Month: April 2021

Brittany Daley: The former Cedar Ridge soccer star started for the Greensboro College Pride against Pfeiffer on Saturday. The Pride defeated the Falcons 2-0 at Pride Field to win the USA South East Division Championship. Daley played the full 90 minutes as Greensboro ended its abbreviated spring season with a win. Daley started all eight games that Greensboro played this spring. She played the maximum 740 minutes as the Pride finished 6-1-1. Ordinarily, Greensboro would be preparing to play for the NCAA Division III Tournament, but the event was canceled this year. Daley will start her senior season with the Pride this fall when play hopefully returns to normal.

Kayla Hodges: The Elon Phoenix women’s soccer team defeated William & Mary 2-0 at the Dillard Complex in Williamsburg, VA on Saturday. With the win, Elon clinched a spot in the Colonial Athletic Association postseason tournament. Hodges started her seventh game of the season. The Phoenix is 4-3 overall, 3-1 in the CAA. Elon will face Hofstra, on Thursday in Towson, MD in the semifinals of the CAA Tournament.

Landon Riley: The Liberty baseball team completed a three-game sweep of Lipscomb at Worthington Field in Lynchburg, VA over the weekend. Riley appeared in two games and was used as a setup man instead of the closer role that had been customary so far this year. On Friday in the Flames 4-1 win, Riley faced one batter, who grounded into a double play. On Sunday in the Flames 5-4 win, Riley threw the eighth inning and allowed one hit. He retired the other three batters he faced. Liberty currently leads the Atlantic Sun Conference with a 7-1 record, one game ahead of Kennesaw State for first place.

Phillip Berger: The winningest pitcher in Cedar Ridge history earned his third win of the season for Division III William Peace on Friday. The Pacers defeated Mary Baldwin 14-2 in five innings in the second game of a doubleheader in Stauton, VA. Berger threw four innings. He struck out six and allowed two runs off four hits. Berger is 3-2 with a 3.83 ERA for the Pacers this season. The Pacers improved to 13-12.

Mia Davidson: After its weekend series against Tennessee was canceled, the Mississippi State softball team arranged a doubleheader against #1 Oklahoma and Louisiana Tech in Ruston, LA on Saturday. Against La. Tech, Davidson went 0-for-3. Mississippi State won 2-0 behind a no-hitter by pitcher Annie Willis. Against the Sooners, Davidson went 0-for-1 with a walk. Oklahoma won 9-0 in five innings.

Montana Davidson: Montana started at third base against Louisiana Tech and went 0-for-2 with a sacrifice bunt. Against Oklahoma, Montana went 0-for-1. Mississippi State is 20-16 and will travel to Samford on Tuesday.

Jalen Hurdle: On Saturday, the Patrick Henry Community College softball team split a doubleheader with Spartanburg Methodist. Hurdle threw a three-hit shutout in the second game as the Patriots won 11-0. Hurdle struck out three over five innings and allowed only one walk. She also went 1-for-3 with an RBI single. It was the second pitching win of Hurdle’s career. The Pioneers won the first game 11-6. Hurdle finished 2-for-4 with an RBI. Patrick Henry is now 10-14 overall, 4-4 in Region X of the National Junior College Athletic Association.

Marvin Jones: The North Carolina Central track & field team competed in the Aggie Invitational at North Carolina A&T University in Greensboro on Saturday. Jones earned a fourth place finish in the high jump with a 2.05-meter jump. Hoova Taylor of Virginia State finished first with a jump of 2.10 meters.

Bailey Lucas: The Division III Meredith volleyball team ended the regular season with a doubleheader sweep of Mary Baldwin in the Physical Activity Center in Stauton, VA on Sunday. The Avenging Angels won the first match 3-1 on scores of 25-17, 17-25, 25-18 and 27-25. Lucas came off the bench in the first match and finished with 20 assists and seven digs. Meredith swept the final match on scores of 25-13, 25-21 and 25-11. Lucas had three kills, 15 assists and four digs. The Avenging Angels end the regular season 9-4 overall, 6-2 in the USA South Athletic Conference. Meredith now enters the USA South East Division Championship as the #3 seed. They will travel to face second-seeded Averett on Wednesday.

