Month: April 2021

It sounds simple, but it’s true.

When Cedar Ridge softball plays well defensively, they win. When they don’t, well…

From one game to the next, Cedar Ridge Coach Allen Byrd has no idea what to expect. Last Tuesday, the Red Wolves played flawless in a 12-2 win at Northern Durham. The next day in Hillsborough, in the midst of wind gusts of nearly 30 miles per hour, Cedar Ridge gave up eleven unearned runs off five errors in a 15-14 loss to the same Northern team.

Fortunately, in Cedar Ridge’s final trip to Henderson, their gloves and bats worked in perfect unison.

Takia Nichols hit two home runs as Cedar Ridge defeated Vance County 8-3 at Viper Softball Field. Nichols, who now has 25 career home runs at the end of her junior year, finished 4-for-4 with four RBIs, three runs scored and a double.

Sophomore Hayley King threw a complete game for her seventh win of the year. King struck out three and held the Vipers to seven hits.

Naturally, Cedar Ridge didn’t commit an error in the game. On April 8, the Red Wolves made two errors, leading to three unearned runs, in a 7-4 Vance County win in Hillsborough.

Nichols blasted a solo homer over the centerfield wall to open the scoring in the third inning. Ava Lowry walked, then advanced to third on a single by Olivia Aitkin. Senior Reagan Ruhl grounded a two-run single up the middle. Caira Peach lined a single to score Ruhl and push Cedar Ridge’s lead to 4-0.

In the fourth, seniors Emma-Rae Sharp and ShiLi Quade each reached on errors. Then Nichols drilled a laser over the left field wall for a three-run homer to vault Cedar Ridge ahead 7-0.

Nichols hit a leadoff double to start the sixth. Lowry lined a single to centerfield to bring her in.

Lowry, in her final road game, finished 2-for-3. Aitkin went 2-for-4. Peach also had a 2-for-4 day with an RBI.

The win guarantees that Cedar Ridge will finish with a winning record for the fourth straight season.

Cedar Ridge is scheduled to host Southern Durham for a doubleheader on Friday. It will be the final home game for Quade, Lowry, Sharp, Lajoan Stuart, Alexandria Matthews and Marlee Rakouskas.

ORANGE 15, SOUTHERN DURHAM 0

The Orange softball team officially finished its Big 8 Conference season with a 15-0 victory over Southern Durham on Tuesday night. Southern was the final opponent that the Lady Panthers hadn’t played. With the victory, Orange ends the conference season 7-0, its first perfect conference season since Orange started fielding fast-pitch teams in 1998.

It was senior night for first baseman Gracie Colley and third baseman Emma Puckett. Together, Puckett and Colley have each played on Orange’s varsity team since they were freshmen. Together, they have played on squads with a combined record of 38-17 and have won two Big 8 Conference Championships.

Freshman Caden Robinson returned to the lineup and hit a three-run homer, her third dinger of the year. Sophomore centerfielder Serenity McPherson went 2-for-3 with 2 RBIs. McPherson has hit safely in all 12 of Orange’s games this year.

Carson Bradsher went 1-for-2. She also stole two bases.

Orange (12-0) will try to complete a perfect regular season with two games later this week. They travel to Northern Durham on Thursday. A nonconfernece game against Southern Alamance, originally set for Wednesday, has been rescheduled for Friday in Graham.

Southern Alamance will face Southwestern Randolph on Thursday night. The winner will be champion of the Mid-Piedmont Conference.

Orange has already clinched the Big 8 Championship and will host a game in the opening round of the 32-team 3A State Playoffs next week.

The Lady Panthers are one of five undefeated teams in 3A softball. The others are D.H. Conley, Piedmont, North Buncombe, and Crest.

