Cedar Ridge Women’s Basketball

Three yeas ago, it would have been hard to fathom the Cedar Ridge women’s basketball team finishing with a winning season, much less making the state playoffs. On Tuesday night, the Red Wolves sewed up a winning season with a 53-38 win over Walter Williams on Senior Night at Red Wolves Gymnasium. Seniors Amiyah Ware, Cameron Copeland, Addie Reid, Cierra Copeland and Jordyan Delph were honored between games of the doubleheader. Once again, it was Ware who provided the fireworks offensively for the Red Wolves. She scored 24 points to lead all scorers. Ware’s name will go down in the record books after she broke the county record with 54 points against Western Alamance last year, breaking the Orange County record that had stood for 45 years. For Reid, it was her final regular season game inside a gym she’s grown very accustomed to over the years. She won two conference championships and a regional title inside Red Wolves Gymnasium in volleyball. On Tuesday night, her former high school coach, Fiona Cunningham, was in attendance. Cunningham is now an assistant at North Carolina Central, where Reid will attend next season. Cameron and Cierra Copeland have stuck through the program from the very beginning of their freshman year, when the pandemic was still present. The Red Wolves had just five players for some games. The Copelands were two of those players who stuck it out through a winless season. Now, they will host a game in the Central Conference Tournament next Monday. Delph is in her first season on the varsity. Cedar Ridge will await to see who they will place for the Central Tournament, which will be Monday night at Red Wolves Gymnasium. 

Cedar Ridge women’s basketball seniors Ware, Copeland, Reid, Copeland & Delph talk Senior Night win

Three yeas ago, it would have been hard to fathom the Cedar Ridge women’s basketball team finishing with a winning season, much less making the state playoffs. On Tuesday night, the Red Wolves sewed up a winning season with a 53-38 win over Walter Williams on Senior Night at Red Wolves Gymnasium.

This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is senior basketball guard Amiyah Ware. In her first year at Cedar Ridge, Ware grabbed the scene unlike any women’s basketball player in Hillsborough since possibly Tere Williams at Orange High in the mid-1990s, putting up scoring numbers never seen in town history. A transfer from The Burlington School, Ware set the county record by scoring 54 points in a game against Western Alamance on January 10, 2023. She broke a record that had stood since 1978. The following month in a win over Durham School of the Arts, Ware scored 51 points in a win at Sikes Gymnasium. She became the first player, regardless of gender, to ever score 50 points in a season in Orange County history. This year, Ware has been the leading scorer for a Cedar Ridge team that’s on track to make the state playoffs for the first time since 2018. The Red Wolves swept the season series from Orange for the first time since 2014. She scored 15 points in a victory over the Lady Panthers. Last month, Ware had a season-high 35 points in an overtime win over the Panthers. In November, Ware signed with Division II North Greenville to play college basketball.. While her career at Cedar Ridge will only be two years, she will leave a legacy in the record books that won’t be forgotten.

Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week: Amiyah Ware

This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is senior basketball guard Amiyah Ware. In her first year at Cedar Ridge, Ware grabbed the scene unlike any women’s basketball player in Hillsborough since possibly Tere Williams at Orange High in the mid-1990s, putting up scoring numbers never seen in town history.

For the first time since 2013, the Cedar Ridge women’s basketball team has swept a season series from crosstown rival Orange. On Friday night, the Red Wolves defeated the Panthers 37-32 at Red Wolves Gymnasium on Friday night. The Red Wolves trailed 26=17 with 4:58 remaining in the third quarter, but the Red Wolves outscored the Lady Panthers 13-5 in the fourth quarter. Senior Amiyah Ware led the Red Wolves with 15 points, but senior center Addie Reid added eight points and four rebounds. Junior point guard Sarah Utley registered eight points, four rebounds, four assists and two steals. Cedar Ridge is looking to make the state playoffs for the first time since 2018, when they went 14-11. This season has been the most successful year for Cedar Ridge women’s basketball since the 2018 campaign, when they won 14 games. After beating Orange on Friday, Cedar Ridge has won eleven and are gunning for more. For Reid, she’s looking forward to the next chapter after an eventful school year. She was named Homecoming Queen last September. In October, she won the Central Conference Tournament championship, beating Orange in four sets. It was her seventh championship in volleyball. Last week, Reid announced she was going to play volleyball at North Carolina Central. Former Cedar Ridge head coach Fiona Cunningham is now an assistant at Central. Cedar Ridge will travel to Mebane to face Eastern Alamance on Tuesday night. 

