horner now has 95 career goals.

Katie Wolter: The former goalkeeper for the Orange lacrosse team made her college debut for the Elon women’s team on March 15. Wolter played on defense and got a ground ball in the Phoenix’s 14-10 win over Monmouth at Kessler Stadium in West Long Branch, NJ. Elon is 6-5 overall, 3-1 in the Coastal Athletic Association.

Josiah Tisdale: A sophomore defensemen for Methodist, Tisdale has played in seven games this year, including Saturday’s win over Huntingdon. He has three ground balls and one turnover created this year. Methodist is 8-5 overall, 4- 1 in the USA South Conference.

Connor Kruse: The Lenior-Rhyne men’s lacrosse team is ranked #7 in Division II. On March 29, the Bears pounded Emory & Henry 24-3 at Food City Complex Stadium in Emory, VA. Kruse registered an assist and a ground ball in the Bears’ win. So far in his freshman season, Kruse has played in eight games. He has one goal and two assists. On Saturday, Kruse played in Lenoir-Rhyne’s 17-12 win over Newberry at Setzler Field in Newberry, SC.

Sascha Van Praag: Another former Orange defender playing for Lenoir-Rhyne, Van Praag played in his first college game against Emory & Henry on March 29. Lenoir-Rhyne is 10-2 overall, 5-2 in the South Atlantic Conference. They will host Tusculum at Moretz Stadium in Hickory on Saturday.

Jacob Driver: The leading scorer for Cedar Ridge last season, Driver made his college debut for Division II Mount Olive last month. Driver played in the Trojans 19-9 win at Lees-McRae in Banner Elk on March 8. Driver has also played in a win over Chowan and a loss to Belmont Abbey. Mount Oliver is 5-6 overall, 4-2 in Conference Carolinas.

Tigh Metheney: The former Orange Panther continues to play for Division II Catawba. He has played in four games this year for the Indians. He scored a goal in a 22-1 win over Emory & Henry on March 8.

Nick Cardone: A sophomore, Cardone has played in four games for Catawba this season. He had a ground ball against Emory & Henry. Catawba is 8-4 overall, 4-4 in Conference Carolinas.

Alden Cathey: Cathey, now at Division III Arcadia University, made his college debut in the Knights’ win over Gwynedd Mercy on March 1. Arcadia is 7-4 overall and won its opener in the Middle Atlantic Freedom Conference against FDU-Florham on Saturday.

Bryse Wilson: Wilson threw twice last week for the Chicago White Sox. On Friday, Wilson closed out a game against Detroit at Comerica Park, where he threw the final three innings. He entered the game with the White Sox trailing 5-1 and allowed one run off two hits with five strikeouts. Chicago made a late rally with three runs in the ninth but Detroit prevailed 7-4. On Tuesday, Wilson threw one-third-of-an-inning against Minnesota at Target Field. He allowed one hit and one walk. So far this year, Wilson five innings over four appearances with seven strikeouts and three walks.

Dante DeFranco: The Charlotte 49ers are 18-13 after a weekend series against Wichita State, where the 49ers won two-out-of-three games. Charlotte defeated South Carolina Upstate 8-4 on April 2. DeFranco entered the game as a reserve centerfielder in the ninth. DeFranco has played in six games this season.

Coltin Hedrick: A freshman at Wake Technical Community College, Hedrick has come out of the bullpen in five games this year. His most recent appearance came against Catawba Valley Community College, where he gave up one hit.

Wyatt Hedrick: Wyatt is a teammate with his brother at Wake Tech. On Sunday, he threw against two-thirds-of-an-inning against Guilford Tech and allowed one run off two hits. He has appeared in five games with a 12.71 ERA over five-and-two-thirds innings.

Jackson Berini: After playing in the opening weeks of the season for the Gaston College Rhinos, Berini will miss the remainder of this year. He recently underwent a medical procedure. Next year, Berini will play at Wichita State after two years in Gaston.

