Month: May 2023

How far has Orange lacrosse come in four years?

In 2019, the Panthers won its first state playoff game under head coach Chandler Zirkle, beating Northside-Jacksonville 17-13. It didn’t hurt that the Monarchs had a defenseman throw the ball into his own empty net in the first quarter. Even Zirkle admitted it took a good draw to beat the Monarchs in Jacksonville, but it was the second playoff win in school history.

Fast forward to 2023 and you see what a program looks like. Playoff wins aren’t a novelty in Hillsborough anymore. They’re excuses to give junior varsity players a chance to play in the second half because the Panthers have a 10-1 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Since that win over the Monarchs, the Panthers have won three conference championships, reeled off 28 consecutive conference wins, captured six more state playoff games and hosted the 3A/2A/1A Eastern Regional Championship game last May.

That latter fact will be a point of discussion during the next 48 hours, because the same First Flight squad that frustrated the Panthers defensively last year will be back on Tuesday night for the third round of the 2023 3A/2A/1A State Playoffs. Some of the players who struck it big for the Nighthawks last year won’t be back for one reason or another, but the Panthers know what to expect now that the expectations around the program, both within and abroad, have changed dramatically.

On Thursday night at Auman Stadium, Orange rolled past Eastern Alamance 16-6 at Auman Stadium in the second round of the 3A/2A/1A State Playoffs. Senior Tigh Metheny, who committed to play at Catawba College two weeks ago, scored a hat trick as the Panthers won its ninth straight home game.

Eastern Alamance defeated J.F. Webb 11-5 in Oxford during the opening round on May 3 to advance to the second round. The Eagles, who end the season 8-11, g0t two goals from Dalton Helton.

Josh Crabtree scored the opening goal off an assist from Connor Kruse to open the game. After Helton tied it off an assist from Brett Hupman, the Panthers reeled off eleven consecutive goals to put the game away. It was the Panthers’ third win over the Eagles this season.

A welcome sight for Orange was the return of senior midfielder Jake Wimsatt, who played in his first game since early March. Wimsatt, a key to Orange’s face-off success for the past three years, missed most of the season with an injured MCL. Wimsatt scored Orange’s ninth goal on a sidearm shot assisted by Metheny. While Wimsatt didn’t take any face-offs against the Eagles, his experience will be valuable as the Panthers try to reach the state championship game for the first time in school history.

Metheny started Orange’s long run with a goal assisted by freshman Matthew Macneir, who scooped the face-off clean and sent it to the veteran Orange attacker. Crabtree followed with his second goal. Senior Joe Cady and sophomore Luke Nevius each finished with two goals. Gray Crabtree, freshman Brandon Williams, Brett Clark, and Josh Cowan each tallied one goal.

Kruse added on to his team-leading scoring total in the third period. Kruse, Orange’s all-time leading scorer, finished with five points. That increases his school-record total to 313 points.

Nick Cardone, a defenseman, got a rare assist on Metheny’s second goal in the first quarter. Junior Katie Wolter made three saves but she didn’t play after the first quarter. Sophomore Carson Latta and junior Parker Christie-Pohl played the rest of the game.

Of the seven other teams remaining in the East Region, Orange has beaten two of them. First Flight is a team that Orange has yet to conquer. The Nighthawks defeated Western Alamance 12-11 on Friday night in Elon.

The Nighthawks and the Panthers will face-off at Auman Stadium on Tuesday night at 6 PM.

Photo courtesy of GoPack.com. 

Jamar Davis: Five years after Davis participated in the Penn Relays as a senior at Orange High School, he returned as a senior at N.C. State last month. Davis won the gold medal in the long jump. He finished at 7.42 meters. That was ahead of the runner-up, Louis Gordon of Albany, who came in at 7.40 meters. Davis finished fifth in the triple jump with his best leap at 15.49 meters. Clarence Foote-Talley of Ohio State won the championship at 16.71 meters.