The Cedar Ridge women’s soccer team had a thrilling overtime game against East Chapel Hill on March 29. Emerson Talley scored two goals, including one in overtime, for the Red Wolves. East Chapel Hill scored with under four minutes remaining in the extra session to preserve the win. Here are some photos of the game from Phil Stapleton.

There are games that come and go just as quickly as time passes, making it all seem so random.

Then there are days like Saturday morning at Culton-Peerman Stadium, where the combination of history, good fortune and incredible drama may leave one feeling that a guiding hand of fate may be paying attention, after all.

After some dominant Orange wins over Chapel Hill in recent years, local football fans were due for a classic between the two rivals on Saturday at Culton-Peerman Stadium. And after going 0-10 against Orange since 2009, Chapel Hill was set to benefit from a storybook finish.

Nolan Westrom kicked a 40-yard field goal as time expired, clearing the crossbar by inches, to vault Chapel Hill past Orange 24-22 and claim a share of the Big 8 Championship on Saturday morning at Culton-Peerman Stadium. Tiger quarterback Caleb Kelley threw a 44-yard pass to wide receiver Kyhlil Jones to set up the field goal.

It was Westrom’s second field goal of his varsity career. The other was a 37-yarder against Northern Durham on March 19.

Chapel Hill defeated Orange for the first time since 2004, which was Issac Marsh’s first win as a head coach. His latest one may be the most gratifying. In 2019, Chapel Hill went 1-10, ending with a 30-6 loss to Orange. The year before that, the Tigers didn’t field a varsity team due to a lack of players.

Through a decade of dominating its archrival, Orange had found one miraculous way after another to break the Tigers’ hearts. On Saturday, it appeared they would find one more.

With less than one minute remaining and Orange trailing 21-14, Panther quarterback Jayce Hodges found Eric Brooks for a 49 yard pass to the Chapel Hill 22-yard line. In its double wing offense, the Panthers pounded the ball to the one-yard line, where senior Jackson Wood scored on 4th-and-goal with 25 seconds remaining. Orange then took a 22-21 lead with a 2-point conversion run by Brooks, who ran around right end past blocks set by Darius Matkins, Hayden Horne and wingback Elliott Woods.

Brooks was set to join some lofty company. In 2014, Orange quarterback Garrett Cloer threw to wide receiver Ky Muller to score a 55-yard touchdown against Chapel Hill on the final play of the game to break a scoreless tie. A year later, after Chapel Hill led 34-14 at halftime at Auman Stadium, the Panthers rallied for two touchdowns in the final two minutes. After current Atlanta Braves pitcher Bryse Wilson recovered an onside kick, Tay Jones scored on a touchdown run in the final minute, then scored on a 2-point conversion (sound familiar?) to win 38-37.

After all that heartbreak, in its final game against Orange as a Big 8 Conference rival, it was Issac Marsh’s Tigers smiling at the end.

That was about all the smiling that took place between two teams that simply don’t like each other. If Orange’s first trip to Culton-Peerman Stadium since 2016 had been any more nasty, the coaches could have sent the game tape to multiplexes and entitled it “Longest Yard 2.” The game featured no less than ten 15-yard penalties, including a roughing the passer call moments before Kelley’s pass to Jones.

Chapel Hill romped down the field on its opening drive after a big return by Jones on the opening kickoff. Kelley hit Malachi Corbett for a 19-yard touchdown.

Orange responded with its ground control offense chewing up yards on the ground. Eric Brooks converted a 3rd-and-1 with a six-yard gain. Trey Grizzle, in his final Orange game, scored his first varsity touchdown off a 25-yard pass from Hodges. Darius Satterfield’s extra point tied the game.