This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is softball junior Rylee Capps. The Red Wolves are off to its best start since 2019 after beating Roxboro Community School last week. Through 13 games, Capps is hitting .432. She leads the team with 19 hits and is second on the squad with 16 RBIs. In Cedar Ridge’s win over Southern Alamance on March 14, Capps went 4-for-5 with a grand slam and seven RBIs as the Red Wolves defeated the Patriots 15-2 in Hillsborough. Against Person on March 11, Capps went 3-for-3 with 3 RBIs as Cedar Ridge won 15-2 in five innings. On March 18, Cedar Ridge defeated Orange 7-1 for the first time since 2019. Facing the Lady Panthers, Capps finished 2-for-4 with an RBI Against Roxboro Community School on March 27, Capps finished with an RBI single as the Red Wolves held on for a 10-9 victory in Hillsborugh. Capps had a string of four consecutive multi-hit games in mid-March, including going 2-for-4 against Falls Lake. Against Walter Williams on March 28, Capps went 2-for-3 with an RBI single. Capps has brought extra offensive to a formidable Cedar Ridge offense that is going for a home state playoff game for the first time since 2019. Cedar Ridge will continue its season against Southern Alamance in Graham on Tuesday.

Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week: Rylee Capps

This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is softball junior Rylee Capps. The Red Wolves are off to its best start since 2019 after beating Roxboro Community School last week. Through 13 games, Capps is hitting .432. She leads the team with 19 hits and is second on the squad with 16 RBIs.

This week’s Orange Panther of the Week is junior pitcher Ryan Sawyer. After 2024, the Panthers lost five of its top seven pitchers, including starter Cross Clayton and Josiah Gibbs. This year, Sawyer has stepped up to become the regular Tuesday starter. Moving into the second month of the season, Sawyer has a 4-0 mark with a 2.31 ERA. He leads the team with 48 strikeouts. On March 18, Sawyer struck out ten batters in a 8-1 win over Western Alamance, the Panthers Central Conference opener. On March 11, Sawyer delivered another ten strikeout performance and took the victory as Orange defeated East Chapel Hill 7-1. Sawyer picked up the win on March 3 as the Panthers defeated Northern Durham 6-0 at Knights Field. Sawyer struck out eight over three shutout innings. In Orange’s first win of the year against Chapel Hill on February 26, Sawyer earned the victory as he threw four innings and struck out four and allowed only four hits. Ryan attributes a new diet, partially created by new pitching coach Landon Riley, for his new mindset which includes a emphasis on BBQ chicken. Amidst heavy turnover from a four-time defending conference championship team, Sawyer has provided reliability in 2025 as the Panthers aim for the top of the Central Conference once again. Starting on Tuesday, the Panthers will start a two-game series against Southern Alamance, which sits atop the Central Conference with a 6-0 record.

Orange Panther of the Week: Ryan Sawyer

This week’s Orange Panther of the Week is junior pitcher Ryan Sawyer. After 2024, the Panthers lost five of its top seven pitchers, including starter Cross Clayton and Josiah Gibbs. This year, Sawyer has stepped up to become the regular Tuesday starter.

Rivals on the field, the Orange and Cedar Ridge lacrosse are in a different type of competition to benefit the entire community.

Starting Monday, Orange and Cedar Ridge will compete in a food drive that will culminate at next Friday’s game between the two crosstown rivals at Auman Stadium in Hillsborough.

Fans can bring food to the contest, which begins at 7PM. The deadline for donations is the end of the first quarter.

The drive itself starts on Monday, when only online donations will be accepted.

Cedar Ridge attacker Josh Hart and Orange sophomore Jackson Wrenn have organized the food drive. Previously, Wrenn has organized similar efforts for Orange High’s PORCH club. He has raised 249 pounds of food in two previous food drives.

“We thought the competition would be a great way to get both schools involved,” Wrenn said.

Donations will go to PORCH Hillsborough, where it will be distributed.

Anyone wishing to donate online can go to porchcommunities.org. Write down Orange or Cedar Ridge in the memo to inform organisers which schools the donation is being sent on behalf of.