Jaylin Jones: The Division III Pfeiffer men’s lacrosse team won the USA South Conference championship on Saturday at Lefko Field in Misenheimer. The Falcons, who won the regular season championship, defeated Southern Virginia 12-9. Jones had one ground ball and created one turnover. In the opening round, Pfeiffer blasted Methodist 23-3. Jones started at midfield and had one ground ball. Jones is a graduate student who has played for the Falcons program for five seasons. On Sunday night, the field for the NCAA Division III Tournament was released. Pfeiffer will face Centre College in Danville, KY on Wednesday. Pfeiffer defeated Centre College 14-13 on March 23.

Cy Horner: Horner completed his sophomore season with Methodist in the loss to Pfeiffer. The Monarchs defeated LaGrange College 24-16 in the opening round of the USA South Tournament on Tuesday. Horner scored one goal and one assist on six shots. Against Pfeiffer, Horner had three shots. This season, Horner started 17 games. He scored 15 goals and had 21 assists. Methodist ended the year 7-10 overall, 4-4 in the USA South.

Chase Finley: Division II Shorter College ended its season with a loss to the University of Montevallo 26-8 in the opening round of the Peach Belt Conference Tournament in St. Augustine, FL. Finley, a former Cedar Ridge goalkeeper, started and made nine saves. He also surrendered nine goals. Shorter ends the season 3-12.

Bryse Wilson: Wilson continues to come out of the bullpen for the Milwaukee Brewers. On Friday, Wilson threw one inning as the San Francisco Giants defeated the Brewers 6-3 at Oracle Park. Wilson threw a scoreless inning in the seventh with two walks and a strikeout. On April 29, Wilson threw two-thirds-of-an-inning against the Los Angeles Angels. He allowed two runs off two hits. The Brewers won 7-5.

Joey Berini: The East Carolina baseball team completed a weekend sweep of Cincinnati at UC Baseball Stadium. On Friday, the Pirates defeated the Bearcats 9-3. Berini knocked in the final run of the game with a sacrifice bunt in the ninth inning. He finished 0-for-5. On Saturday, the Pirates won 11-3. Berini went 3-for-5 with a run scored. The Pirates won 6-5 in ten innings on Sunday. Berini went 0-for-4. On Tuesday, North Carolina held off East Carolina 2-1. Berini started at shortstop.

Dante DeFranco: The Charlotte 49ers baseball team defeated #7 Coastal Carolina 7-3 at Springs Brooks Stadium in Conway, SC on May 2. DeFranco went 3-for-5 with an RBI double.

Phillip Berger: The Division III William Peace University baseball team has reached the USA South Baseball championship game in Rocky Mount. On Sunday, the Pacers defeated Brevard College 15-14 in Fayetteville in the USA South Baseball Tournament. On Friday, Brevard defeated William Peace 5-2. Berger threw nine innings in a no decision. He struck out a career-high 14 batters. He allowed two runs off seven hits and zero walks. The Pacers will face North Carolina Wesleyan in Rocky Mount on Friday. The winner advances to the NCAA Division III Tournament.

Davis Horton: The season of the Rockingham Community College baseball team ended over the weekend in the Region X Tournament. Surry Community College defeated the Eagles 8-7 on Friday. Horton started as catcher and went 0-for-5. Caldwell Tech defeated Rockingham 9-1 on Friday. Horton started at first base. On Thursday, Rockingham defeated Virginia Peninsula Community College 13-3. Horton finished 1-for-4. This season, Horton hit .262 with one home run. He was second on the team with 24 RBIs.

Cooper Porter: The season of Pensacola State ended in the National Junior College Athletic Association South Atlantic District Baseball Championships. Miami Dade College defeated the Pirates 6-0 on Sunday. Porter, a sophomore, played eleven games this season. He hit .154 with one RBI. Porter didn’t play in a game after February 18.

