Month: December 2021

DURHAM–It had been 724 days since Cedar Ridge women’s basketball’s last win. Anyone who followed the team knew that once they finally ended its losing streak, it would be a rich moment.

Once it arrived on Monday night, no one knew how dramatic or poetic it would be.

Senior guard Phoenix Smith knocked down a 3-foot baseline jumper off a feed from Julie Altieri with three seconds remaining to propel the Red Wolves past Northern Durham 45-44 at Poe Gymtorium on Monday night to end a 26-game losing streak. It was Cedar Ridge’s first win under new head coach Megan Skouby, a former University of Iowa center who joined the school last summer after serving as a coach at South Iredell.

Cedar Ridge’s last win came on December 12, 2019, when they defeated South Granville 44-29 in Hillsborough.

The Red Wolves, who led by ten points at the half, lost its lead in the final minute. Northern Durham (1-3) could have run out the clock to send the Red Wolves back to Hillsborough with another close loss, but the Knights were called for a 3-second violation with ten seconds remaining.

“All I told them was ‘you’ve got ten seconds. Push it and they’re either going to foul you or you’re going to get someone up the court,'” Skouby said. “They did great. Luckily, Julie was able to see the floor and she got up to Phoenix. Phoenix caught the ball, which was number one, and got that shot up. It went in.”

Last Tuesday, Cedar Ridge had a six-point lead against Voyager Academy with 1:05 remaining, but lost 36-35 in overtime. Three days later, the Red Wolves led East Chapel Hill 32-26 with 4:00 left, but the Wildcats scored the game’s final 13 points to win 39-32.

As painful as those near-misses were, it may have been worth it if Smith could be the hero once the elusive win finally came. Last season, the Red Wolves played several games with only five players when injuries and the pandemic left them without any substitutes. Knowing she would have to play all 32 minutes before the opening tip, Smith was out there as the team’s point guard ready to face insurmountable odds, along with Cierra Copeland, Cameron Copeland, Anjelica Carbajal and Bryn Booker.

Smith, a three-sport athlete, was one of three seniors on the Cedar Ridge volleyball team that just won the 3A State Championship.

“Phoenix works her but off every day for you,” Skouby said. “That’s all you can ask. She works hard. She was out there last year working hard. This year, she can go a little harder because she does have someone who can go in for her every so often if we need to, which is nice. She’s on the floor being aggressive.”

When Skouby took over as women’s basketball coach, her first obvious order of business was to increase the roster. She served as an assistant to Fiona Cunningham in volleyball, where juniors Julie Altieri and Grace Young agreed to join the team. Since August, she’s walked the hallways of Cedar Ridge looking to get people to go out for the team. She was so successful that she actually had to cut six players from the roster last month.

Altieri has been a starting guard for each of Cedar Ridge’s four games. Though she hasn’t played an organized basketball game since she was in seventh grade, Altieri leads the team with 10.7 points per game and 8.7 rebounds per game.

Young scored nine points against East Chapel Hill last Friday. It was the first time that she played in a basketball game since she was eight years old.

Cedar Ridge will start Central Carolina Conference play against Western Alamance tonight. It figures to be a tough league with Northwood (who reached the 3A Eastern Regional championship game last year), Eastern Alamance and Person leading the way.

But the losing streak that has permeated Red Wolves basketball for nearly two years is now a thing of the past.

In 2020, there were many local traditions that temporarily fell by the wayside because of the pandemic.

Locally, the Jim King/Orange Invitational Wrestling Tournament is a staple at Orange High School during the first weekend in December. Dating back to 1980, some of the best wrestling teams across central North Carolina journey to Hillsborough for the one-day tournament. But the only activity inside Orange’s gym last December was volleyball.

This year, the JKO returned with 13 teams. And Orange returned to the top of the standings.

Behind eleven wrestlers who placed in their respective weight classes, the Panthers finished first with 195 points to win the 40th JKO Invitational on Saturday afternoon. Cardinal Gibbons, who captured the 2019 championship, came in second with 154.5 points. Cary, which has won 21 JKO team championships, finished third with 148 points. Riverside finished with 115.5 points.

It was the tenth time that Orange won the JKO Invitational.

Three Panthers captured individual championships, all making their JKO debut. At 195 pounds, Acoya Isley pinned the top seed, Dylan Wall of Bartlett Yancey, in 4:36.

At 220 pounds, Orange’s top-seeded Elijah Acosta defeated Northwood’s Jake Dunning in the championship match.

At heavyweight, the Panthers Hugo Vazquez defeated Person’s Trevquan Gray 8-2 in the final match of the afternoon. Vazquez, who wrestled at Stanford, didn’t start in his eighth grade season for the Chargers. Three years later, he claimed his first tournament championship.