Cedar Ridge women’s basketball’s Addie Reid & Sarah Utley discuss season sweep of Orange

For the first time since 2013, the Cedar Ridge women’s basketball team has swept a season series from crosstown rival Orange. On Friday night, the Red Wolves defeated the Panthers 37-32 at Red Wolves Gymnasium on Friday night.

In Red Wolves Gymnasium on January 27, 2021, the Orange women’s basketball team entered a barren, desolate Red Wolves Gymnasium to face its crosstown rival.

There were no fans allowed inside because America was still frozen in the pandemic. The sounds from the mouths of coaches B.J. Condron of Orange and William Dobbs of Cedar Ridge, along with the players, were muffled because they were wearing masks. Cedar Ridge suited up only five players, and one of those fouled out in the fourth quarter.

Needless to say, Orange, which suited up eleven players, won by the score of 52-13. Though then-Cedar Ridge principal Carlos Ramirez applauded his team after the buzzer sounded, it was the textbook definition of bleak.

Two of those five players who suited up for Cedar Ridge that day, and forced to play the entire 32 minutes simply because of necessity, were freshmen Cameron and Cierra Copeland.

Four years later, the twin sisters started as the Red Wolves women’s basketball team carried out a milestone much more to its liking.

For the first time since 2014, the Red Wolves completed a season sweep of crosstown rival Orange with a 37-32 victory inside a much more crowded Red Wolves Gymnasium on Friday night. Cedar Ridge senior Amiyah Ware scored 15 points to help the Red Wolves finish the game on a 15-5 run.

Cedar Ridge improved to 5-4 in the Central Conference. They’re currently a half-game ahead of Walter Williams for third place and now hold the head-to-head tiebreaker over Orange, which goes a long way to helping the Red Wolves host a game in the Central Conference Tournament.

Orange (10-9, 4-5), which was tied with Western Alamance for first place in the Central Conference two weeks ago, dropped its fourth straight game.

Addie Atkins led Orange with 12 points.

In the opening minutes of the third quarter, it appeared that Orange would avenge its overtime loss to the Red Wolves from January 10. The Red Wolves missed its first six shots from the field in the second half. Atkins drained a 3-pointer with 4:58 remaining in the third quarter off a pass from Evelyn George to put the Lady Panthers ahead 26-17. Cedar Ridge point guard Sarah Utley started the comeback with a running one-hander over the outstretched arms of Natalie Robertson from the right baseline. After a shot by Orange’s Shannon Murphy rimmed out, Utley came down the floor and sank a three-pointer from the top of the floor to cut the Red Wolves deficit to 26-22, leading to an Orange timeout.

The turning point came late in the third quarter when Orange center Marshea Byrd, who finished with eleven rebounds, had a stickback attempted that nearly balanced on the front of the rim before it fell off. Cedar Ridge’s Jamee Watson threw a gorgeous bounce pass that avoided the right baseline and found center Addie Reid, who banked in a shot while getting fouled by Byrd. That cut Orange’s lead to 27-25 at the end of the quarter.

Ware started the fourth quarter with a baseline drive push shot off a pass from Watson that beat Orange’s 1-2-2 zone press. Then Watson drained a jumper from the top of the key to give Cedar Ridge its first lead since it was 10-8. Ware grabbed a defensive rebound following a subsequent Orange miss and eventually found Kate Finnegan for a 19-footer to give the Red Wolves a 30-27 lead.

Orange’s Maura McMurtry sank a 15-footer over Watson with 4:27 remaining, but Cedar Ridge kept the Panthers scoreless for the next four minutes. Ware rebounded her own miss and scored on a short baseline jumper, then followed with a deep scoop shot that banked in high off the window.