This week’s Orange Panther of the Week is junior lacrosse midfielder Connor Kruse. This season, Kruse has continued to cement his status as the greatest lacrosse player in school history. He is the leading scorer for an Orange team that has won the Mid-Carolina Conference championship for the third straight season. Kruse holds the all-time school record with 165 goals and 313 points. This season, Kruse has scored 64 goals. Last year, he amassed 77 goals as the Panthers had its most successful season in school history, reaching the 3A/2A/1A Eastern Regional Championship game for the first time. This season, Kruse has 13 hat tricks. That includes four goals in the regular season finale against Bishop McGuinness at Auman Stadium, where Orange won 10-9 on April 24. His season-high came against Carrboro, where the Panthers won 15-5. Kruse had six goals and five assists. Kruse started the season with five goals against Green Level on February 27. The son of Travis Kruse, who played lacrosse at North Carolina and Johns Hopkins, Connor will continue to lead Orange lacrosse this week in the 3A/2A/1A State Playoffs. On Tuesday night, Orange will face First Flight at Auman Stadium in the third round. Last season, First Flight defeated Orange in the state semifinals.

Orange Panther of the Week: Connor Kruse

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BURLINGTON–The most decorated tennis player in Cedar Ridge history will return to the 3A State Tournament one more time.

On Saturday, senior Josh Mayhew reached the final of the Mideast Regionals at the Burlington Tennis Center. It was the third straight year that Mayhew reached a regional final. In the semifinals on Saturday morning, Mayhew defeated Jayden Pham of Terry Sanford 6-1, 6-2 to reach the final.

In the opening round on Friday afternoon, Mayhew defeated Bryce Pittman of Northern Nash 6-1, 6-0. In the second round with a spot at the state championships on the line, Mayhew upended Zac Blizzard of the Durham School of the Arts 6-1, 6-0.

In the regional final match on Saturday, Drew Hedgecoe of Terry Sanford defeated Mayhew 6-0, 6-1. It was the second straight year that Hedgecoe and Mayhew met in the regional final. Hedgecoe, the defending 3A State Champion, also met Mayhew in the 3A State Championship match last May in the Piedmont Indoor Tennis Center in Greensboro.

Mayhew is the first Cedar Ridge tennis player in history to reach the state tournament three different times. He is only the second player in school history to reach the state singles final. In 2010, Jerry Newburg reached the 2A final, where he lost to Ethan Caudell of St. Pauls 7-5, 6-0.

After losing virtually his entire freshman season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Mayhew quickly broke new ground for men’s tennis at Cedar Ridge. With his father Steve Mayhew, a former Orange High tennis player, as head coach, Mayhew reached the Mideast Regional final after beating Chapel Hill’s Eddy Ferreira 6-2, 6-2. In his sophomore season, Mayhew went 15-3. All three of his losses came against the same player, Chapel Hill’s Dennis Perumov. Mayhew became the first Cedar Ridge player to reach the state singles final of a 3A event, where he faced Perumov. In the state semifinals, Mayhew bounced Marvin Ridge’s Soham Pradhan 6-2, 6-4.

As a junior, Mayhew was the Central Carolina Conference Player of the Year. He led the Red Wolves to the CCC Conference Championship, where they face Carrboro in the 3A State Dual Team Tournament in the opening round. Mayhew reached the final of the 3A Mideast Regionals. In the opening round of the 2022 regionals, Mayhew defeated Luke O’Donnell of Franklinton 6-1, 6-0. In the quarterfinals, Mayhew defeated Pham 6-2, 6-2. In the semifinals, Mayhew rolled past Jacob Womble of Lee County to reach the finals.

In the 2022 3A State Tournament in Greensboro, Mayhew won over Ajay Swisher of St. Stephens 6-0, 6-1. In the opening round of the 3A State Tournament, Mayhew knocked off J.J. Werner of First Flight 6-0, 6-2. In the quarterfinals, Mayhew advanced beating Shiv Patel of South Point 6-0, 6-2.

Mayhew is only the third player ever from Hillsborough to play for a state singles championship. He is the first one to do it multiple times. The only player from Orange High to ever accomplish that feat was Britton Webb in the 2006 2A final. Will Rollinson of Cardinal Gibbons defeated Webb 6-2, 2-6, 6-3.

