Month: October 2022

This was supposed to be a rebuilding year.

When Orange women’s tennis coach Justin Webb held his first practice under a sweltering sun on August 1, eight players showed up. Only one of them was among his top six singles players from the 2021 squad, which was the first team in school history to win a match in the State Dual Playoffs.

Ten weeks later, Webb can say with certainty that eight was enough.

Last Thursday, the Lady Panthers defeated Eastern Alamance 8-1 to persevere a share of the Central Carolina Conference championship. Orange became the first team, men’s or women’s, to win a conference championship in tennis in the 61-year history of the school.

At the very least, Orange and Walter Williams will tie for the conference championship. Orange finished its conference slate 11-1. Williams still has dual matches against Eastern Alamance and Person this week. The Central Carolina Conference singles and doubles tournament begins on Friday at the Burlington Tennis Center.

Orange is now guaranteed a spot in the 3A State Dual Team Tournament, which will start next Wednesday. In terms of wins, it is already the most successful tennis team in school history with an 18-2 overall record following Monday’s win over Riverside, which concluded the regular season.

When Webb is asked whether he anticipated this group being Orange’s first conference championship team in tennis, his answer starts with a chuckle.

“If I’m being honest, it was not something that I predicted,” Webb said. “But I have to give it to the girls. We’ve been about seven or eight players deep throughout most of the season. Our group of girls has stayed committed. They’ve worked hard every day.”

Junior Erin Sollars and her younger sister Shannon have filled the top two singes slots most of the season. The Sollars’ sisters are also Orange’s top doubles team. In Orange’s 5-4 win over Williams on September 27, the Sollars sisters won 9-7 and clinched the dual match. Overall, the Sollars sisters are 14-2 in doubles play.

Shannon Sollars has a 12-5 singles record.

In order for Orange to have a successful season, several first-time starters would need a strong campaign. That’s where the emergence of senior Madelyn Horn has been so valuable. Horn, in her first year as a regular player, compiled a 27-4 overall record. She was 18-2 in singles matches. Horn and doubles partner Grace Allred are 6-0.

Junior Makayla Davis, another first year starter, went 10-7 in singles matches. Along with partner Isabel Jones, she compiled a 10-3 doubles mark.

At a time when multi-sport athletes have become scarce, Webb has a roster full of women who compete year around. Among his top singles players is Sydney Rogers, who frequently spends her early evenings going directly from tennis practice to football practice, where she is the kicker for head football coach DeVante Pettiford. In August, Rogers became the first female to score a point in Orange High football history.

This year, Rogers was 14-0 in singles matches. Including doubles play, she has 21 overall wins.

Two other singles players, Isabel Jones and Katelyn Van Mater, both play soccer. Along with Rogers, Jones and Van Mater helped the Orange women’s soccer team to its deepest run in the state playoffs ever last spring. They reached the third round after beating Harnett Central in Angier, followed by a victory over Cape Fear in Fayetteville.

Van Mater has also been a regular rotation player in basketball for Orange coach B.J. Condron since her freshman year. Last winter, the Orange women’s basketball team was the only hardwood squad from Hillsborough to reach the state playoffs.

“This is a special group of girls,” Webb said. “These girls don’t get tired. One of the things that I’ve never had to do was coach effort. These girls have gone out all season and competed extremely hard. That’s what has made it special. These are all competitors. They’re all winners in other sports, as well as tennis, now. They have this mentality about them that they want to go out there and win every match.”

After Orange defeated Eastern Alamance last week to take a share of the title, Webb called Andy Brown, the former Orange High Athletic Director and men’s basketball coach who also coached men’s and women’s tennis in his final years before retirement.

Webb coached the men’s team while Brown coached the women’s team before Webb replaced him.

“He’s been a good friend and a good mentor,” Webb said. “He started a good foundation at Orange before I arrived. He really started the foundation for this championship.”

The free-flowing, shots from all angles melee that was the opening leg of the Hillsborough Derby between Orange and Cedar Ridge last month bore little resemblance to what unfolded on Monday night at Cedar Ridge Stadium.

The centerback tandems for each team largely dictated the pace of play and, in Cedar Ridge’s case, the scoring. But it was Orange senior Tyler Mann who factored in the most, scoring two goals in the second half to lead the Panthers past Cedar Ridge 4-1. It secured Orange’s first regular season sweep of its crosstown rivals since 2017.

“You have to give Cedar Ridge credit,” said Orange coach Palmer Bowman. “They were more physical than us and they wanted the ball more. They just had a couple of bounces not go their way, but they dominated the first half.”