Chapel Hill’s defensive line of Amir Lassiter, Gabe Bollinger and Marquette Bowers provided a goal line stand late in the first quarter. After J.J. Torres was stopped at the 2-yard line, Wood was stopped short on 4th-and-goal from the 1-yard line.

Kelley then engineered a 99-yard drive for the Tigers. He converted two third-downs on scrambles, then hit Jones for a 58-yard gain. Jones would score off a jet sweep from six-yards away to put the Tigers ahead.

Three consecutive offside penalties helped Orange start its next drive in Tiger territory late in the second quarter. After Torres kept the possession alive with a 4-yard gain on 4th-and-1, Brooks snapped free of several tackles and scored a 20-yard touchdown to even the game 14-14.

It stayed even into the fourth quarter, but both teams had their chances to score. Orange opened the second half with a 12-play drive where Woods crossed midfield with a 21-yard pickup. The Panthers would penetrate to the Chapel Hill 14-yard line, but the Tigers’ Ta’vonne Page came up with an interception.

Once again, Kelley hooked up with Jones, this time for a 44-yard gain to kickstart the subsequent Chapel Hill drive. After running back Jaylen Mitchell ran to the Orange 10-yard line, he received another carry, but Torres knocked the ball free and it was recovered in the end zone by Orange linebacker Connor Ray.

The Panthers started the fourth quarter with another strong drive, going from its own 20-yard line to the Chapel Hill 15. Woods had a 20-yard gain off a double handoff from Torres. As with every Orange drive in the game, the Panthers crossed the 50-yard line. But the Panthers fumbled in the Chapel Hill red zone, which was recovered by Tigers’ linebacker Jamazia Williams.

Jones had the big plays on Chapel Hill’s only touchdown drive of the second half, starting with a 22-yard run around left end. On a 3rd-and-10 from the Tiger 39-yard line, Kelley hit Jones with an 11-yard pass. After runs of 19 and ten yard by Anthon Enoch, Mitchell put the Tigers ahead with a 2-yard touchdown with just over 4:00 minutes remaining.

The game was played hours after a 3-hour lightning delay on Friday night, For whatever reason, the scoreboard at Culton-Peerman Stadium, all of two-years old, was left on during a thunderstorm. It’s believed that the scoreboard may have been struck by lightning because when game officials showed up Saturday morning, it was busted. That forced officials to keep time on the field, leaving players, coaches and game staff in a constant state of confusion as to how much time was left in the game and what the score was.

As the two teams split apart into new conferences in August, there’s no word on if Chapel Hill and Orange will resume the series. As a reporter, you can only go on what you know for sure. Saturday’s game was a classic, and for once, Chapel Hill was the one smiling at the end.

For now, that is the end of the story.

CHAPEL HILL 24, ORANGE 22

CH-7 7 0 10

OR-7 7 0 8-

CHAPEL HILL-Malachi Corbett 19 pass from Caleb Kelley (Nolan Westrom kick)

ORANGE-Trey Grizzle 25 pass from Jayce Hodges (Darius Satterfield kick)

CHAPEL HILL-Kyhlil Jones 6 run (Westrom kick)

ORANGE-Eric Brooks 20 run (Satterfield kick)

CHAPEL HILL-Jaylen Mitchell 2 run (Westrom kick)

ORANGE-Jackson Wood 1 run (Brooks run)

CHAPEL HILL-Westroom 40 FG

RUSHING: ORANGE 53-289 (Brooks 18-109 TD, Elliott Woods 11-73, J.J. Torres 11-52, Wood 8-31 TD, Nate Hecht 4-13, Jayce Hodges 1-11)

CHAPEL HILL (Mitchell 18-80 TD, Anthon Enoch 4-47, Kelley 5-25, Jones 3-31 TD)

PASSING: ORANGE (Hodges 2-4 74 TD, INT) Kelley (10-13 221 TD, team 0-1)

RECEIVING: ORANGE (Brooks 1-49, Grizzle 1-25 TD)