Last week, Mayhew was named the Central Carolina Conference Player of the Year for the second year in a row. Last fall, he officially signed to play at Belmont-Abbey College in Belmont. He will start next fall.

Last summer, Mayhew was named Best Tennis Player at the HighSchoolOT.com Honors in Raleigh. He is up for that same honor once again this year.

Next weekend, Mayhew will have one more trip to the 3A State Tournament, which is slated to be played at the Burlington Tennis Center once again. He will start in the round of 16. The semifinals and the championship match are scheduled for Saturday.

Mayhew’s sister, Cameron, also plays at Cedar Ridge. Josh is a regular at her matches during the fall whenever he’s away from his relentless training schedule.

Tori Dalehite: The UNC Greensboro softball team captured its sixth straight Southern Conference championship with a win over Western Carolina on Saturday at UNCG Softball Stadium. The Spartans defeated the Catamounts 8-0 in six innings on Saturday. Dalehite entered the game as a pinch runner and had an at-bat as a designated player. Dalehite started in right field in the Spartans 3-0 loss to Charlotte on Wednesday. Dalehite started in right field in both games of a doubleheader against Mercer on April 29 at Sikes Field in Macon, GA. The Spartans swept the doubleheader. Against Chattanooga on April 23, Dalehite went 1-for-4 with a double in a 10-2 Spartans win. Dalehite went 1-for-2 with a double in a 1-0 win over the Mocs in Greensboro. UNCG will be the top-seed in next week’s Southern Conference Tournament at Frost Stadium in Chattanooga, TN starting Wednesday.

Takia Nichols: The North Carolina Central softball team concluded the regular season by splitting a doubleheader against Western Carolina at Catamount Softball Complex in Cullowhee. Western Carolina won the opening game 9-2. Nichols went 2-for-4 with a double. In the second game, the Eagles won 7-5, which included Nichols hitting a solo homer in the second inning. It was her team-high seventh home run of the season. Nichols finished 2-for-4 with two RBIs in her final regular season game of her freshman season. She ends the regular season with a .336 batting average, which is second on the team. She leads the team with seven home runs and 28 RBIs. She also has a team-high 23 walks. Central finished the regular season 15-32, 12-7 in the MEAC. The Eagles will be the #3 seed in the MEAC Tournament. They will open against Maryland Eastern Shore on Wednesday morning at 9AM at Norfolk State.

Mary Moss Wirt: The Elon softball team completed its regular season this weekend by sweeping North Carolina A&t in Greensboro. Wirt played as a pinch-hitter in the final game of a doubleheader on Saturday, which the Phoenix won 12-4. Wirt also played as a reserve catcher in the opening game of the twinbill, a 9-0 Elon win. She played as a pinch-hitter and drew a walk in Elon’s 8-0 win over the College of Charleston on April 29 at Hunt Softball Park in Elon. Elon is 22-24 overall, 15-7 in the Colonial Athletic Association. The Phoenix are the #4 seed in the CAA Tournament and will open play on Wednesday against either Towson or North Carolina A&T in Hempsted, NY.

Lauren Jackson: The Lenoir-Rhyne softball team was eliminated by Lincoln Memorial in the South Atlantic Conference Tournament in Hickory last weekend. The Bears defeated Catawba 11-5. Jackson went 1-for-4 with an RBI groundout in the first inning. In the second game, Lincoln Memorial won 4-1. Jackson scored the Bears’ only run with a solo homer in the sixth. Lenoir-Rhyne will now await to see if they make the NCAA Division II Tournament. Jackson, a freshman, hit .343 in 40 games this season. She started 33. She hit two home runs and 22 RBIs.

Jaden Hurdle: The Catawba Indians softball team had its season end with the loss to Lenoir-Rhyne in the SAC Tournament. In her first season with Catawba, Hurdle played in three games. The Indians finished 26-19.