“It was good to have some first-year guys come through,” said Orange wresting coach Spenser Poteat. “We have some older guys and some younger guys in the lineup and it was refreshing to do this tournament after not having it last year.”

It was an impressive bounce back for Orange from the 2019 JKO, when not one Panther placed in a championship final for the first time in the history of the event. On Saturday, six Panthers reached the championships of their respective weight classes. Along with Vazquez, Acosta and Isley, Braden Crawford (126), Samuel Crawford (152) and Andre Hill (160) all finished in second place.

In the opening month of the season, Poteat and his staff has worked to develop a younger team that lost four wrestlers who qualified for the 3A State Championships last June. Among them was Kessel Summers at 120 pounds, who racked up 115 wins in his Orange career. Hayden Horne (who finished 4th in the state at 220 pounds), Matthew Smith-Breeden, and Henry Joubert-Stanzel also graduated last summer.

Of the three Orange grapplers who won individual championships, only Vazquez has started for Orange in his career. Vazquez competed at 220 pounds in the abbreviated 2021 season last summer.

Isley, who competed at Gravelly Hill Middle School, scored an immediate takedown against Wall in the championship match and used a vice-like grip to keep Wall from escaping. Isley recorded back points as the first period wound to a close to go ahead 6-2. In the second period, Isley started from the bottom and quickly gained a reversal to build an 11-3 lead. Isley finished him off with a pin.

“Acoya has continued to get better every week,” Poteat said. “He knows what our goals are he continues to work towards them.”

In the 220 championship, Dunning nearly got a takedown on Acosta in the early seconds, but Acosta escaped and gained Dunning’s back for the opening takedown. Dunning struggled to find an opening after Acosta quickly gained an escape point to start the third period. Acosta scored a double-leg takedown to take a 5-2 lead in the second. Acosta clamped on a waist lock to haul Dunning to the mat and eventually prevailed 12-5 for his first high school tournament championship.

The opening period of the heavyweight championship match went scoreless between Vazquez and Gray. After Gray gained an early escape point in the second period, Vazez hooked Gray’s arm and secured a trip takedown that led to back points and a 5-2 lead. Vazquez was fresher down the stretch as Gray couldn’t shoot in for a takedown.

“Hugo has come a long way,” Poteat said. “He’s worked hard and we enjoy having him lead this team as a junior.”

Orange’s Dillon Heffernan pinned Paul Vogel of Bartlett-Yancey in the 3rd place at 126 pounds match in 1:41. Heffernan opened the tournament pinning Vogel in the first round in 1:40 before losing to the eventual champion, Cardinal Gibbons’ Liam Hickey.

Orange’s Jared Hutchins finished 3rd at 132 pounds after pinning Northwood’s Aiden Vigus in 2:31. Hutchins reached the semifinals after he pinned Cameron Stokes of Bartlett Yancey in :28 seconds.

Kale Womble and Brendon Worsham finished fourth in their respective weight classes.

The Panthers will return to dual match mode on Wednesday when they face Cedar Ridge, Jordan-Matthews and Providence Grove in a quad match at Red Wolves Arena. The Panthers are tied with Northwood for 1st place in the Central Carolina Conference with a 3-0 record. Orange has defeated Person, Walter Williams and Western Alamance in the opening month of the season as they pursue its 18th conference championship in 19 years.

Photo by Gopack.com

Trenton Gill: The former Cedar Ridge punter was named first-team All-ACC last week following the Wolfpack’s win over North Carolina at Carter-Finley Stadium. Gill led the Atlantic Coast Conference in punting average for the second time in his career. He also led the league in punts placed inside the 20-yard line with 31, which is nine more than any other punter in the league. The Wolfpack, which is now ranked #18 in the Associated Press poll, accepted a bid to play in the Holiday Bowl on December 28 in San Diego. The Wolfpack will face UCLA at Petco Park. In the Wolfpack’s 34-30 win over UNC, Gill had five punts for an average of 37 yards. His longest was 54 yards. Two were downed inside the 20-yard line.

Keshawn Thompson: After leading the Campbell football team in tackles this season, Thompson was named to the All-Academic District III team by the College Sports Information Directors of America. Thompson, who is a graduate student working towards his MBA, led Campbell with 80 tackles in 2021.

