Cedar Ridge Volleyball

It was another Cedar Ridge sweep, but it name only.

Anyone sitting within the tension filled environment at Cedar Ridge gymnasium on Tuesday night understood why so many of the Orange volleyball players were battling the defending 3A State Champions like it was the last game they would ever play.

It’s because, in most cases, they really did.

There’s a bond that intersects the Orange-Cedar Ridge volleyball rivalry in many ways. Orange middle blocker Erin Jordan-Cornell and setter Caitlin Carden won an Orange-Person Athletic Conference championship with the Stanford Chargers (now Orange Chargers) in middle school with Cameron Lloyd as a teammate when they were in 8th grade. Lloyd, Jordan-Cornell and Carden played on travel teams together in their pre-teen years.

Their allegiances drifted apart after middle school. Lloyd joined Cameron Lanier, Julie Altieri, Anaya Carter and Grace Young at Cedar Ridge. Jordan-Cornell and Carden opted for Orange. Though they played on different teams, their friendships remained intact. When Cedar Ridge won the 3A State Championship last year at Reynolds Coliseum in Raleigh, Jordan-Cornell was outside the locker room waiting with Cedar Ridge parents and relatives to congratulate them. On October 11, when Jordan-Cornell and Carden defeated Eastern Alamance in their senior night game at Panther Gymnasium, Lloyd and Altieri were there.

Lloyd, Carden and Jordan-Cornell won a championship together in 8th grade. The cruel irony surrounding Tuesday night, unspoken but understood, was not simply that somebody’s high school career would end. It was that someone’s close friend would play a big part in ending it.

After Lloyd spiked him match point to complete a 3-0 Cedar Ridge win, it appeared that both teams would be content with just waving to each other, a practice that replaced a postgame handshake during the sensitive times of the COVID-19 pandemic. Then, perhaps realizing the magnitude of the moment, they thought better of it. Jordan-Cornell, whose jovial nature almost always leads to her entering games with a smile on her face, didn’t even lose her grin as the handshake line started as her Orange volleyball career ended.

Then reality set in. After slapping hands with some of Cedar Ridge’s players, she wiped a tear from under her right eye with her jersey. Carden began getting emotional, as well.

As the two teams went to their respective benches, Cedar Ridge public address announcer Jon Franklin paid tribute to the Orange seniors by reading their names over the public address system while the fans, parents and students from both schools applauded. Jordan-Cornell, Carden, Lillie Smith, Cameryn Stewart, Ashlyn Davis and Ashlyn Hoffman stayed around long after the final point to talk to parents from both teams.

Cedar Ridge (23-1) advanced to the round of 16 of the North Carolina High School Athletic Association 3A State Playoffs with its fourth win over Orange this year. The Red Wolves will face First Flight on Thursday night at Red Wolves Gymnasium. First Flight survived a five-set battle with Lee County in Kill Devil Hills on Tuesday.

Lloyd finished with ten kills for Cedar Ridge. Senior Cameron Lanier, second behind only Lloyd on Cedar Ridge’s all-time killslist, finished with nine kills and two blocks. Junior setter Rachel Alverson, replacing senior Julie Altieri in the lineup, had a career-high 33 assists.

Orange junior Ella Wimsatt had seven kills to lead the Lady Panthers. Jordan-Cornell, replacing Allie Wilkerson, had five kills and three aces.

For Orange, the loss was filled with more of the standard finality that comes with the conclusion of a season. In addition to the seven seniors, coach Kelly Young plans to step down at the end of the year.

All of which may have played a part in Orange’s emotional start that knocked the Red Wolves back in the opening minutes. Jordan-Cornell served up two aces to put the Lady Panthers ahead 8-3 in the first set, leading to an early timeout from Cedar Ridge coach Fiona Cunningham.

“Orange gave it everything they got,” Cunningham said. “Orange played out of their minds. That was some of the best volleyball I’ve seen this year from anybody. We came out really timid. They came out really aggressive. Emotions really controlled most of the match.”

Orange, who ended Cedar Ridge’s 62-set winning streak last week in the Central Carolina Conference Tournament championship game, won long rallies early. Wimsatt slammed home a spike off an assist from freshman Katie Silcott to put the Lady Panthers ahead 11-7. Cedar Ridge freshman Claire Hargett scored off an assist from Alverson to lead to a Red Wolf side out, leading to 6-2 Cedar Ridge run to tie the set.

The opening frame had five lead changes and nine ties. Orange won another lengthy rally when Wimsatt tapped the ball over the outstretched arms of Melissa Benkowitz to give the Lady Panthers a 19-18 lead. The Red Wolves would deliver another patented run when it mattered the most, finishing with seven consecutive points with junior Graylinn Serge serving. During the run, Lanier had three kills and Serge had an ace. An errant attack by Orange led to the Red Wolves taking the frame 25-19.

“We had a lot of talk about staying confident,” Cunningham said. “We made sure that we stuck to what we’re good at and our game plan. We came out and all of the work we had done on scouting and a game plan just kind of went out the door. He just had to refocus.”