Ava Lowry: The Division III North Carolina Wesleyan softball team ended its season in the USA South Conference Tournament with a 4-3 loss to Mary Baldwin in Greensboro. Methodist defeated the Battlin’ Bishops 1-0 in an elimination game. Against the Monarchs, Lowry went 2-for-3. North Carolina Wesleyan finished 27-15. Lowry hit .351 with two home runs and 15 RBIs in her freshman season.

Olivia Aitkin: Playing at Division III Amherst University, Aitkin played right field in the Mammoths 1-0 win over Colby College in the opening game of a doubleheader in Waterville, ME on Saturday. Aitkin also was a pinch-runner in an 8-4 win over Hamilton College at Amherst Softball Field on April 22. Amherst is 24-12, 12-6 in the New England Small College Athletic Conference. The Mammoths will start their conference tournament on Friday in Medford, MA.

Grace Andrews: The Catawba Valley Community College softball team reached the championship game of the Region X Tournament at Louisburg College. On Saturday, Louisburg defeated the Red Hawks 9-0. Earlier in the day, Catawba Valley defeated Cleveland Community College 3-1 in another elimination game. To open the Region X Tournament, Catawba Valley swept a best-of-three series from Fayetteville Technical Community College. In an 12-1 win on Monday in game one, Andrews started as catcher and went 0-for-1 with a walk. Catawba Valley ends the year 44-8. Andrews, in her third season at Catawba Valley, played in 48 games this season. She hit .413 with one home run and 26 RBIs.

Connor Nordan had his first grand slam since middle school at the right time on Thursday night. It came in the Central Carolina Conference Tournament championship game, where Orange defeated Walter Williams 9-4 in Hillsborough. Nordan had a team-high 36 RBIs this season and is third on the team with 26 hits. Nordan’s grand slam in the first inning erased an early 3-0 deficit for the Panthers. Catcher Ryan Honeycutt finished 3-for-4 with a double. Honeycutt has alternated between catcher and designated hitter this season and is hitting .297 on his first full season at the varsity level. Orange is now 22-2 as it awaits its seeding for the 3A State Playoffs, which will be released on Monday by the North Carolina High School Athletic Association. The Panthers are currently seeded #2 in the 3A East Region. They will open at home on Tuesday night in the state playoffs against an opponent to be determined. The Panther senior class, which Nordan is a part of, has now won 52 games over the past four years. They have won four championships, including the tournament title on Thursday.

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Connor Nordan had his first grand slam since middle school at the right time on Thursday night. It came in the Central Carolina Conference Tournament championship game, where Orange defeated Walter Williams 9-4 in Hillsborough. Nordan had a team-high 36 RBIs this season and is third on the team with 26 hits.

In the two-game series between Orange and Williams back in March, the two teams split 1-0 victories.

In Burlington on March 21, the Bulldogs prevailed after pitcher Nate Billings threw a two-hitter. Just one Orange batter reached third base.

Three days later, Orange prevailed when the only run scored off a dropped ball in left field. Again, the Panthers were held to two hits, this time in victory.

So when Orange and Walter Williams met for the Central Carolina Conference  Tournament championship on Thursday night in Hillsborough, there was every reason to think the final score would resemble your average soccer game. Especially with Billings starting for Williams.

A funny thing happened on the way to the pitcher’s dual. A slow-pitch softball game broke out.

Despite no noticeable wind, the two teams combined for four home runs in the first two innings. There were 13 overall runs in the opening three innings–only to have both teams go scoreless in the final four frames.

Orange finished with ten hits, its third-highest total of the season, and didn’t trail again after senior Connor Nordan belted a grand slam in the first inning. Senior Ryan Hench put the Panthers ahead for good with a two-run blast in the second as Orange defeated Williams 9-4 to win the CCC Tournament title on Thursday night at Orange High Field.

Orange (22-2) will go into the 3A State Tournament on a 15-game winning streak. While conference tournaments weren’t contested during Orange’s years in the Big 8 Conference and the Carolina 6 (ranging from 2010-2021), this is still the Panthers first conference tournament title since 2006 when they were a 2A team playing in the Mid-State Conference.