CHAPEL HILL: (Jones 6-174, Williams 1-20 TD, Ta’vonne Page 1-16, Mitchell 1-11)

The definition of dedication can best be summed up in the career of Cedar Ridge quarterback Elijah Whitaker. Through five football coaches in four years and with no varsity team in 2018, Whitaker remained a Red Wolf through and through when some of his cohorts went elsewhere. His senior season was limited because of the pandemic. Once it finally started, Whitaker was supposed to start at wide receiver. But after the Red Wolves starter suffered a broken hand in the first quarter of the first game, Whitaker went back to quarterback, even though it isn’t his natural position. In his final game, Cedar Ridge had its best showing of the season. Whitaker threw a touchdown pass in his final drive as a Red Wolf, pulling Cedar Ridge within six points of victory against Vance County on Thursday night. Though Cedar Ridge fell short in the season finale, Whitaker isn’t done with the program that he has remained faithful to. He plans to return as an assistant coach in the future, one that will see brighter days for Cedar Ridge football.

The biggest regular season football game at Chapel Hill High since 2008 isn’t supposed to happen in the middle of April. But the past year has been anything but normal.

Neither has Chapel Hill’s ascent to the top of the Big 8 Conference.

Less than two years ago, Chapel hill didn’t have a football team. The school that produced Bernardo Harris, who went to become a Super Bowl Champion with the Green Bay Packers in Super Bowl XXXI, Brett Farve’s only world championship. The same school that produced Matt Stevens, who went on to play on a Southern Conference Championship team at Appalachian State and ended his career on the first New England Patriots team to win a Super Bowl in 2002. If you don’t know Matt, perhaps you’ve heard of his teammate who became starting quarterback at midseason that year. His name is Tom Brady.

Chapel Hill Coach Isaac Marsh has had the ultimate emotional roller coaster since replaced Joe Wolfe as Chapel Hill head coach in 2004. Three months after he accepted the job his father, L.C., died. The day of the funeral, Chapel Hill upset Jordan and went to the 4A State Playoffs. There was a win at Middle Creek in 2007, the Tigers’ first playoff victory since the school was located on Franklin Street in the 1960s. The following August, 17-year-old defensive lineman Atlas Fraley died of natural cases after a scrimmage in Cary. The Tigers’ dedicated that season to his memory, playing inspired all the way to winning the PAC-6 Championship, ending their run as a 4A team with a dominant performance at Jordan in November 2008. The following week, Westover stunned the Tigers in Culton-Peerman Stadium in the opening round of the state playoffs, dashing the dreams of some Chapel Hill fans who thought they could make a run to nearby Kenan Stadium for all the marbles.

The next night, defensive lineman/fullback Rodney Torain was killed while riding home in the backseat of a car.

So, yes, Isaac Marsh has seen some things, some of which he would rather forget.

Certainly football can’t compare with the loss of human life. But as an exceptional student instructor since he arrived at Chapel Hill, Marsh lives to teach and coach. When he didn’t have a varsity team at all in 2019, a vital part of his life was taken away, at least on Fridays (Chapel Hill did field a JV team, which only fueled the rivalry with Orange).

That’s what made last Thursday night so surprising.

When a school hits the reset button on football, it’s like warming up a car on a snowy day. The heat isn’t supposed to come on right away. It takes time to get the engine warm again.

Yet after finishing 1-10 in 2019, Chapel Hill stunned Southern Durham 43-38 at Spartan Stadium to improve to 4-1. They were the first team to beat the Spartans this season.

Overnight, the entire shape of the Big 8 Conference race changed.

It also raised the stakes of Orange’s final regular season game.

Coming into tonight, Southern Durham is in the clubhouse with a 5-1 Big 8 Conference record. Chapel Hill is 4-1, while Northwood is 3-1. The Chargers’ game against Vance County never took place last week, and Northwood officials are under the impression that it will be declared a forfeit victory in their favor. But that’s not official yet.

