Cedar Ridge Women’s Soccer

This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is women’s soccer striker Katie Paulakonis. The Cedar Ridge women’s soccer team is off to its best start since 2009, at least. On Monday night, the Red Wolves improved to 4-0 with a 4-2 win over Franklinton at Red Wolves Stadium. Paulakonis scored all four of the goals for the Red Wolves. In Cedar Ridge’s past two games, she has scored six goals. This is Katie’s first season at Cedar Ridge. She spent the past ten years playing with Dash United out of Clayton while she was home schooled. Her arrival at Cedar Ridge corresponded with the arrival of new women’s soccer coach Sam Samerzier. On Wednesday night, Paulakonis had another four goal game as Cedar Ridge defeated Person 9-0 to win its Central Conference opener at Red Wolves Stadium. Paulakonis has scored ten goals in the past three games. She added two more goals in Cedar Ridge’s 9-0 win over Northern Durham lsat week in the Red Wolves first-ever game at the new Northern Durham High School Stadium. On Monday night, the Red Wolves will face Eno River Academy at Red Wolves Stadium, its final game before spring break. Paired with junior striker Fleury Nicholson, Paulakonis can help Cedar Ridge reach the state playoffs for the first time since 2019. 

Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week: Katie Paulakonis

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W0men’s soccer: Cedar Ridge 4, Franklinton 2: The Cedar Ridge women’s soccer team is off to its best start in at least 15 years.

Through there were some nervous moments late, the Red Wolves managed to defeat Franklinton 4-2 at Red Wolves Stadium on Monday night. Junior Katie Paulakonis, playing her first season for the Red Wolves, scored four goals as Cedar Ridge held off a late charge from Franklinton to improve to 4-0.

Cedar Ridge hasn’t started the season 4-0 since 2010, which is how far records date back online. Under new head coach Sam Semerzier, the Red Wolves have started the season outscoring its opposition 17-6.

Paulokonis scored two goals in the first half, then added a third in the second half. Franklinton had a chance to chip into the lead after the Red Wolves were called for a handball in the penalty area. Cedar Ridge goalkeeper Ellamarie Perel made a diving save on the penalty kick, leading to being mobbed by her teammates. Perel is in her first year as a starter after Addie Reid stood between the posts the past three years.

Franklinton narrowed the lead to 3-2, but Paulakonis added insurance in the 77th minute to sew up the win for the Red Wolves. Freshman Kate Finnegan nearly added another goal late.

Cedar Ridge will play its Central Conference opener against Person in Hillsborough on Wednesday.

Orange 5, Eno River Academy 0: In the first-ever women’s soccer matchup between the Lady Panthers and the Bobcats, senior Ella Wimsatt notched her second consecutive hat trick as Orange improved to 2-1.

Wimsatt, who finished with six goals last season, already has six goals this season. She scored six goals in all of 2023. Wimsatt notched her first career hat trick in a win over Person in Roxboro last week.

In front of a large crowd at Orange Soccer Field, Ellianna Sullivan Gaddy and Kyla Mehl added goals for Orange.

Makayla Davis earned the win as Orange goalkeeper. Lexie Stephens played in net for the second half to complete Orange’s second clean sheet of the season.

Sullivan Gaddy, Evelyn Gover, Cora Bailey, Caroline Cathey and Kaylen Crayton all assisted on goals for Orange.

On the back line, senior Lily Crayton and Channing Manning helped Orange earned the victory. The Lady Panthers will host Durham School of the Arts on Thursday night in Hillsborough. Orange has reached the 3A State Playoffs each of the last two years. They are 1-0 in the Central Conference and will continue conference play against Western Alamance in Elon next Monday.

Men’s Tennis: Cedar Ridge 7, Orange 2: The Cedar Ridge men’s tennis team, under new head coach Mike Rogers, earned two wins each from Fionn Kuo and Lev Bearman to defeat crosstown rival Orange to remain undefeated in the Central Conference.

Kuo, in his first season as the Red Wolves top starter, defeated Porter Pelphrey 6-1, 6-0, the first of five singles wins for Cedar Ridge. Later, Kuo would team with Leo Filley to defeat Pelphrey and Cameron Foster in the #1 doubles match 8-2.