Senior Issac Anderson notched the only Red Wolves goal with 16:21 remaining in the second half off a corner kick by Illiah Babchenko. Anderson, a centerback who shares the defensive backfield with sophomore Solomon Hernandez, helped the Red Wolves control the possession early. Orange didn’t get a shot off in the opening ten minutes.

“You have to remain positive,” said Cedar Ridge coach Chauncey Brummel following a lengthy postgame meeting with his team. “We let them know that the rest of the season is up to them. It’s up to them how we want to end this season. I think you just keep going. We have a lot of seniors on this team and I asked them to step up. We have to put this game behind us.”

Orange’s (7-8, 4-4 in the Central Carolina Conference) centerback duo of senior Darius Corbett and Tucker Gaddy broke up numerous Cedar Ridge scoring opportunities as both teams struggled to generate offense after kickoff. With 14:57 remaining in the first half, Orange’s Traver Bruhns intercepted a pass on Orange’s attacking end. Senior Cooper Wheelis found classmate Bryan Membreno, who unleashed a rocket from 28 yards away that curled into the upper right corner of the night past Cedar Ridge goalkeeper Erik Galunasnas for the opening goal.

Cedar Ridge (4-12-1, 2-7) had its best first half chance when Justin Murillo took a lead pass and was in a leg race with Corbett in an attempt to break away. Corbett beat Murillo to the ball and cleared it across the end line. On the subsequent corner kick, a header by Hernandez sailed over the crossbar.

“In the second half, we had more possession time,” Bowman said. “We’re fortunate to have Darius and Tucker. They give us great comfort back there.”

With 25:20 remaining in the second half, Cooper Zinn took a free kick 45 yards from net following a Cedar Ridge foul. Zinn arched a gorgeous ball to Mann, who sent a worm burner into the net for the first insurance goal.

After Anderson’s marker reduced Orange’s lead to 2-1, the Red Wolves had numerous chances to tie the game. Mendez locked up with Corbett in transition once again off a pass from Murillo, but Mendez was off balance and his shot went high.

On Orange’s final corner kick of the night, a ball sent In by senior Cooper Zinn skipped off the head of teammate Dylan Silverman away from net. Sophomore Eben Petrides, free off the left flank, pounced on the rebound and fired a line drive from 14 yards away for his first varsity goal with 19:45 remaining to increase the Panthers’ lead to 3-1.

Mann, who has a team-high seven goals this season, added his second goal off an assist from Zinn with 4:00 remaining.

Now Orange will spent the final two weeks of the regular season with its biggest games in six years, which was the last time they made the state playoffs. On Wednesday, the Panthers will host Person. Next Monday, they will commemorate Senior Night against Eastern Alamance.

Orange will go into the Person game with a MaxPreps ranking of #24 in the 3A East. 32 teams in the East Region will make the 3A State Playoffs.

“It’s not about me playing,” Bowman said. “It’s about these guys and just trying to get them to take advantage of the moment and enjoy the moment.”

This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is senior volleyball outside hitter Anaya Carter. The daughter of Brian and Tenesha Carter, Anaya has been a member of the Cedar Ridge volleyball team for the past four years. She grew up childhood friends with many of her Red Wolf teammates. Together, they have captured three conference championships, an Eastern Regional championship and the 2021 3A State Championship. This season, Carter has 52 kills and a career-high 67 digs. Recently, Cater announced her intentions to play volleyball at UNC Pembroke. In addition to volleyball, Carter has played softball for coach Allen Byrd. Last season, Carter hit .333 in 22 games. She had 24 hits. Carter’s older sister, Tionna, was a member of a conference championship team with Cedar Ridge volleyball. Carter will continue her senior season on Tuesday night when the Red Wolves travel to Burlington to face Walter Williams. 

Last Thursday night, Cedar Ridge High School celebrated the most successful senior class, in any sport, in the school’s 20-year history. The six seniors that make up the Cedar Ridge volleyball class were honored during a pregame ceremony before its match against Western Alamance. Among those honored were Isabelle Sheppard and Lauren Cecil. Together, Cecil and Sheppard have been a part of two regular season championships, a Central Carolina Conference tournament championship, an 3A Eastern Regional championship and the 3A State Championship in 2021. Cecil and Sheppard got to walk under the spotlight at Reynolds Coliseum in Raleigh before the state championship match against North Iredell. Against Western Alamance last week, both Sheppard and Cecil played extensively. The Red Wolves will go for its third straight conference championship when they face crosstown rival Orange on Wednesday night at Red Wolves Gymnasium. 