Emerson Talley: The Lenoir-Rhyne women’s soccer team has reached the Final Four of the NCAA Division II Tournament. On Friday, the Bears defeated #18 Flagler 1-1, prevailing on penalty kicks 4-2 to win the Southeast Regional Championship for just the second time in school history. On Sunday, Lenoir-Rhyne advanced to the Final Four winning in penalties 4-3 over Florida Tech at UWF Soccer Complex in Pensacola, FL. It’s the first time ever that the Bears have reached the Final Four. Lenoir-Rhyne, which is now 12-5-5, will face #1 Grand Valley State at Weidner Field in Colorado Springs, Colorado on Thursday afternoon.

Braden Homsey: Homsey finished fourth at 197 pounds in the Arms Software Patriot Open at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia on Saturday. Homsey, competing for Division III Ferrum College, faced Division I opposition. Homsey opened with a 5-3 win over Azeem Bell of Rider University. He advanced to the quarterfinals with a Brock Del Signor of the Wolfpack Wrestling Club. The top seed, Cole Urbas of the University of Pennsylvania, defeated Homsey 16-1. Campbell University’s Levi Hopkins defeated Homsey 12-7 in the third place match. Homsey was the only wrestler from Ferrum College to place in the tournament.

Joey McMullin: The Sandhills Community College men’s basketball team defeated Patrick Henry Community College 95-77 in Pinehurst on Wednesday. McMullin came off the bench to play 14 minutes, where he compiled nine points, all from 3-point range. He was 3-of-4 from downtown and 3-of-9 from the field. He also had four rebounds. On Saturday, the Flyers defeated Caldwell Community College and Technical Institute 75-67 in Pinehurst. McMullin came off the bench to score six points and grab one rebound in 16 minutes. The Flyers, which are ranked #11 in Division III of the National Junior College Athletic Association, are now 7-4. Caldwell Community College came into the game undefeated. On November 23, Spartanburg Methodist defeated Sandhills 103-77. McMullin started for the Flyers and scored seven points and grabbed six rebounds. Sandhills will return to action tonight (Monday) to face the Pfeiffer junior varsity squad.

In his first appearance in the Jim King/Orange Invitational, Acoya Isley captured the 195-pound championship. On Saturday, Isley pinned Dylan Wall of Bartlett Yancey in 4:36 to win his first tournament championship at Orange. Isley starting wrestling in the 8th grade at Gravelly Hill Middle School. On Saturday, Isley started the tournament with a pinfall win over Chandler Baysdon of Wallace Rose Hill in 1:35. In the semifinals, Isley defeated Aspen Talbot of Cardinal Gibbons 11-5. Isley had a strong grip in the championship match that prevented Wall from getting an escape point and ultimately led to the pin. Isley’s victory helped Orange win the team championship as they finished with 195 points. Cardinal Gibbons finished 2nd with 154.5 points. This was Isley’s first appearance in the Jim King/Orange Invitational. Orange will continue its season with a quad meet at Cedar Ridge on Wednesday.

Just a few years ago when Hugo Vazquez was an 8th grader at Stanford Middle School, he wasn’t in the starting lineup for the Chargers. Now, Vazquez is the heavyweight champion of the Jim King Invitational. On Saturday, Vazquez defeated Person’s Trevquan Gray 8-2 to win the title at Orange High School. It was Vazquez’s first appearance in the Jim King/Orange Invitational. In the semifinals, Vazquez defeated the top-seed in the heavyweight tournament, Devon Thompson, in 3:39. In the opening round, Vazquez pinned Aidan Holton of Chatham Central in 54 seconds. Vazquez started this season by pinning Western Alamance’s David Day in 44 seconds. He also defeated Northwest Guilford’s Trey Tuggle in a sudden victory round 4-2. Vazquez will look to maintain his undefeated record on Wednesday when Orange faces Cedar Ridge and Jordan-Matthews in a quad meet. Orange will look to improve to 4-0 in the Central Carolina Conference having already beaten Western Alamance, Person and Walter Williams.

*Photo credit to Heather Bradsher*

In a game where every possession mattered and often ran in excess of 45 seconds, it was Cedar Ridge who came up with the big points in the most crucial moments.

Junior Kamil Harrison, in his third varsity game, drained six pressure free throws in the final :15.8 seconds as the Red Wolves held on to defeat East Chapel Hill 39-32 at Red Wolves Gymnasium on Friday night. After Harrison drained two charity tosses with :15 left, Red Wolves junior Neco Clark intercepted a pass by East’s Dillon McCafferty, which led to Harrison putting the game out of reach with two more free throws.

This win marks Cedar Ridge’s best start since the 2015-2016 season, which was the last time they reached the state playoffs.

Harrison and Grady Ray each had eleven points to lead the Red Wolves (2-1), while Colton Taylor added eight.

The Red Wolves ended a six-game losing streak to East Chapel Hill, beating the Wildcats for the first time since January 9, 2018.