With the state tournament still to come, Orange has already won more games than all but three squads in school history dating back to 1987.

The 2008 team, which won the 2A State Championship, holds the school record with a 27-3 record.

Orange’s journey to the tournament title was no joyride. The vehicle they traveled in didn’t arrive at the finish line safely in a pretty and well-defined body on the exterior. Instead, there were bumps and unexpected turns along the way, along with the best power-hitting catcher Orange has faced this season.

Williams had 13 hits, the most conceded by the Panthers in 2023.

Orange won three games in three days, including a victory over crosstown rival Cedar Ridge in the semifinals on Wednesday night that grew heated after a Hench home run in the sixth inning led to angry words being exchanged between opposing players, coaches and fans.

“We saw some adversity last night,” said Orange coach Jason Knapp. “We dealt with some adversity from the opposing dugout and opposing fans. I thought last night made us better. Our hats are off to that team across town that made us better. They made us better going into tonight and moving into next week.”

Williams catcher Dan Mahan took the first pitch of the game and parked it over the left field fence against Orange starter Josiah Gibbs, and the Bulldogs were just getting warmed up. Tate Jones followed with a single to left field and immediately advanced to second on a wild pitch. After Angel Mora grounded out to Gibbs to move Jones to third, Vince Coker nicked a cue shot left of the mound for an infield single, beating out the throw from 3rd baseman Neo Best. Jones scored. Coker stole second, then scored off a fly ball that dropped into centerfield in front of Cameron Guentensberger.

Orange tied its largest deficit of the season at 3-0, but it was wiped away quickly. In the bottom of the first, Jackson Berini ripped a fastball down the right field line all the way into the corner for a stand-up triple. Hench reached on an error on a grounder to the shortstop, but Berini held up at third. Following a walk to Guentensberger, Nordan stepped up and slapped a high fly that sailed over the left field fence. It was his first grand slam since middle school.

“I knew it was gone when it left my bat,” Nordan said. “I just sat there and watched it and took off running.”

But Mahan wasn’t finished yet. In the second, he sent another fastball over the left field wall for his second home run in three swings to tie the game.

It wasn’t even for long. Berini lead off with a walk. Hench belted his second home run in as many nights, this one over the centerfield wall that landed just a few feet away from fans watching Orange’s State Playoff Lacrosse game from adjacent Auman Stadium.

Gibbs threw five innings and didn’t surrender another run to earn his team-best seventh win of the season. He now has ten win in his career.

“Josiah was nervous,” Knapp said. “I love that kid. He was nervous, but he finally settled in. He got his nerves calm after the first inning. He didn’t have his best stuff, but that’s part of pitching. Getting through those outings when you don’t have you best stuff. And he just battled and grinned. That’s who he is.”

Cross Clayton drew a walk to lead off the third. Elijah Santos tried to move Clayton over on a sacrifice bunt, but the throw by the pitcher was offline. With runners at first and second and one out, Waitt smashed a single to left to load the bases. Hench grounded to second, where there was another misguided throw. Clayton and Santos scored, while Waitt raced to third. Guentensberger delivered a perfectly executed squeeze play to bring in Waitt and increased the Orange lead to 9-4.

Then the slow-pitch softball game ended and the regularly scheduled pitcher’s dual finally emerged. The Bulldogs had their chances, loading the bases in the third with Mahan up at bat. Again, he pulled the ball to left field, but this one landed a few feet shy of the fence and into Santos’ glove.

Williams loaded the bases in the fifth, but Santos retired Ethan George to quell the threat. Williams left 14 runners on base.

Trace Hicks, who relieved Billings in the second inning, struck out eight in four innings of middle relief.

The nine Orange seniors have now won four championships: the 2021 co-Big 8 Conference title, the 2022 and 2023 CCC regular season championships and the tournament title.

The field of 64 for the 3A State Tournament will be released on Monday morning.