Lottie Scully: The Binghamton volleyball team dropped its first match in American East Conference play with a 3-2 loss to Maryland-Baltimore County on October 5. The Retrievers won on a score of 15-25, 26-24, 14-25, 25-22 and 15-12. Scully, a freshman, tied for season-high with five kills. She also had 43 assists, which was another season-high, with eleven digs and one ace. On Sunday, the Bearcats bounced back and defeated the New Jersey Institute of Technology 3-0 on scores of 25-22, 25-17 and 25-20. Scully had 29 assists, one ace and nine digs. Binghamton is 11-5 overall, 2-1 in the American East Conference.

Avery Miller: The Pitt Community College volleyball team had three matches over the past week. On October 3, the Fayetteville Technical Community College defeated the Bulldogs 3-1 (25-20, 24-26, 25-23, 25-19). In four sets, Miller had eight kills and five digs. On Friday, Pitt CC bounced back to defeat USC Sumter 3-0 (25-17, 25-16 and 25-15). Miller played two sets and had three kills and two digs. Pitt Community College is 9-8 overall, 1-8 in Region X of the NJCAA.

Bryse WIlson: Wilson officially ended his season with the Pittsburgh Pirates in an 8-7 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals at PNC Park on October 4. After the longest stint of his Major League career in his prior appearance, Wilson came out of the bullpen in his last game of the year. He threw three-and-one-thirds innings and gave up three runs on three hits. Wilson had one strikeouts with two walks. Wilson ends the year with a 3-9 record and a 5.52 ERA. He had 79 strikeouts with 32 walks.

Trenton Gill: Facing the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday, Gill found himself involved in several special teams situations punting for the Chicago Bears. He had two punts for an average of 56 yards with one touchback. He was also the holder for placekicker Cairo Santos’ three field goals, including a 51-yarder. Minnesota defeated the Bears 29-22 at U.S. Bank Stadium. Through five games, Gill is seventh in the National Football League with an average of 49.2 yards per punt. He has had six punts downed inside the 20-yard line.

Payton Wilson: For the second game in a row, Wilson amassed ten tackles for the #14 N.C. State football team in its come-from behind win over Florida State on Saturday night at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh. Wilson finished with ten tackles, including one-half of a tackle for loss. The Wolfpack prevailed 19-17 for its 14th straight home win. It was the first time in program history that N.C. State defeated Florida State three straight times.

Keshawn Thompson: The Campbell football team defeated Charleston Southern 34-28 in its Big South opener on Saturday at Barker-Lane Stadium in Buies Creek. Thompson finished with two tackles. It was the final Big South opener for Campbell, who will move to the Colonial Athletic Association next season. The Camels are 3-2, 1-0 in the Big South.

Darius Satterfield: Satterfield suited up for Elizabeth City State in its 49-0 loss to Virginia Union at Hovey Field in Richmond, VA on Saturday. The Vikings are 1-5, 1-3 in the CIAA.

Braxton Mergenthal: Mergenthal made one tackle for Hampden-Sydney in its 35-14 win over Ferrum College at W.B. Adams Stadium in Ferrum. The Tigers improved to 2-3 overall, 1-1 in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. Hampden-Sydney will host Averett University on Saturday.

Ivy Garner: The Liberty women’s soccer team shut out Queen’s University 2-0 at Osborne Stadium in Lynchburg, VA on Sunday. Garner started for the Flames at midfield and played 50 minutes. Liberty remains in first place in the Atlantic Sun Conference with a 6-0-1 record. They are 10-3-2 overall.

Emerson Talley: The Division II Lenoir-Rhyne women’s soccer team defeated Emory & Henry 7-0 at Moretz Sports Complex in Hickory on October 5. Talley played 38 minutes for the Bears and fired two shots. Lenoir-Rhyne is in first place in the South Atlantic Conference with a mark of 6-0-2. They are 7-2-3 overall.

This week’s Orange Panther of the Week is senior goalkeeper Connor McMurtry. On September 23, McMurtry made some crucial saves as the Panthers defeated Southern Durham 5-3 at Spartans Stadium. With Orange leading 4-2 at halftime, McMurtry made four big diving saves to keep the Panthers ahead and ultimately preserve an important nonconference win against the leaders of the Northern Lakes Conference. Three nights later, McMurtry was in net as Orange defeated Graham 3-0. It was the Panthers fifth straight win, its longest winning streak since 2016. McMurtry was the winning goalkeeper in the Panthers 4-3 win over Northwood on September 21. At the beginning of the season, McMurtry had a clean sheet as the Panthers defeated Knightdale 1-0 at WakeMed Soccer Park for its first win of the season. Orange will enter a crucial week next week to face Cedar Ridge on Monday, followed by a home game against Person. Orange is currently ranked #26 in the MaxPreps 3A East Region, meaning they’re fighting for its first birth in the state playoffs since 2016.