Filey defeated Orange’s Quincy Stanley 7-5, 6-2 at #3 singles.

Bearman won at #2 singles over Orange’s Cameron Foster 6-3, 7-0. Bearman won at #2 doubles, teaming with Griffin Thomas to defeat Stanley and Jackson Coleman 8-2.

Joe Garbee defeated Orange’s Ryan Jouannet 7-6 (7-3), 6-3 at #4 singles.

In the only singles match to go three sets, Orange’s Jackson Coleman defeated Landon Rogers 3-6, 6-1, 10-4 (10 point tiebreaker). Thomas, at #6 singles for the Red Wolves, defeated Zachary Cole 6-2, 6-4.

Orange claimed its only doubles win when Jouannet and Race McAuley defeated Landon Rogers and Colin Fulcher 8-6.

Cedar Ridge (3-1) started the season with a 9-0 victory over Southern Alamance in Hillsborough. They rolled past Person 9-0 in its second conference match.

Orange (3-3, 2-2) earned two conference wins last week. They defeated Eastern Alamance in Hillsborough. On Friday, they edged Walter Williams 5-4 with Foster winning two matches to earn the victory. Western Alamance handed orange its only other conference loss on March 4.

Emerson Talley: The Lenoir-Rhyne women’s soccer team won the South Atlantic Conference Championship over Catawba at the Mecklenburg County Sports Complex in Matthews on Sunday. The Bears and the Indians played to a 2-2 tie after 110 minutes of action. The Bears claimed the championship after winning 4-2 on penalty kicks. Talley started in the championship game and played 36 minutes. In the semifinals on November 10, the Bears shut out Carson-Newman 2-0. Talley played 67 minutes and fired one shot. Lenoir-Rhyne completed an undefeated run through the South Atlantic Conference, finishing 11-0. They are 15-0-4 overall. The Bears received a #1 seed for the NCAA Division II Tournament and will face Carson-Newman in the opening round on Friday at the Moretz Sports Athletic Complex in Hickory. If the Bears win, they will host the second round game against either Columbus State or Flagler on Sunday afternoon.

Ivy Garner: Garner scored a goal for Liberty in the opening round of the NCAA Division I soccer tournament on Friday. Garner notched the equalizing goal for the Flames in the 72nd minute. Georgia’s Kiera Staude scored the game-winning goal in the 85th minute as Georgia won 2-1, denying Liberty its first NCAA Tournament win. Liberty, the champions of Conference USA, ends the season 16-3-1. As a sophomore, Garner was named first-team All-Conference USA. This season, she started in all 20 of the Flames games. She scored six goals and racked up four assists. She was second on the team with 39 shots and had 19 shots on goal, which was tied for second on the squad. It was Liberty’s eighth Division I NCAA Tournament appearance.

Trenton Gill: The Chicago Bears defeated the Carolina Panthers 16-13 at Solider Field last Thursday night. Gill had six punts for an average of 46.7 yards. One of Gill’s punts was returned for a touchdown by Carolina’s Ihmir Smith-Marsette, which was the only time the Panthers saw the end zone all night. Gill had three punts downed inside the 20-yard line. His longest boot was 62 yards. Chicago is 3-7 and will face Detroit at Ford Field on Sunday.

Payton Wilson: As his career at N.C. State winds down, Wilson continues to rack up the honors. On Wednesday, he was named a finalist for the Bronco Nagurski Trophy, given to the best defensive player in college football. The Wolfpack won its third straight on Saturday, beating Wake Forest 26-6 at Allegacy Stadium in Winston-Salem. Wilson finished with seven tackles, a pass breakup and a quarterback hit. Wilson continues to lead the team in tackles and had two tackles for loss against the Demon Deacons. On Saturday, Wilson will play the last true road game of his career when the Wolfpack take on Virginia Tech at Lane Stadium in Blacksburg, VA.

Braxton Mergenthal: The Division III Hampden-Sydney football team’s season came to an end last weekend when #9 Randolph-Macon defeated the Tigers 49-10 at Day Field in Ashland, VA. Mergenthal finished with four tackles for Hampden-Sydney in a rivalry that is considered the Oldest Small School Rivalry in the South. Hampden-Sydney finished the season 6-4 overall, 4-3 in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. Mergenthal played in ten games this season and collected 22 tackles and one fumble recovery.

