Month: September 2024

It would have been easy for Cedar Ridge football to just relax leading into Labor Day weekend.

Originally, Cedar Ridge was supposed to face Granville Central in Stem. But just days before the season-opener, Granville Central canceled its season due to a lack of players.

It’s something that’s happened before at Cedar Ridge and head coach Brent Bailey has worked extremely hard to make sure it doesn’t happen again. This year, the Red Wolves have 40 players on its roster.

Instead of taking it easy, Cedar Ridge managed to secure a game at Northwest Halifax, a 1A team out of Littleton. The Vikings came away with a 38-12 win, but it wasn’t a lost night for the Red Wolves.

Junior running back Isaiah Craig rushed for 155 yards. It was his second consecutive 100-yard rushing game. In the season opener against East Chapel Hill, Craig rushed for 101 yards It was the first 100-yard rushing effort in a varsity game by a Cedar Ridge running back since 2015, when Shemar Miles racked up 126 yards in a 24-6 victory over J.F. Webb. Miles scored a touchdown.

The last time a Cedar Ridge players rushed for over 150 yards in a game, it was also Miles. Back on August 21, 2015, he piled up 161 yards in Cedar Ridge’s 56-15 win over Carrboro at Jaguars Stadium.

Against the Vikings, it was another strong game for wide receiver Mason Hughes, who came away with 102 yards receiving. He also scored a touchdown on a pass thrown by junior Thomas McDermott.

Cedar Ridge started the season with a loss to East Chapel Hill at Red Wolves Stadium, but Hughes made his own wrinkle in school history. Hughes had a 93-yard pass reception for a touchdown, the longest play from scrimmage in Cedar Ridge football history. It was McDermott’s first touchdown pass at the varsity level.

Bailey has raised the enthusiasm level at Cedar Ridge so much, there’s one player who is a senior that decided to play football this season for the first time in his life. Bryan Judd is a first-year defensive lineman who was front and center during Cedar Ridge’s media day at Radius Pizza in Hillsborough last month.

“I’ve been watching football all my life,” Judd said. “I decided to come out my senior year. I’ve had enough experience watching football, playing it on Madden to want to try it.”

Cedar Ridge offensive lineman Luis Donjuan, who is a center this season, encouraged Judd to try to sport. Judd was among the Cedar Ridge players who were out during their midnight practice a month ago, just before a scrimmage at Riverside High in Durham.

“It was a different experience to actually be out there and doing it,” Judd said. “Getting the reps and the experience has been fun. My coaching staff can get me experienced to play some more in my life. I do want to play in college.”

Judd also became addicted to football when he joined some Cedar Ridge players at several North Carolina games at Kenan Stadium last year.

Learning the techniques of the game has become common for Judd as Bailey tries to revive football culture at Cedar Ridge.

“Learning hand moments and trying to fire off the ball has been fun,” Judd said. “It’s different when you talk about it. When you actually do it, it takes a different mentality. I wanted to play so I’m going to go out there and play.”

McDermott, in his first varsity start against the Wildcats, threw for 184 yards.

Cedar Ridge will face the American Leadership Academy of Johnston County on Friday night in Hillsborough. It will be the first-ever matchup between the two teams.

There will be a bounce in the step of the Orange football team when practice resumes on Tuesday. That’s because the Panthers defeated Chapel Hill for the first time since 2019 on Friday night. Orange got three touchdowns from Ja’ki McDaniels, who rushed for 131 yards in Orange’s 20-13 victory over the Tigers at Culton-Peerman Stadium. McDaniels broke off a 54-yard run on the first play of the game, then ended the drive with a three-yard plunge. McDaniels scored the game-winning touchdown immediately after a fumble recovery by Jayden Klieforth in the fourth quarter. It was a gratifying win for the Panthers, who never trailed after leading 14-0 at the half. Orange’s Jayden Medley had an interception in the first half, then stopped Chapel Hill’s Josh Roberson at the 7-yard line in the dying seconds as the Tigers attempted to tie the game. McDaniels also caught a touchdown pass from quarterback Hank Nunnery in the second quarter. Nahjour Kenyon, a 5-5 senior, made a huge tackle for loss against Chapel Hill starting quarterback Jonah Berman on the Tigers’ first series of the game. Orange will play its home opener against Vance County on Friday night at Amman Stadium. Then Orange will make its first-ever trip to Montgomery Central on September 14 for its final nonconference game.

Orange football coach DeVante Pettiford & running back Ja’ki McDaniels discuss win over Chapel Hill

There will be a bounce in the step of the Orange football team when practice resumes on Tuesday. That’s because the Panthers defeated Chapel Hill for the first time since 2019 on Friday night. Orange got three touchdowns from Ja’ki McDaniels, who rushed for 131 yards in Orange’s 20-13 victory over the Tigers at Culton-Peerman Stadium.