This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is Bradley Monschein. Right now, Monschein is preparing for Cedar Ridge’s baseball season, but that’s not the reason why he earned the award this week. Last week, Monschein qualified for the 3A Mideast Regional Golf Tournament at Keith Hills Golf Club in Lillington. Two weeks ago during a Big 8 Conference match at Occoneechee Golf Club in Hillsborough, Monschein led Cedar Ridge with a 87 over 18 holes, which was tied for fourth among competitors among five different schools that day. Remarkably, Monschein didn’t take up golf until just over a year ago. While many people were stuck laboring around the house during the COVID-19 pandemic, Monschein got serious about golf and started playing regularly. Now, he is just one of three players in Hillsborough who qualified for the regionals, which is set to take place next week. In the meantime, Monschein will tend to his duties with his first love, baseball. The 3A Golf Mideast Regionals will be held next Monday morning in Lillington.

Everything ends where it began.

Tonight, Cedar Ridge baseball will return to the spot where last season abruptly ended. When the team bus pulled out of Pittsboro onto 15-501 on March 10, 2020, Red Wolves Coach Bryson Massey was focused on the challenge of getting his team to move forward after losing to the Northwood Chargers.

No one on board had any idea they had just played its final game as a team together. Certainly not seniors Cameron Hartley, Francisco Martinez, Grant Fox, and Chris Pearce, who tried to move on to their next game against Northern Durham, which would never see the light of day.

The following night, Rudy Govert of the Utah Jazz would give an infamous press conference where he mocked the coronavirus. Within hours, the NBA suspended its season and the dominoes across the sports world, from metropolitians to small communities, all collapsed with warp speed.

Massey had just started his head coaching career. After spending two years as an assistant at A.L. Brown High in Kannapolis, Massey hadn’t even started to form the shape of his new team’s foundation before it all ended. Without any games, Massey found himself just like many other baseball coaches across the state. He spent the subsequent weeks traveling down sparse roads to take care of his field, usually in complete solitude.

There were just no players to play on it. Massey’s Zoom sessions with his team were better than nothing, but they were no substitute for infield drills.

A year later, as Massey stands outside the batting cage as his young Red Wolves prepare for the most unusual season opener in school history, he reflects on last spring, a surreal memory that he would just as well forget.

“We talked about it a lot,” Massey said. “It’s not just about baseball. It’s about life. When you come out on this field, you never know what could be your last moment. Last year taught these kids a big lesson in life. You’ve got to take every moment like it’s your last.”

Massey will spend the next month trying to create stability, something Cedar Ridge baseball has lacked since the departure of Jamie Athas as head coach in 2018. Before he left for Walter Williams, Athas led Cedar Ridge to a combined 35-13 record in 2017 and 2018. The heart of the pitching staff was Phillip Berger, who won a school-record 21 games in his Red Wolf career. Berger is now a starting rotation pitcher for Division III William Peace University.

Now, Berger’s younger brother Will is the leader of the Cedar Ridge staff. Will Berger, who was a varsity starting quarterback for the football team in the fall of 2019, skipped the gridiron this winter to focus on baseball.

“Will has worked very hard this offseason,” Massey said. “He’s brought in trying to get his arm stronger and just develop into a better baseball player. That’s what he focuses on this offseason. He continued to work while we were shut down.”

Because of the pandemic, many of the teams across the Big 8 Conference lost a chance to field experienced teams last year. Of Chapel Hill’s 18 players, 12 were seniors. Orange lost the 2019 Big 8 Conference Player of the Year Joey Berini, now at East Carolina, along with six other seniors, including starting left fielder Tucker Miller, first baseman Dayne Watkins and pitcher Cooper Hench.

In that regard, Cedar Ridge has a step ahead of the rest of the league. They lost only four seniors. On the other hand, the returning players missed out on a year’s worth of playing experience.

“We didn’t lose 12 players and we have a lot coming back,” Massey said. “But we don’t have varsity experience. We have JV experience and there’s a big difference between JV games and varsity games. And just trying to get these guys used to the speed of the varsity game. We’re trying to get them as many games as they can.”

Another player that Massey will rely on is Matt Hughes, who has committed to Brunswick Community College. Hughes, a senior, started four games as a freshman. Marco Velasquez will also see time on the mound.

“We have a lot of guys that are going to go out there and compete on the mound and give us innings,” Massey said.