As far as tonight goes, Chapel Hill is playing for a share of the Big 8 Conference championship. It would be its first league title since the 2008 title.

Then there’s the added wrinkle of the Orange-Chapel Hill rivalry, which has been one-sided since Chapel Hill returned to 3A. Since 2009, Orange is 10-0 against the Tigers. They have been games like their last meeting in November 2019, when Orange had the talent advantage, they knew it, and they won 30-6. There was 2009, when Chapel Hill was going for a playoff spot, and Orange was struggling in the early days of Pat Moser. But the Panthers, coming off consecutive losses to Cardinal Gibbons and Southern Vance, stunned the Tigers 42-23 at Culton-Peerman Stadium to end the season, ruining Chapel Hill’s playoff chances.

Then there was 2015, possibly the greatest game ever between the two longtime rivals. The Tigers roared out to a 34-14 halftime lead behind quarterback Connor Stough. But Tay Jones and Bryse Wilson would not let Orange lose. After Jones caught a touchdown pass from Garrett Cloer in the fourth quarter, Wilson perfectly timed his jump on the subsequent onside kick and recovered it. The following play, Jones scored on a 46-yard touchdown run, then cashed in the two-point conversion to pave the way to a 38-37 Orange win.

As easy as it would have been, Marsh didn’t let that crushing loss destroy his team. They stunned defending 3-AA State Champion Southern Durham, in Spartans’ QB Kendall Hinton’s last high school game, during the 3rd round of the state playoffs. They went all the way to the Eastern Regional Championship game, where they fell to Northern Guilford in Greensboro.

(BTW, why hasn’t Southern Durham retired Kendall Hinton’s number yet?)

Much like Chapel Hill dominated the rivalry in the 1990s, Orange has dominated it since 2009. Tonight will be their final meeting as conference rivals for the foreseeable future.

It will possibly be the final football game for Orange seniors Elliott Woods, Dari’us Matkins, Jayce Hodges, J.J. Torres, Hayden Horne, Will Crabtree, Will Torian, Trey Grizzle, Zahmir Watkins, Daniel Champion, Malachi Hooker, and Johnny Weddle. With a win, Orange will keep its playoff chances alive.

So it is spring. And some teams have had a live and let live mindset for this unusual season.

But for one April night, the Friday Night Lights will shine brightly at Culton-Peerman Stadium because the stakes can’t get much higher.

After weeks of near misses, the Orange junior varsity football team finally earned a victory in its season-finale on Wednesday night. The Panthers defeated Northwood 34-28 in a thriller at Auman Stadium. Freshman running back Nate Sorrells scored the game winning touchdown with 43 seconds remaining. It was Sorrells third touchdown of the game. Orange quarterback Wynston Brown found Sorrells for a 25-yard gain on a 3rd-and-8 with time running out to get the ball down to the Northwood 3-yard line. Brown also scored a rushing touchdown for Orange. Orange’s Ronald Cooper had a 41-yard interception return for a touchdown in the second quarter. Sorrells finished with 117 yards from scrimmage, with 40 yards rushing and three receptions for 77 yards. Both Brown and Sorrells have already played some varsity games for Orange this season and will be a big part of the Panthers’ future, starting in just a few months for the start of training camp.

Taylin Jean: The former Cedar Ridge goalkeeper returned to action for Division II Limestone on Monday night. The Saints defeated Lincoln Memorial University 2-1 in Harrogate, TN. Jean earned the win after she played 98 minutes. It was her first win of the season. On April 1, Jean came on as a substitute for starter Katie Maher in a 1-0 loss to Queen’s University at Saints Field. Limestone is 5-2 overall, 4-2 in the South Atlantic Conference.

Brittany Daley: The Division III Greensboro College women’s soccer team defeated North Carolina Wesleyan 3-2 in the USA South Athletic Conference East Division Finals on Saturday. Daley played in her 41st career game for the Pride. Greensboro will face Pfeiffer for the USA South East Division Championship on Saturday.