Starting Tuesday, donations will be accepted at Cedar Ridge front office as well as inside the athletic offices.

At Orange, donations will be accepted inside the Orange High Fieldhouse for Tuesday’s game against Southern Alamance. There is also a food donation box in Orange High’s front office.

Food can also be dropped off during Friday’s game between the Panthers and the Red Wolves, where the final count will be distributed and a winner declared during halftime.

hamlin37 is on Mixlr

hamlin37 is on Mixlr

It was ironic after a difficult week, Orange would find a way to win in Wilson.

For years, Historic Fleming Stadium was a place where Orange had a terrible time winning. For a good portion of the day on Saturday afternoon, it appeared Orange’s trip to Wilson would be another trip to nowhere.

Until Garrett Sawyer came up with the swing of his life.

With Orange trailing Pine Forest 4-1 in the fourth inning, Sawyer hit the first grand slam of his career over the left field fence inside a park that has hosted minor league games. It propelled Orange into a 8-4 lead.

The Panthers would use timely hitting and another save from freshman Mason Bullard to hold off the Trojans 9-8.

Sawyer grand slam was his second home run of the season. He was also Orange’s starting pitcher, throwing two innings.

Orange junior Henry Hoffman, who is tied for the team lead with 13 RBIs, slashed a double that landed at the wall in right field to score Cam Brown and Wren Hash. Mason Bullard, who walked earlier in the inning, scored the tying run off a wild pitch with Hunter Albert at the plate.

Sawyer expanded Orange’s lead in the sixth inning with an infield hit that turned into a two-base error after an errant throw to first base. D.J. Woods, a sophomore starting his first varsity game, knocked in Sawyer with a groundout to Pine Forest shortstop Kaydyn Thomas to put Orange ahead 9-5.

The Trojans nearly got it all back in the seventh inning. Three runs crossed the plate starting with a leadoff double from Chase Mims. Ryan Geske knocked in Mims with an RBI single. Jayhlen Brown, who reached on a walk, scored off a wild pitch to cut the Orange lead to 9-7.

Bullard came in as pitcher as Geske scored off a groundout by Pine Forest’s Wade McLamb to third baseman Dominic O’Keefe. With Landon Thompson representing the tying run at third and one out, Bullard induced Rylan Ditmore into a groundout back to the mound. Thomas grounded out to shortstop Kayden Bradsher to end the game.

Person swept Orange in a two-game Central Conference series last week. It was the first time the Rockets won a regular season game against Orange since they became conference rivals again in 2022.

Cedar Ridge 11, Chatham Central 3: 

Ian McGuffey drove in four runs as Cedar Ridge scored eight unanswered runs to defeat Chatham Central in Bear Creek in a nonconference game on Tuesday night.

Aidan Ryan struck out six over four innings in middle relief to earn the win for the Red Wolves. Ryan allowed only two hits and two runs, just one of which was earned.

With the game tied 2-2 going into the fourth inning, Ryan led off the inning with a single to left field. With Walker  Holmes at the plate, Ryan stole second, then swiped third. After Holmes walked, Ryan would score on a passed ball with Jesus Velazques at the plate. Holmes advanced to third on the same passed ball and would score when Velazquez grounded out to first base.

McGuffey drove a double to right field. Quinn Finnegan drew a walk. John Grove sent a grounder to first that was misplayed, allowing McGuffey to score and expanded Cedar Ridge’s lead to 6-3 just before Finnegan was tagged out at third base.

In the fifth inning, Heckman line a single to left field. Heckman stole second and would score off a double by Ryan to left field. Following another single by Dominic Sena, Velasquez drilled a RBI single to left field to score Ryan

John Grove finished 3-for-4 with three RBIs. Ian McGuffey finished a home run shy of hitting for the cycle. He went 4-for-4 with two doubles and a triple.

Cedar Ridge will face New Hanover on Wednesday afternoon in Hillsborough at 5PM.