Joey McMullin: The Division III Methodist men’s basketball team started its season earlier this month. The Monarchs dropped its home opener to Guilford 74-59 at the Riddle Center in Fayetteville on November 8. In his first game at Methodist, McMullin finished with seven points in 22 minutes. He shot 3-of-7 from the field. He also collected two rebounds. Johnson & Wales defeated Methodist 83-73 in Fayetteville on Saturday. McMullin started and scored six points off 3-of-11 shooting from the field. He also had four rebounds and an assist. On Wednesday, Virginia Wesleyan defeated Methodist 61-48 at TowneBank Arena in Virginia Beach, VA. Once again, McMullin started and played 17 minutes. He scored three points off 1-of-5 shooting from the field. McMullin also had a rebound. The Monarchs will travel to Asheville on Saturday to face Warren Wilson College.

This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is soccer midfielder Ianna Pfeifer. In 2023, Pfeifer scored a career-high 23 points as the Cedar Ridge women’s soccer team finished with a 7-13 record. Pfeifer logged a career-high 1,440 minutes of action as one of the senior co-Captains on the team. She notched a hat trick in a 7-0 win over Person on April 17. A four-year member of the Cedar Ridge women’s soccer team, Pfeifer led the team with nine assists this season. She had a goal and two assists in the Red Wolves’ 5-0 win over Northern Durham on February 27. She had a goal and two assists as Cedar Ridge defeated town-rival Eno River in the first-ever matchup between the two teams on April 5 at Red Wolves Stadium. Pfeifer was instrumental in Cedar Ridge getting off to a 4-3 start on the season. After she graduated in June, Pfeifer will attend college at Appalachian State in Boone.

Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week: Ianna Pfeifer

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This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is sophomore soccer striker Fleury Nicholson This season, Nicholson was the leading scorer for the Cedar Ridge women’s soccer team. She amassed eleven goals and eight assists. Nicholson started the season with a hat trick against Northern Durham on February 27 at James Armstrong Stadium, where the Red Wolves came away with a 5-0 win. Nicholson scored the game-winning goal against Voyager Academy on March 6, a 2-1 victory for Cedar Ridge. In the Red Wolves’ first-ever game against Eno River Academy, Nicholson scored a goal as Cedar Ridge emerged with a 3-1 win at Red Wolves Stadium on April 5. In 34 career games for Cedar Ridge, Nicholson has scored 23 goals and 56 points. As a freshman, Nicholson scored 12 goals. In just her second varsity game, Nicholson had a hat trick in a win over Clover Garden School. In her first varsity game, she scored two goals in Cedar Ridge’s 5-0 win over South Granville. Cedar Ridge ended its regular season on Wednesday night with a 3-0 loss to Walter Williams in Burlington. Cedar Ridge is on the bubble to make the 3A State Playoffs. Regardless, Nicholson will continue to lead Cedar Ridge as she goes on with her career.

Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week: Fleury Nicholson

This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is sophomore soccer striker Fleury Nicholson This season, Nicholson was the leading scorer for the Cedar Ridge women’s soccer team. She amassed eleven goals and eight assists. Nicholson started the season with a hat trick against Northern Durham on February 27 at James Armstrong Stadium, where the Red Wolves came away with a 5-0 win.

The Cedar Ridge women’s soccer team is fighting for a spot in the 3A State Playoffs. It would be the first time they’ve clinched a spot in the postseason since 2019. On Monday night, it was Senior Night for the Red Wolves. Cedar Ridge defeated Person 7-0. Senior Ianna Pfeifer scored a hat trick for the third time in her career against the Rockets. It came after Pfeifer set up the game-winning goal in the Red Wolves win over the North Carolina School of Science and Math last week, which was scored by Sophia Feken. It was the second straight game where Cedar Ridge goalkeeper Addie Reid got a clean sheet. Sarah Carson, Lily Dyslin, Sarah Fenwick, Alexia Gomez, and Stella Fadden also were honored during Senior Night for the Red Wolves. Cedar Ridge improve to 7-6, 2-5 in the Central Carolina Conference. The Red Wolves will travel to Northwood on Wednesday before another important road trip to Western Alamance on Friday. Next Monday, Cedar Ridge will play Orange in the second leg of the Hillsborough Derby. Orange defeated the Red Wolves 1-0 in overtime earlier this month.