The second set was just as tight. Orange freshman Ava Wilkerson evened things at 13 with a block. The Red Wolves array of weapons proved too much again late. They scored seven of the next eight points, including four kills from Benkowitz. A block by Lanier led to an Orange timeout. Cedar Ridge would take the set 25-20.

The early emotion appeared to catch up with Orange in the final set. Cedar Ridge opened with a 6-2 run and never trailed. Red Wolf senior Anaya Carter and Lanier each had two early kills. Orange freshman Aubrey Jordan finished with five kills, including four in the final set, but Lloyd got match point to end things.

It was Cedar Ridge’s 40th straight win over a Central Carolina Conference opponent.

Orange ends the year 19-11, its most wins since 2008.

The Cedar Ridge Red Wolves volleyball team has advanced to the 2nd round of the 3A State Playoffs. On Saturday, the Red Wolves defeated Richlands 3-0 in the opening round. It was the third win of the week for Cedar Ridge. On Wednesday, the Red Wolves defeated crosstown rival Orange 3-0 in the Central Carolina Conference Tournament match. Against the Lady Panthers, senior Cameron Lloyd had eleven kills. Without setter Julie Altieri in the lineup, freshman Mia Marty stepped in as setter and finished with 14 assists. Graylin Serge also had a strong game for the Red Wolves acting as the libero amidst lineup changes. The victory over Orange was the 39th consecutive victory by Cedar Ridge over a league opponent. It was the seventh championship won by Cedar Ridge’s senior class of Lloyd, Cameron Lanier, Julie Altieri, Anaya Carter, Grace Young, Melissa Benkowitz, Lauren Cecil and Isabelle Sheppard. On Tuesday night, Cedar Ridge will face Orange in the 2nd round of the state playoffs at Red Wolves Gymnasium. The winner advances to the round of 16. 

The joyride that has been the Class of 2023 Cedar Ridge volleyball team is entering its final days.

Regardless of whether the end comes on Tuesday in the second round of the state playoffs against Orange, on November 8 in the 3A State Championship match at Reynolds Coliseum or somewhere in between, there’s no disputing the numbers continue to add up for the most accomplished group of Cedar Ridge athletes in the 20-year history of the school.

On Saturday, Cedar Ridge rolled past Richlands 3-0 in the opening round of the North Carolina High School Athletic Association 3A State Playoffs. The Red Wolves (22-1), the defending 3A State Champions, are the #2 seed in the east region. They advanced to face crosstown rival Orange in the second round on Tuesday night in Red Wolves Gymnasium.

It was the 80th win for Cedar RIdge’s senior class of Cameron Lloyd, Cameron Lanier, Julie Altieri, Anaya Carter, Grace Young, Melissa Benkowitz, Lauren Cecil and Isabelle Sheppard. Lloyd, Lanier, Altieri and Carter all played for the Red Wolves on the varsity as freshman. Young, Benkowitz, Sheppard and Cecil joined the varsity as sophomores (Benkowitz transferred from East Chapel Hill).

The Red Wolves used superior serving to easily take the victory. In the opening set, Young had eight aces and eight digs. Lloyd, who is second in school history for most career aces behind only Altieri, finished with five aces and nine digs, which led the team.

For the third straight game, Altieri was out. The Red Wolves went with freshman Mia Marty as setter in the opening two sets. Marty finished with eight assists, a lower total than usual simply because there weren’t many rallies.

Freshman Claire Hargett led the Red Wolves with five kills. Benkowitz added four while Lanier had three kills and three blocks.

Cedar Ridge has now won 22 consecutive matches and 66 of its last 67 sets. Its only loss of the season came against J.H. Rose, who is the #1 seed in the east region. On Saturday, the Rampants rolled past South Brunswick in the opening round to set up a matchup against C.B. Aycock on Tuesday night.

After winning all six of its state playoff matches last year, Cedar Ridge’s senior class has won nine state playoff matches. Asha Barnes, who graduated from Cedar Ridge in 2016, was a member of teams that won 13 sate playoff matches during her four years. In her senior year, the Red Wolves hosted the 2015 3A Eastern Regional championship match, which Asheboro captured 3-1.

Altieri holds the school record in assists and aces. She is the only player in Cedar Ridge history with over 200 aces. She also has 1,921 assists.

The remarkable thing about Cedar Ridge’s various record holders is they all were robbed of 10-15 games in the 2020-2021, which was limited to ten games because of the pandemic. The Red Wolves had 24 matches in 2019-2020 and 33 last year. With a standard length regular season, Lloyd could have become the first player in school history with 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs.

Going into Saturday, Lloyd’s listed statistics on MaxPreps was 990 kills and 728 digs. Based on records kept on MaxPreps, the all-time digs record in Cedar Ridge history belongs to Lindsay Thompson, who finished with 745.

When they face Orange on Tuesday, the Red Wolves will go for its 40th consecutive win over a conference opponent. In what may be a good omen for Orange, the Lady Panthers were the last team from the Central Carolina Conference to defeat the Red Wolves. They won 3-2 on October 18, 2019.