Mia Davidson: The Diablos Rojos won the championship of the Mexican Softball League last month. Davidson, playing her first season in Mexico, helped Diablos defeat Sultanes de Monterrey 3-0 in the best-of-five Serie de la Reina (The Queen’s Series). The third and deciding game, played in front of 12,424 fans at Estadio Alfredo Harp Help, was captured by Diablos 5-0. The series broke the league record for attendance. Davidson started at first base in all three games of the series. In game one, which the Diablos won 7-6, Davidson hit the game-winning three-run home run in the sixth inning to vault the Diablos ahead 7-5. She finished game one 2-for-4 with three RBIs. The Diablos finished first in the regular season with a 23-5 record, three games ahead of Bravas de Leon.

Bryse Wilson: In his first games for the Chicago White Sox, Wilson threw two innings of middle relief. He tossed a scoreless seventh inning with one strikeout agains the Los Angeles Angels at Rate Field on March 30. Los Angeles won 3-2. On March 29, Wilson threw another scoreless seventh inning, giving up two hits and a strikeout. The Angels won 1-0. The White Sox are 2-3 after losing to Minnesota on Tuesday.

Katie Belle Sikes: The greatest swimmer in Orange High history finished her freshman season at Georgia in the NCAA National Championships in Federal Way, Washington. In the 400 yard freestyle relay, Sikes, Helena Jones, liane Reinstein Bri Robertson finished as second-team All-Americans. They finished 16th in the nation with a time of 3:13.20. Sikes swam the anchor leg at 48.27 seconds. Georgia finished 16h in the country with 58 points. Virginia won its fifth-consecutive national championship with 544 points.

Mary Moss Wirt: Delaware took two-out-of-three games against Elon in a softball weekend series in Newark, DE over the weekend. Wirt scored Elon’s only run in the Blue Hens’ 9-1 win over the Phoenix last Friday. Wirt, starting at catcher, went 1-for-2. On Sunday, Delaware edged the Phoenix 3-2. Wirt went 1-for-3. Against Monmouth on March 23, Wirt finished 2-for-3 with two runs scored as the Phoenix defeated the Hawks 11-0 in five innings. Elon swept the three-game series from Monmouth. In the opening game of the series, Wirt scored a run as a pinch-runner. Currently, Wirt is hitting .242 in 18 games. Elon is 17-14 overall, 9-3 in the Coastal Athletic Association.

Takia Nichols: The North Carolina Central Eagles took the series from Coppin State at CSU Softball Complex in Baltimore over the weekend. Nichols drove in a run off a sacrifice fly in the second inning of Sunday’s series-finale, which the Eagles won 10-0 in five innings. In Central’s 6-2 win over Coppin State on Friday, Nichols drove in the opening run off another sacrifice fly. Nichols went 1-for-2 in the opener. She started all three games at first base. The Eagles are 4-5 in the MEAC. They will host Morgan State at Thomas Brooks Park in Cary starting with a doubleheader on Saturday.

Carson Bradsher: The Division III Averett University softball team dropped a doubleheader to #5 Virginia Wesleyan at Cougar Field in Danville, VA on Sunday. Bradsher, hitting leadoff for the Cougars, went 2-for-7 with an RBI against the Marlins. #14 Randolph-Macon swept a doubleheader from Averett on March 29. Bradsher went 2-for-7 in the doubleheader. Averett is 11-14 overall, 2-6 in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. Bradsher is leading the team with a .439 batting average. She also leads the team in hits (43), runs (23), and total bases (46).

Ava Lowry: Against Guilford, Lowry went 2-for-5 with a double as North Carolina Wesleyan split a doubleheader against the Quakers on March 25. Lowry had an RBI single as the Battling Bishops improved to 2-2 in the USA South Conference. Over the weekend, Lowry started both games at shortstop as Wesleyan swept a doubleheader from Southern Virginia on scores of 4-0 and 9-1.