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The Cedar Ridge women’s soccer team is fighting for a spot in the 3A State Playoffs. It would be the first time they’ve clinched a spot in the postseason since 2019. On Monday night, it was Senior Night for the Red Wolves. Cedar Ridge defeated Person 7-0.

Women’s soccer: Cedar Ridge 1, North Carolina School of Science and Math 0: With Cedar Ridge fighting for a playoff spot, the Red Wolves broke open a scoreless tie against the North Carolina School of Science and Math off a gorgeous finish from a sophomore.

Sophia Feken scored her first goal of the season with a gorgeous shot over Unicorns goalkeeper Savannah Sullivan with 19:39 remaining in the second half as the Red Wolves defeated NCSSM 1-0 in Durham. The sequence started when senior Ianna Pfeifer took a throw-in and lifted a diagonal pass across the box. Sophomore Fleury Nicholson chased it down and passed it back to Feken, who floated a shot from 20 yards away that went over the head of Sullivan into the roof of the net.

Cedar Ridge struggled to get a shot off in the first half, but junior goalkeeper Addie Reid made five saves in the first half to keep the game scoreless at halftime. Science and Math’s best chance came with 21:50 remaining when Unicorn’s co-Captain Ariel Mercurio took a great pass from classmate Clara Smith. Mercurio was one-on-one with Reid, who made the save on a shot from 12 yards away.

Earlier in the half, Reid knocked.away a cross shot attempt by Callie Stoke that buzzed through the six-years box.

Cedar Ridge (6-6) is currently ranked #33 in the 3A East Region. On April 5, the Red Wolves faced Eno River Academy for the first-ever matchup between the two Hillsborough schools in soccer. Cedar Ridge came away with a 3-1 win at Red Wolves Stadium.

Nicholson scored the game-winning goal in the first half, which was assisted by Pfeiefer. Sophomore Celina Galla added another goal, while Pfeiefer scored a goal and added two assists. Reid earned another win in net making four saves.

Cedar Ridge will return to action tonight to face Person on their Senior Night. Pfeiefer, Sarah Carson, Lily Dyslin, Sarah Fenwick, Alexia Gomez, and Stella Fadden will be honored.

Orange 7, Person 0: Junior Ella Wimsatt scored two goals, including the game-winner, in the 15th minute as Orange defeated Person at Orange Soccer Field on April 4. Wimsatt’s opening tally was assisted by Teresa Rodriguez.

Elliana Sullivan-Gaddy finished with a goal and three assists on the night. Sullivan-Gaddy finished with the second goal off an assist from Channing Mahaney in the 22nd minute. Two minutes later, Wimsatt added her second goal off an assist from Gaddy.

In the opening minute of the second half, Orange goalkeeper Abby Monteith scored her first goal of her career on an assist from Caroline Cathey to increase the Lady Panthers’ lead to 4-0.

In the 61st minute, sophomore Cora Bailey scored the first of her two goals. Bailey would add another in the 70th minute, assisted from Sullivan-Gaddy

Hannah Hummel scored the final goal of the game in the 70th minutes, once again assisted by Sullivan-Gaddy.

Monteith played the first 30 minutes in net and earned the win. She went into the outfield late in the first half and was replaced in net by freshman Alexis Stephens.

Orange reached the third round of the 3A State Playoffs last season, but is playing this year without attacking midfielder Sydney Rogers, who was injured last fall during training.

Orange (5-4-2, 3-3 in the Central Carolina Conference) defeated Walter Williams 3-2 in Burlington on March 20. Isabel Jones, Caroline Cathey and Molly Kruse all scored for the Lady Panthers, which had to bring feeling of revenge for Orange. Last May, Williams defeated Orange in the 3A State Playoffs in a game where Monteith suffered a torn ACL in the second half and had to be replaced with the game tied.

Orange will travel to Western Alamance tonight. On Wednesday, they will face Walter Williams again, this time in Hillsborough. On Thursday, the Lady Panthers will travel to Seaforth.