Cedar Ridge starts with a tough stretch. They open with Northwood tonight, who reached the 2019 3A State Playoffs. Its home opener is against Chapel Hill on Friday, then they travel to Orange.

Win or lose, the point is Cedar Ridge is competing again. And Massey’s message to his team, after a dormant and empty ten weeks last spring, is to treasure every moment.

“On the first day back to practice, our guys had some butterflies because they hadn’t practiced together as a team. for a year,” Massey said. “We had everybody out here on that first day. You take it for granted sometimes. I looked up and was thankful just to be on a field again.”

This week’s Orange Panther of the Week is softball sophomore shortstop Carson Bradsher. On Friday night, Bradsher went 4-for-4 with four runs scored and three RBIs as the Lady Panthers defeated Northwood 13-2 at Charger Softball Field. In the fifth inning alone, Bradsher had two RBIs singles and scored twice. Through ten games, Bradsher leads Orange in seven offensive categories. She’s hitting .700, which also leads the Big 8 Conference. She has 21 hits, 21 runs, 18 RBIs, seven doubles, and four triples, along with eleven stolen bases. Softball is a family affair for Bradsher. Her mother, Shannon, played softball under former head coach Dave Murr at Orange when it was exclusively a slow-pitch sport. Her father, Wayne, is an assistant under head coach Johnny Barefoot. Wayne is a graduate of Orange and Carson admits to getting her quickness from her father. This week, Orange will play its final home game of the regular season. They face Southern Durham on Tuesday. Orange will travel to Southern Alamance on Wednesday in Graham, then travel to Northern Durham on Friday to wrap up the regular season. The Lady Panthers, who have already clinched the Big 8 Championship, are 10-0.

Jaylin Jones: Former Orange lacrosse, football and track & field star Jaylin Jones had a special moment on a rainy day for the Division III Pfeiffer men’s lacrosse team on Saturday. Jones scored a goal for the Falcons, who defeated William Peace University 24-11 at Lefko Field in Misenheimer. Jones, on his senior day, scored an unassisted goal during a 12-0 Falcon run in the second quarter. It was Jones’ first goal of the season. He also scooped up two ground balls. Pfeiffer set a school record with its ninth consecutive win. The Falcons finished the regular season 10-1, 8-0 in the USA South Athletic Conference. Next Saturday, Pfeiffer will host Greensboro College for the USA South Athletic Conference Eastern Division Championship.

Wyatt Jones: Jones, the first Orange player to suit up for a Division I lacrosse team, returned to action for Mercer on Saturday. #14 Richmond defeated the Bears 21-8 at Five Star Stadium in Macon, GA. Jones entered the game and fired one shot on net. Mercer is 5-7 overall, 2-3 in the Southern Conference.

Bryse Wilson: In his second start with the Atlanta Braves this season, Wilson suffered a loss on Sunday. The Arizona Diamondbacks defeated Atlanta 5-0 in seven innings in the opening game of a doubleheader at Truist Park in Cumberland, GA. Wilson surrendered three runs and four hits in four innings. He struck out four and walked two. Wilson is 1-1. The Braves didn’t score a run in the doubleheader. They were no-hit in the second game by Arizona’s Madison Bumgarner in a 7-0 loss.

Landon Riley: The Liberty Flames defeated Coastal Carolina 6-4 on Sunday to clinch the series at Worthington Field in Lynchburg, VA. Riley worked the ninth inning for his fifth save of the season. Against five batters, Riley allowed two hits, but also struck out the side. The Flames are now 27-10 after taking two-out-of-three against the Chanticleers. They are 16-2 at home.

Joey Berini: In a weekend series against UCF, Berini entered two games for #9 East Carolina as a pinch hitter. In a 10-5 loss to the Knights on Friday, Berini picked up his second hit as a Pirate with a leadoff single the sixth inning. On Sunday, UCF defeated the Pirates 6-1. Berini struck out to end the game. East Carolina is 28-7, 10-2 in the American Athletic Conference.