The first false fall of 2024 gave way to the hottest day in August last Wednesday, coincidentally the same night that Eno River Academy made its first-ever trip to Orange Soccer Field.

Just like so many other times this year, Orange junior midfielder Yurim Tapia Mendez had the winning formula, notching his first career brace for the Panthers’ second straight victory.

Mendez now has six goals in Orange’s opening five games of the season after the Panthers defeated the Bobcats 6-1. Sophomore Hector Garrido, who started in basketball as a freshman early last winter, earned his fourth win of the season as goalkeeper, making six saves.

Orange improved to 2-0 lifetime against Eno River Academy, located just two miles from the Orange campus along Highway 57. Last year, the Panthers defeated the Bobcats 2-1 at soccer.com Field in Efland.

Eno River falls to 2-4-1.

“We adapted a little as the game went on,” said Orange coach Palmer Bowman. “We need to work harder in coming out with a killer instinct. But we adapted and cleaned it up towards the end. That was good to see. We did a good job of getting organized defensively.”

It was another night where Orange’s back line of Dallas Johnson, Eben Petrides, Jay Parker and Logan Edwards controlled the pace of play and largely shut down any serious Bobcats threats in the second half. Eno River’s only goal in the 16th minute when a shot lofted from 40 yards away sailed over Gurrido’s head and softly into the roof of the net.

“We know they have some players who can shoot from distance,” Bowman said. “They just caught us off guard on that one. That was a mental lapse.”

Orange controlled the remainder of the game starting when junior John Tercero chipped a pass across the field and found Daniel Toledo, who pooched a high shot into the upper right corner from 24 yards to give Orange a 3-1 lead. It was Toledo’s first goal of the year.

Johnson had a coast-to-coast run from his center back position and nearly rolled a ball past goalkeeper Joel Strong, who made a lunging save. With 2:12 remaining in the first half, Strong tapped the ball over the night on a free kick attempt by Orange junior Christopher Lopez.

Orange kicked off to start the second half and dominated possession the remainder of the game. Moments after Joseph Lopez’s attempt off a pass from Angel Chavez rolled wide, Mendez notched his second goal from ten yards away on a short entry pass from Kace McAuley.

“The heat was obviously a factor,” Bowman said. “So we figured the more we had the ball, the more they chased, the more they got worn down.”

Eno River’s best chance in the second half came with 29:30 remaining when Alden Yarborough fired from 35 yards off a free kick that banged off the crossbar. Moments later, Orange’s Angel Chavez’s attempt from 17 yards bounced wide.

McAuley cashed in with 20:37 remaining after receiving a pass from Chaviz. McAuley dribbled into the box and shot it in for his first goal to make it 5-1 in favor of the Panthers.

Sophomore Jesse Petrides took a corner kick with 4:44 remaining and headed it in from the edge of the six-yard box for the game’s final tally. It was Petrides’ first varsity goal.

Orange improves to 4-2. They will travel to Northern Durham on Wednesday night.

Cedar Ridge 1, Northern Durham 1: It its only game of last week, Cedar Ridge played to its second consecutive tie at Northern Durham. Alex Rosales scored the Red Wolves goal off an assist from Rodrigo Arellano. Junior goalkeeper Erik Galunas made seven saves.

Remarkably, Cedar Ridge still hasn’t played a home game yet. They will make yet road trip, albeit to Efland, on Tuesday night to face Eno River Academy at soccer.com Field.

As a former defensive lineman at Virginia Union, it should come as no surprise that Orange football coach DeVante Pettiford has a build like an elephant.

And a memory like one, too.

In the 2021, he was an assistant under head coach Van Jones when Chapel Hill pulled a stunning 22-21 comeback victory when kicker Noah Westrom booted through a 40-yard field goal as time expired. It gave Chapel Hill a share of the Big 8 Championship, cost Orange a winning season and ended Orange’s 10-game winning streak against the Tigers.

It was such a classic game that Jones said he wasn’t even mad about being on the losing end. It was one of the rare times where Jones and he assistants were on different pages.

On Friday night, Orange returned to Culton-Peerman Stadium and came away with possibly its biggest triumph in nearly four years.

Senior running back Ja’ki McDaniels rushed for a career-high 131 yards and scored three touchdowns as the Panthers held on during a chaotic final minute to defeat the Tigers 20-13. It was Orange’s first win over Chapel Hill since 2019.

Chapel Hill’s Josh Roberson made a final attempt to score a game-tying touchdown in the waning seconds, but was tackled after a 14-yard gain at the 7-yard line by senior linebacker Jayden Medley, who made big plays throughout the night. The clock stopped with :2.5 seconds remaining after Chapel Hill got the first down, but time ran out while the Tigers were still trying to line up for its next play.

It was the first time that Orange won a game decided by seven points or less since they upset Northern Durham 7-6 on March 12, 2021, the Panthers’ last football game inside Durham County Stadium.