Byrd’s stickback shot with 16 seconds remaining gave Orange a fleeting hope, but Reid erased that with two free throws in the waning seconds.

Cedar Ridge, which improved to 11-9, travels to Eastern Alamance on Tuesday. The Red Wolves eleven wins are the most for the team since the 2017-2018 season, when they finished 14-11.

The Cedar Ridge women’s basketball team is in position to reach the 3A State Playoffs for the first time since 2018. The Red Wolves are 9-6 as they prepare to face Walter Williams in Burlington on Friday night. The Red Wolves defeated crosstown rival Orange last Wednesday behind 35 points from Amiyah Ware, which was the most points any player from Orange County has scored so far this year, regardless of gender. Last Monday, the Red Wolves defeated Chatham Central 46-35 at Red Wolves Gymnasium in its final nonconfernce game of the regular season. Ware led the Red Wolves with 17 points. Freshman Calla Lundberg, who was called up from the junior varsity team last month, chipped in with nine points as the Red Wolves reached nine wins in a season for the first time in six years. Lundberg and Kate Finnegan were both moved up to varsity before Christmas and have provided an immediate contribution. Cedar Ridge is only one game behind Orange, Western Alamance and Eastern Alamance for first place in the Central Conference as the second half of the conference campaign starts next week. Ware, who signed to play with Division II North Greenville, is having another All-Conference season. She scored 24 points in a loss to Eastern Alamance on Friday.

Cedar Ridge women’s basketball’s Amiyah Ware & Calla Lundberg discuss win over Chatham Central

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It’s not news that another Orange women’s basketball game went down to the wire.

All four of its Central Conference contests this year have followed the same path. The only different on Wednesday night was Orange was opposed by Amiyah Ware, who was more than they could deal with.

Now, after Cedar Ridge’s first win at Orange since December 19, 2017, it’s officially game on in the race for the Central Conference championship.

Ware added to her legacy of statistically incredible performances with 35 points in the Red Wolves 54-47 win over the Panthers on Wednesday night. It wasn’t the 54 points that she scored against Western Alamance last February, which broke the Orange County record. But Ware did either score or assist on every Cedar Ridge field goal in the second half.

Evelyn George, who was matched up against Ware most of the night, led Orange with 21 points.

It was the Red Wolves first win over its crosstown rival since January 8, 2019. On that night, Cedar Ridge defeated Orange 44-37 at Red Wolves Gymnasium behind 23 points from Madison Wardlow.

“She really stepped up tonight,” said Cedar Ridge coach Megan Skouby. “The past couple of games after she got hurt I think was a little hesitant. This game she really picked it back up again.”

Cedar Ridge’s win overshadowed a strong performance by Orange center Marshea Byrd, who finished with the first double-double of her career with 12 points and 12 rebounds. With 1:16 remaining in regulation, Byrd fouled out after trying to block a shot from Ware. Orange, who played without sophomore forward Mariah Poole, missed Byrd’s post presence in the extra session.

After Byrd’s fifth foul, Ware sank a free throw to tie the game at 42-42.

Cedar Ridge didn’t miss a shot in overtime. After Orange won the jump ball, Ware pulled down a defensive rebound and sank a three-pointer over George to give the Red Wolves a 45-42 lead. Junior Sarah Utley stole the ball away from Shannon Murphy on Orange’s next possession and split two free throws after being fouled by Maura McMurtry.

After Murphy scored off an offensive rebound to cut the Red Wolf lead to 46-44, Cedar Ridge freshman Kate Finnegan drained a jumper from the top of the key off a pass from Utley.

Finnegan, who wasn’t even on the varsity when Cedar Ridge started its season in November, finished with ten points and seven rebounds.

“She isn’t afraid to shoot,” Skouby said. “That’s something you can’t teach a freshman. She’s working hard. We pulled her up from junior varsity a couple of weeks ago and she’s now one of our starters because she’s working her butt off.”

Orange missed a three-pointer on its next possession and Ware drained four three throws in the final 90 seconds to put the game away.