“We try to practice pressure situations,” said Cedar Ridge coach Jaison Brooks. “You can’t replicate that in a gym. We shoot enough free throws (in practice) that we hope that in pays off. In this situation, it paid off.”

Both teams employed various zone defenses that stymied the other side for long stretches. After East’s James Riley scored on a one-handed runner with 3:53 remaining in the first quarter, the Wildcats had just one more field goal for the rest of the half. The Red Wolves finished the first quarter on a 10-3 run and took the lead for good off a reverse lay-up from Ray.

Cedar Ridge outscored the Wildcats 12-3 in the second quarter to take a 22-9 lead at halftime. Harrison and Colton Taylor both drained 3-pointers. All East (1-2) could muster in the second quarter was one free throw from Rashawn Stewart and a 15-footer from Martez Cotton, which beat the first half buzzer.

In the third quarter, it was the Red Wolves’ turn to suffer offensive frustration. Ray was the only Red Wolf to score in the stanza, but they were both 3-pointers. Stewart, who came off the bench to lead East with ten points, drained a 3-pointer to reduce Cedar Ridge’s lead 28-24.

Stewart opened the fourth quarter with a lay-in off a feed from Isaiah Styron. Martez Cotton forced a steal on the Red Wolves next possession, but the Wildcats missed a lay-in with a chance to tie. Neco Clark then slammed home a dunk in a rare transition basket to put the Red Wolves ahead 30-26.

Women’s Basketball: East Chapel Hill 38, Cedar Ridge 32

It has now been 722 days since the Cedar Ridge women’s basketball team won a game. That long dry spell is on the verge of ending, it’s only a question of when.

It appeared the answer to that question would be on Friday night, but for the second time this week the Red Wolves couldn’t hold on to a lead late.

Trailing 32-26 with 4:31 remaining, East Chapel Hill (2-1) finished the game on a 12-0 run to defeat Cedar Ridge 38-32. The Red Wolves led for most of the second half, but East’s Riley Ellis scored seven consecutive points to give the Wildcats the lead with 2:11 remaining in the fourth quarter.

Junior Julie Altieri led the Red Wolves with 12 points, but the Red Wolves only had three points in the fourth quarter. The only field goal came from freshman Kathryn Romska, who knocked down a wing jumper to put the Red Wolves ahead by six points.

Grace Young, in her first basketball game since she was six years old, scored ten points, including a 3-pointer in the third quarter that put the Red Wolves ahead. Cedar Ridge came back from an early 12-point deficit to take the lead in the second half.

Ellis and Abigail Stone led the Wildcats with 12 points each.

Cedar Ridge will travel to Northern Durham on Monday, then travel to Western Alamance for its Central Carolina Conference opener on Tuesday.

MEN’S GAME: CEDAR RIDGE 39, EAST CHAPEL HILL 32

EAST CHAPEL HILL–Dillon McCafferty 5, James Riley 8, Isaiah Styron 3, Martez Cotton 2, Thailand Evans 4, Rashawn Stewart 10.

CEDAR RIDGE–Colton Taylor 8, Garrett Ray 11, Cameron Harper 1, Neco Clark 6, Kamil Harrison 11, Hayden Kirk 2.

WOMEN’S GAME: EAST CHAPEL HILL 38, CEDAR RIDGE 32

EAST CHAPEL HILL–Riley Ellis 12, Fiona Park 4, Gabby Sielken 2, Abigail Stone 12, Lauren Steiner 8.

CEDAR RIDGE–Julie Altieri 12, Cameron Copeland 3, Phoenix Smith 5, Grace Young 10, Kathryn Romska 2.

For the first time since January 9, 2018, the Cedar Ridge men’s basketball team has defeated East Chapel Hill. The Red Wolves held on to defeat the Wildcats 39-32 at Red Wolves Arena. Needless to say, it was a defensive struggle with both teams employing various zone defenses. Cedar Ridge held the Wildcats to just one field goal in the final 11:30 of the first half and led 21-9 at halftime. Garrett Ray and Kamil Harrison both finished with 11 points for Cedar Ridge. Ray sank three 3-pointers, including two in the third quarter that accounted for all of the Red Wolves points. With Cedar Ridge clinging on to a 33-32 lead, Harrison hit six consecutive free throws in the final 30 seconds. It was only the third varsity game for Harrison, who came away with a career-high in points. Cedar Ridge finished the opening week of the regular season 2-1.They will have a three-game week starting on Monday with a road trip to another former conference rival, Northern Durham. Cedar Ridge will travel to Western Alamance for its Central Carolina Conference opener on Tuesday, then return home to face Person next Friday.