Cedar Ridge has won 25 consecutive home matches.

Cedar Ridge volleyball’s famed senior class has claimed its seventh championship, but the Red Wolves’ youth played an instrumental factor in its latest title.

Of course, there were the usual suspects for Cedar Ridge, like Cameron Lloyd, Melissa Benkowitz and Cameron Lanier, all of whom racked up kills in a 3-1 win over Orange in the Central Carolina Conference Tournament Championship match at Red Wolves Gymnasium on Wednesday night. There were also two freshmen, Claire Hargett and Mia Marty, who found themselves in prominent positions in the Red Wolves 39th consecutive win over a conference opponent.

Cedar Ridge extended several of its school records against Orange, but not every streak survived.

Orange won the third set 25-17, ending Cedar Ridge’s streak of 62 consecutive victorious sets. To put that in perspective, Cedar Ridge (21-1) lost the final set of its season opener against J.H. Rose on August 18, then won via sweep in its other 19 regular season matches, plus its first tilt of the postseason against Walter Williams in the CCC Tournament semifinals.

The Red Wolves recovered to comfortably take the fourth set 25-17 to claim its second consecutive CCC Tournament title. It was Cedar Ridge’s seventh straight win over its crosstown rivals.

But after 21 consecutive wins, the Red Wolves did face adversity before they venture into the 3A State Tournament to defend their state championship. They played both games in the conference tournament without leading setter Julie Altieri, the all-time school leader in assists and aces.

So what did head coach Fiona Cunningham tell the team after they lost a set for the first time in over two months?

“Things I don’t want to repeat,” Cunningham said. “Orange did phenomenal that set. That was the team that they knew they could be. And we knew they could be that good and we got to see that. I told my girls that Orange was playing great. I also told them that we needed to play smarter and that we needed not to give away the game.”

Marty, who spent this season on Cedar Ridge’s undefeated junior varsity squad, had 14 assists in only her second varsity game. Without Altieri, the Red Wolves went with a setter-by- committee. Grace Young, usually the Red Wolves libero, started at setter and finished with 12 assists. Junior Graylinn Serge served as libero.

Lloyd, who has surpassed 1,000 kills for her career, finished with 12 kills. Hargett, a regular rotation player during her freshman year, tied her season-high with ten kills, matching the output she had against Walter Williams on September 14.

Orange (18-10) senior Allie Wilkerson had nine kills while her younger sister Ava Wilkerson finished with five kills and five blocks. Senior Caitlin Carden had 20 assists, one ace and one kill.

Ava Wilkerson, a 6-2 freshman, sparked Orange’s 10-0 spurt in the third set with a block on an attack by Cedar Ridge’s Addie Reid. On the next point, Orange senior Erin Jordan-Cornell had another block to put the Lady Panthers ahead 16-11, sending the visiting bench into jubilation and forcing Cunningham to call a timeout.

Ava Wilkerson and Jordan-Cornell each had back-to-back kills to continue the momentum. Junior Ella Wimsatt, who leads the Lady Panthers in kills, spiked home a point for Orange’s 23rd point. The Red Wolves sent the subsequent two attacks into the net, ending its streak of 62 victorious sets.

The two previous sets weren’t nearly as dramatic. In the opening frame, Cedar Ridge quickly pulled away after they jumped out to an 8-3 lead. Senior Cameron Lanier had consecutive aces to put the Red Wolves ahead 15-6. Lanier would spike home set point off an assist from Marty.

Cedar Ridge claimed the second set 25-10. After an attack by senior Anaya Carter, the Red Wolves reeled off ten of the next 13 points. During that spree, Benkowitz had two aces, a kill and a block to put the Red Wolves ahead 17-8. Three kills by Lloyd helped Cedar Ridge finished the set on a 8-1 run.

After dropping the third set, Cedar Ridge started the fourth set scoring nine of the first 12 points. After an opening kill by Reid, Carter had a block and a kill on back-to-back plays. Hargett scored match point off an assist from Young.

This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is senior setter Julie Altieri. Last week, Altieri helped Cedar Ridge win its third consecutive regular season championship as the Red Wolves defeated Orange 3-0. Altieri holds two school record. She is the all-time assist leader in school history with 1,850 going into the semifinals of the Central Carolina Conference tournament on Tuesday night against Walter Williams. She also has 198 aces, the most in school history. Last season, Altieri was the setter for the 3A State Championship team, the first female team in Cedar Ridge history to win a state championship. She has been a four-year starter and has over a 4.0 grade-point average. Altieri has been a member of six championship teams in her accomplished Cedar Ridge career. In addition to the three regular season championships, she has won a Central Carolina Tournament championship, an Eastern Regional championship and the 3A State Championship. Altieri is looking to continue her career at the college level. Altieri will graduate in June along with her teammates Cameron Lloyd, Cameron Lanier, Grace Young, Melissa Benkowitz, Anaya Carter, Isabelle Sheppard and Lauren Cecil.