The contest had 12 lead changes and six ties. Just as they had done against Western Alamance, Southern Alamance and Walter Williams, it appeared Orange would mount a late run to earn another home win. After Ware scored the opening points of the fourth quarter, Byrd and George scored field goals, both assisted by McMurtry, to put the Lady Panthers ahead 36-34.

Ware wouldn’t be denied as she went on a personal 6-0 run to vault the Red Wolves ahead 39-36. Following a free throw by Lily Crayton with 4:36 remaining, McMurtry grabbed an offensive rebound and fed George for a 3-pointer to put Orange ahead 40-39.

Following a Cedar Ridge timeout, Ware drained a baseline jumper off a drive with 2:12 remaining to give Cedar Ridge the lead at 41-40. After an Orange turnover, Alexis Stephens blocked a shot by Cedar Ridge’s Addie Reid, which led to a fast break where George scored off a lay-up from a pass by McMurtry.

Cedar Ridge, who fielded a team with only five players during the pandemic three years ago, is now tied with Orange, Western Alamance and Eastern Alamance for first place in the Central Conference in a race that is anything but predictable just one-quarter of the way into the league slate.

“I think on any given night, whoever is playing their best is gonna come out on top,” Skouby said. “I think a lot of games are going to go down to the end this year.”

Amiyah Ware came up with her biggest game of the season for the Cedar Ridge women’s basketball team on Wednesday night. The end result was Cedar Ridge’s first win over its crosstown rival, Orange, since 2019. Ware finished with a season-high 35 points as the Red Wolves defeated Orange 54-47 in overtime. It was Cedar Ridge’s first win inside Panther Gymnasium since December 19, 2017. Ware either scored or assisted on all 22 points that Cedar Ridge scored in the second half. Ware tied the game at 42-42 with a free throw with 1:16 remaining in regulation. Cedar Ridge never trailed in overtime after Ware opened with a three-pointer on the Red Wolves opening possession. Kate Finnegan sank a crucial jumper from the top of the key off a feed from Sarah Utley with 1:54 remains in overtime to put the Red Wolves ahead 48-44. Ware has had another big week. On Monday night, she scored 17 point in Cedar Ridge’s 46-35 win over Chatham Central. Cedar Ridge is 9-5 overall and tied for first place in the loss column with three other teams in the Central Conference. The Red Wolves haven’t won ten games in a season since 2017-2018, when they were coached by Felton Page. Cedar Ridge will face Eastern Alamance tonight at 6PM at Red Wolves Gymnasium.

Cedar Ridge women’s basketball’s Amiyah Ware & head coach Megan Skouby discuss win at Orange

Amiyah Ware came up with her biggest game of the season for the Cedar Ridge women’s basketball team on Wednesday night. The end result was Cedar Ridge’s first win over its crosstown rival, Orange, since 2019. Ware finished with a season-high 35 points as the Red Wolves defeated Orange 54-47 in overtime.

The Cedar Ridge women’s basketball team found its backbeat again.

In any good rock n’roll band, the backbeat provided by the drummer keeps everything in rhythm, provides proper time and makes everything swing properly.

Amiyah Ware is the Neil Peart or Keith Moon of the Cedar Ridge women’s team.

Ware returned to the lineup after she missing two games with a right knee injury. In her absence, the Red Wolves had 33 turnovers against Person, but still managed to scratch out a 46-43 victory over the Rockets.

While it took time for Ware to get her offensive engine cranked up against Southern Alamance, her ball-handling reliability chopped down Cedar Ridge’s turnover total to a mere 18 miscues.

Ware scored a season-high 28 points, including seven 3-pointers, as the Red Wolves defeated Southern Alamance 48-43 at Red Wolves Gymnasium on Friday night.

Cedar Ridge (8-5, 2-1 in the Central Conference) were held to nine points in the opening 15 minutes, but shot 7-of-11 in the third period to take a 32-29 lead into the fourth quarter.

Ware gave the Red Wolves the lead for good with a 3-pointer off a pass from Sarah Utley with 5:40 remaining in the fourth quarter. The Patriots were led by Sunny Yarnell, who finished with eleven points, but fouled out after she was called for a charge when she ran into Red Wolf freshman Kate Finnegan. Ware scored the Red Wolves next four points, including a 3-pointer assisted by Finnegan. Ware also drained several free throws in the final minute.