“My emotions go back to before I was head coach, Pettiford said. “They kicked a field goal with three seconds left to beat us in 2020, the COVID year. We haven’t beaten them ever since. This has all been building. To finally put this together with these boys, the hard work they’ve put in…”

McDaniels was a linebacker in 2023 and didn’t have a carry all season. He came away with Orange’s first 100-yard rushing game since Nate Sorrells against Cedar Ridge last year.

“He came to me and said he wanted to be a running back,” Pettiford said. “I can make it happen. We saw it today. I’m proud of everybody, but especially Ja’ki.”

Chapel Hill lost starting quarterback Jonah Berman late in the first quarter when he was stripped of the ball on a sack by Orange linebacker DeAndre Brown. Starting running back Josh Roberson was pressed into quarterback duties, which relegated the Tigers offensive play calling to mainly quarterback draws, keepers and short passes the rest of the game.

Orange was without sophomore wide receiver Kayden Bradsher, who was injured in practice last week. Bradsher is also a starter as a defensive back.

After registering a paltry 20 yards rushing against Southeast Alamance in its season-opener, McDaniels served notice immediately that Friday night would be different when he peeled off a 54-yard gain on the first play from scrimmage. Deandre Brown continued the 86-yard drive with a 27-yard gain down to the Tigers’ 5-yard line. McDaniels would scored his first varsity touchdown with a scamper over the middle. The extra points was blocked.

Chapel Hill converted an early 4th down when Berman ran a sneak up the middle to the Orange 40-yard line. Berman found Tyler Olario for a 16-yard pickup. The Tigers faced a 4th-and-1 from the Orange 18-yard line, but Nahjour Kenion blew up the play and sacked Berman on a keeper for a loss.

Roberson was forced to play quarterback after Berman’s injury, but Medley picked off his first pass and returned it 74 yards to the Tiger 15-yard line. Chapel Hill’s Duece Geer thwarted the Orange drive when he intercepted a pass from quarterback Hank Nunnery in the end zone.

The Tigers drove to the Orange 38-yard line after Roberson rolled off a 21-yard run, but Medley pounced on a fumble following a botched exchange between Roberson and Tyler Jackson on a jet sweep.

Orange made the Chapel Hill turnovers hurt. As Orange faced a 3rd-and-2 at its own 46-yard line, the Tigers jumped offside. Nunnery found freshman Owen Phillips for 25 yards and tacked a roughing the passer penalty onto it. On a fourth-and-goal from the Tiger 5-yard line, Nunnery was flushed out of the pocket by linebacker Justin Albouy and found McDaniels along the near sideline for a touchdown. McDaniels broke a tackle attempt by James Lunsford for a two-point run to put Orange ahead 14-0 to conclude an 11-play, 62-yard drive.

Roberson broke free for a 51-yard touchdown run to open the second half. The extra points by Mattheus Hobler reduced Orange’s lead to 14-7.

In the fourth quarter, McDaniels got free for a 28-yard gain to move to the Tiger 21-yard line. As Orange got down to the Tiger-14, Chapel Hill recovered a fumble. Three plays later, Jaydin Klieforth pounced on a Chapel Hill fumble, the Tigers third turnover.

McDaniels immediately made the Tigers pay when he scored on a 21-yard run to put Orange ahead 20-7.

Chapel Hill put together its longest sustained drive of the night, a 10-play, 85-yard drive. Roberson ran it in from two yard out, but the extra point missed wide left.

On the game’s final possession, Chapel Hill got the ball back at its own 29-yard line. Roberson hooked up with Olario for 19 yards, but after Roberson’s long run, time ran out on the Tigers.

ORANGE 20, CHAPEL HILL 14

ORA–6   8    0     6–20

CH–0      0    7      7-14

ORA–Ja’ki McDaniels 3 run (kick blocked)

ORA-McDaniels 5 pass from Hank Nunnery (McDaniels run)

CH–Josh Roberson 51 run (Mattheus Hobler kick)

ORA-McDaniels 2 run (run failed)

CH–Roberson 2 run (kick failed)

RUSHING–ORANGE 33-188 2TD (McDaniels 20-131 2 TD, Deandre Brown 9-53, Kingston Purefoy-Farrington 2-14, team 1-(-3), Nunnery 1-(-7).

CHAPEL HILL: 35-232 (Roberson 23-201 2 TD, Tyler Jackson 9-46, team 3-(-15))

PASSING–ORANGE (Nunnery 5-9 66 yds TD, INT) CHAPEL HILL 9-16, 77 yards (Jonah Berman 4-6 24 yards, Robertson 5-10 INT 53 yards)

RECEIVING–ORANGE (Owen Phillips 1-25, Garrett Sawyer 1-19, Hunter Albert 1-9, Hunter Frazier 1-7, McDaniels 1-5 TD) CHAPEL HILL (Tyler Olario 3-46, Nathan Kenyon 3-27, Nik Demas 1-3, Ethan Smith 1-4, Tyler Jackson 1-(-2))