Kayla Hodges: The Elon women’s soccer team defeated the College of Charleston 1-0 at Patriot’s Point Stadium in Mt. Pleasant, SC on Sunday. Hodges was one of six Elon players to play the entire match. The Phoenix is now 3-3 overall, 2-1 in the Colonial Athletic Conference. Elon will travel to William & Mary on Saturday.

Landon Riley: The Liberty baseball team defeated Wake Forest 8-4 on Wednesday at Worthington Field in Lynchburg, VA. Riley finished out the game with a scoreless ninth inning. He surrendered one hit and one walk. Liberty is now 4-1 against ACC teams. This was Riley 10th appearance in 2020. He still has not surrendered a run. In eleven innings, Riley has given up five hits and five walks with 12 strikeouts. Opponents are hitting .135 against him. The Flames are 18-8, 5-1 in the Atlantic Sun Conference. They will host Lipscomb for a three-game weekend series starting Friday.

Cooper Porter: The Pensacola State Junior College baseball team defeated Gulf Coast State College 4-3 on Wednesday night. Porter started in right field and finished 1-for-4 with a run scored. On Tuesday, Pensacola State defeated Gulf Coast 3-1 in Panama City, FL. Porter went 2-for-3 with a walk. In the last six games in which he’s played, Porter has had a base hit. (He sat out last weekend’s series against Northwest Florida State College) In 12 games, Porter has increased his average to .290. Pensacola State is 18-14, 8-3 in the Panhandle Conference.

Mia Davidson: The Mississippi State softball team rallied to defeat Central Arkansas 4-3 at Nusz Park in Starkville, MS on Wednesday. Davidson passed Will Clark in MSU baseball and softball history with her 62nd career home run in the fifth inning. Davidson needs only three more home runs to enter the SEC all-time top five. Davidson finished 2-for-4 with a double, putting her at 197 career hits. On Monday, Southeastern Louisiana defeated Mississippi State 6-4 in Hammond, LA. Davidson finished 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI against the Golden Lions.

Montana Davidson: Montana started at 3rd base for Mississippi State against Southeastern Louisiana and finished 0-for-3. She also started against Central Arkansas on Wednesday. Mississippi State’s weekend series against Tennessee has already been canceled because of COVID-19 protocols within the Volunteers program.

Jaden Hurdle: The Patrick Henry Community College softball team split a doubleheader against Pitt Community College in Winterville on Tuesday. Pitt captured the nightcap 5-3. In that game, Hurdle hit a solo homer for PHCC. She finished 2-for-3 with a double and the dinger. Hurdle also started in the Patriots’ 3-0 win over the Bruisers in the opener. She went 0-for-4. Hurdle is now hitting .390 with four home runs and 16 RBIs in 20 games. Patrick Henry is 9-13 overall, 4-4 in Region 10 of the National Junior College Athletic Association. This weekend, Patrick Henry will travel to Spartanburg Methodist for a Saturday doubleheader.

Bailey Lucas: The Division III Meredith College volleyball team swept Methodist in a senior day doubleheader at Weatherspoon Gym in Raleigh on Friday. Meredith took the first match 3-2 on scores of 20-25, 25-23, 26-24, 21-25 and 15-8. Lucas started and finished with two kills, 28 assists and seven digs. The Avenging Angels also won the second match 3-1 on scores of 22-25, 32-30, 25-15 and 25-20. In the final match, Lucas started and registered three kills, 24 assists and eight digs. Meredith is 7-4 overall, 4-2 in the USA South Athletic Conference. They wrap up the regular season with a trip to Mary Baldwin for a doubleheader on Sunday. Lucas leads the team with 263 assists. She is fourth on the squad with 82 digs.

Dylan Boyer: The #17 Queen’s University men’s lacrosse team lost to #20 Limestone 11-5 at Saints Field in Gaffney, S.C. on Wednesday night. Boyer, a freshman with the Royals, came in as a reserve and fired one shot. Queens is now 6-4 overall, 6-2 in the South Atlantic Conference.