Morgan Isley and Madison Brouillard also each had eleven points for the Patriots (4-9, 0-3).

While Ware didn’t start the game, the Red Wolves were limited to just three shots from the field in the opening quarter. The Patriots took a 10-3 lead at the end of the first quarter as Yarnell scored the first three field goals.

Cedar Ridge will travel to Orange on Wednesday night at 6PM.

Orange 46, Walter Williams 44: The Orange women’s basketball team is now the only undefeated team in Central Conference play after they survived a battle with Walter Williams.

Orange used a 20-4 run at the end of the third quarter to overcome an early deficit to the Bulldogs. Junior Evelyn George sparked the run for the Lady Panthers (8-4, 3-0 in the Central Conference). George finished with 16 points and seven rebounds. Sophomore Addie Atkins added eight points.

Williams forward Reagan Averett led all scorers with 17 points, while Alaiyah Mitchell added ten points.

With 6:36 remaining in the third quarter, Williams’ Jordan Taylor scored off a lay-in off a pass from Scout Winter to put the Bulldogs egghead 27-21. Orange sophomore Maura McMurtry nailed a three-pointer off a pass from Atkins to spark an Orange run. After a field goal by Taylor, McMurtry dropped in a straightaway three-pointer off a pass from Alexis Stephens. Orange sophomore Mariah Poole tied the game off a steal and lay-in at 29-29.

Averett knocked down two free throws for the Bulldogs, but that would be its last lead. Orange guard Shannon Murphy tied the game with a jumper, which was followed by a steal by George, who scored on a lay-in. George would score off a stickleback basket, then added a 3-pointer at the third quarter buzzer assisted by McMurtry to increase the Panthers’ lead to 38-31.

McMurtry opened the fourth quarter with a three-pointer, followed by another lay-in by George with 6:37 remaining in regulation to build the Orange advantage to 43-31. That turned out to be Orange’s final field goal.

The Bulldogs would chip away at the lead with Averett scoring a three-pointer off a feed from Winter. Atkins hit two free throws with 2:15 remaining in the fourth quarter to build the Orange lead back to 46-40.

Taylor and Aaliyah Mitchell scored field goals to cut the Bulldog lead to 46-44 with :48 remaining. Williams’ full court pressure led to an Orange turnover in a frantic final 10 seconds, but the Bulldogs threw the ball away in a rush to get the ball to the basket with :3.1 left. With Orange clinging to a 46-44 lead, McMurtry took the inbounds pass and dribbled away from Mitchell long enough to run out the clock.

Without its star player Amiyah Ware, every game has been a battle for the Cedar Ridge women’s basketball team. On Tuesday night, the Red Wolves relied on its depth to defeat Person 46-43 at Red Wolves Gymnasium. In just her third varsity game, freshman Kate Finnegan led all scorers with 16 points and 18 rebounds as the Red Wolves improved to 5-5, 1-1 in the Central Conference. Sophomore guard Jamee Watson drained a key 3-pointer with 2:47 remaining to put Cedar Ridge ahead 41-34. After the Rockets cut its deficit to 43-41 with 55 seconds remaining, Finnegan scored on a lay-in off a pretty transition pass from Sarah Utley for the final field goal of the game with 24 seconds remaining. Utley finished with ten points, eight rebounds, eight assists and five steals. Cedar Ridge has already surpassed its win total from all of last season as they try to reach the state playoffs for the first time since the 2017-2018 season. The Red Wolves have its most wins in a year since the 2018-2019 season, when they won seven games. Ware, who broke the county record when she scored 54 points last year, was injured against Western Alamance on December 15. She watched from the bench last night and hopes to return soon. Cedar Ridge will host Southern Alamance in Hillsborough on Friday night.

Cedar Ridge women’s basketball’s Kate Finnegan & Jamee Watson discuss win over Person

Without its star player Amiyah Ware, every game has been a battle for the Cedar Ridge women’s basketball team. On Tuesday night, the Red Wolves relied on its depth to defeat Person 46-43 at Red Wolves Gymnasium.