Olivia Aitkin: The former Cedar Ridge utility player started in centerfield for Division III Amherst on Sunday. Tufts University swept a doubleheader from the Mammoths. Aitkin also started in centerfield as Amherst split a doubleheader from Middlebury College in Middlebury, VT. In a 6-5 loss to Middlebury, Aitkin drove in a run off a sacrifice fly.

Brianne Foster: Foster started at catcher for Wake Tech and went 1-for-3 on March 26 against Louisburg at Buffaloe Road Athletic Park in Raleigh. Foster finished 1-for-3. Louisburg won 16-1 in six innings. Wake Tech is 14-15 overall, 8-8 in Region X of the National Junior College Athletic Association. Foster has played in 18 games this season and is hitting .205 with six RBIs.

Charlotte Lowry can rest her arm this week on Spring Break.

No one can deny she’s earned it.

As Cedar Ridge cringed to a 10-9 lead in the 7th inning against Roxboro Community School on Thursday night, Lowry what thrown 144 pitches The Bulldogs’ had reduced Cedar Ridge’s 10-4 lead to one run following a single by Lexi Powell, which scored Karrie Obie. Cedar Ridge left fielder Laci Sykes raced down the third base line in time to keep RCS’ Presley Leonard at third base instead of scoring the tying run.

Facing McKenzie Cobb, Lowry’s mother let out a piercing yell from the wooden press box along the first base line in support of her daughter. Charlotte was so tuned in trying to block out the fatigue, she couldn’t hear her.

Cobb worked the count to 3-2 until Lowry came up with a fastball. Cobb swung and missed to end the long struggle as Cedar Ridge held on to win 10-9, further helping its chances of hosting a state playoff game for the first time since 2019.

Earlier in the seventh inning, Cedar Ridge centerfielder Madline Galindo-Woodring came up with the defensive play of the night. Trailing 10-4 going into the seventh inning, five consecutive RCS batters reached, scoring two runs. Leah Griffin sent a soft liner to centerfield. Galindo-Woodring made a diving catch. Leah Cook tagged up from third base trying to cut the lead to 10-7, but Galindo-Woodring quickly got to her feet and delivered a strike to catcher Reagan Simmons, who tagged out Cook at the plate for a crucial double play.

Cedar Ridge scored six runs in the sixth inning to break open a 4-4 game. Six consecutive Red Wolves reached to start the frame, including Kimber Shambley laying into a fastball that bounced off the fence in right centerfield. Simmons drove a fastball to the wall in center to score Shambley and Raegan Remaly. Rylee Capps followed with a ball that skipped out second base to bring in Simmons. After Sykes and Lowry walked, Brittani Goddard sent a grounder to shortstop Karlie Barringer, who threw out Sykes at third. Qiaura Rogers, running for Lowry, scored on the fielder’s choice. Goddard would later score off an error by Barringer on a ball hit by Remaly. Parker Kennedy scored off another fielder’s choice on a grounder from junior Mia Best.

In the top of the sixth, Powell sent a deep fly ball to left field with two runners on base. Sykes made a huge catch at the fence to retire the side.

The following night, Cedar Ridge rolled past Walter Williams 15-0 in three innings. Shambley hit a three-run homer to start an eight-run first inning. Shambley finished 3-for-3 with five RBIs. Simmons finished with a triple and an RBI.

Mia Best threw a complete game for her second win of the season. Best struck out nine in a three inning no-hitter. The Red Wolves improved to 5-2 in the Central Conference as they capped three games over four days at home.

On Tuesday, the Red Wolves defeated Western Alamance, the defending Central Conference champions, 3-0. Remaly led off the fourth inning reaching on an error on a grounder to second base. Simmons lined a double to the right field gap, allowing Remaly to score the opening run.

The Red Wolves added an insurance run when Goodard sent a one-out single to right field. After Galindo-Woodring grounded out to second base, Goddard advanced to second base. Best bounced a fastball through the heart of the right field hole that allowed Goddard to score and increase the Red Wolf lead to 2-0.

Lowry struck out ten batters in a complete game two-hitter. It was the second straight year that the Red Wolves defeated the Warriors in Hillsborough.