Phillip Berger: The Division III William Peace baseball team had its season come to an end after losing to Greensboro College on Sunday. Berger started for the Pacers and suffered the loss. The Pride defeated the Pacers 5-4 at Ted Leonard Park in Greensboro. Berger started and threw four innings. He surrendered seven runs off eleven hits. Berger struck out three with zero walks. On Friday, Greensboro edged Peace 5-4 in the opening game of a doubleheader. Berger threw one inning of relief and surrendered two runs off two hits and two walks. He ends the year 5-4 with a 4.85 ERA. Berger recorded 39 strikeouts and 25 walks in his sophomore season.

Cooper Porter: Porter threw one-thirds of an inning for Pensacola State in its 12-3 win over Gulf Coast State College on Sunday in the opening game of a doubleheader. He struck out the only batter he faced. Pensacola State is 24-16. Porter has played 15 games for the Pirates this season. He is hitting .265 with one home run and six RBIs. He has two pitching appearances this year.

Mia Davidson: On Friday night, Davidson tweeted that she had been accepted to Graduate School. On Saturday, Davidson’s Mississippi State softball team won its first game against an Southeastern Conference opponent this year when they defeated Texas A&M 8-1 at Nusz Park in Starkville, MS. Davidson hit a three-run homer in the sixth inning, her 14th of the year. Davidson is now one home run shy of the all-time baseball and softball home run record in Mississippi State history, set by Rafael Palmeiro. Davidson has 66 career homers. On Saturday, she went 1-for-2 with 4 RBIs and a run scored. She also threw a runner out at third to end the fifth inning. Texas A&M defeated Mississippi State 7-5 on Friday. Davidson went 0-for-3. On Sunday, the Aggies clinched the series over the Bulldogs with an 8-1 win. Davidson finished 1-for-3 with the first single of the game.

Montana Davidson: On Sunday, Montana started at third base for Mississippi State and finished 1-for-2 with a walk. In Friday loss, Montana went 0-for-2. On Saturday, she finished 0-for-3. Mississippi State is 25-21 overall, 1-14 in the SEC. The Bulldogs travel to South Carolina next weekend.

Tori Dalehite: The UNC Greensboro softball team swept Samford in a three-game series this weekend at UNCG Softball Stadium. Dalehite entered the second game of Friday’s doubleheader, a 1-0 Spartan victory, as a pinch runner for designated player Kayleigh Willis. UNCG is 25-14 overall.

Jaden Hurdle: The Patrick Henry Community College softball team swept a doubleheader from Florence-Darlington Technical College on Friday. The Patriots have won six of its last seven. In the nightcap, Hurdle earned the win in the pitching circle as PHCC prevailed 8-5. Hurdle replaced starter Brianna Taylor in the fifth inning. Hurdle tossed three innings of shutout ball. She conceded two hits and one walk with one strikeout. At the plate, Hurdle went 1-for-4. Patrick Henry won the opener 4-3 in ten innings. Hurdle finished 1-for-3 with two walks. Through 30 games, Hurdle is 3rd on the team in batting average (.369), RBIs (22), home runs (6) and hits (31). She’s second on the squad with 15 extra base hits.

In terms of pitching, Hurdle is now 4-1 with a 5.12 ERA. She has 26 strikeouts and ten walks.

Our retro Orange Panther of the Week takes us back to the week of March 21. Lady Panther soccer forward Bella Brown scored two goals as Orange defeated Cedar Ridge 5-1 at Orange Soccer Park. It was Orange’s first win over the Red Wolves since 2017. Brown started her soccer career at Alamance Christian School. Last summer, she formally transferred to Orange. This year, Brown is the leading scorer for an Orange team that has had its best season since 2017. She scored a hat trick against Vance County on March 17. The Lady Panthers will conclude its season against Northern Durham on Wednesday night at James Armstrong Stadium. Orange had a scoreless tie against Northern on April 6. Brown will be a vital part of the Orange women’s soccer team next season. The Lady Panthers lose only three seniors to graduation this year.