Cedar Ridge Wrestling

Cedar Ridge sophomore Pierce Prescod has attacked this wrestling season with a fervor comparable to a man on a mission.

That’s because he’s on one–to reach the 3A State wrestling tournament.

In a season that’s already featured several milestones for Cedar Ridge wrestling, Prescod added another on Wednesday night. He recorded his 100th career pin with victories over Jayden Batten of Eastern Alamance and Kenzo Kinoshita of Panther Creek. Prescod is now in fourth place in school history with 140 career wins. He is only behind Chandler Collins, who holds the school record with 166 wins; Kaden Tatro, Prescod’s former teammate, who finished with 159 wins last February; and Josh Collins, a member of the original Cedar Ridge wrestling team that recorded 151 wins from 2001-2005.

Prescod improved to 28-4 with 14 pins this year.

As a sophomore, Prescod won two individual championships as he went into the regional tournament held at Cedar Ridge in February 2024. He faced South Johnston’s Carson Cori in the consolation semifinals of the 120 pound tournament. The winner would reach the state tournament. Just seconds into the match, Prescod slammed Cori, who began holding his back. Cori claimed he couldn’t continue and won on an injury stoppage. Prescod, with 44 wins on the season, was denied a chance to reach the Greensboro Coliseum.

On Wednesday, Cedar Ridge defeated Eastern Alamance 65-18 to improve to 3-1 in the Central Conference.

Alejandro Briones earned two more wins on the night. He defeated Ilia Anokhin of Panther Creek 16-4 in a major decision. Following a forfeit win over Eastern Alamance, Briones is now 28-4 with 15 pins this season.

At 190 pounds, Will Meyer pinned Yugo Hibi of Panther Creek in 18 seconds. Later, he pinned Christopher Schild of Eastern Alamance in 1:40. Meyer is 13-9 with ten pins this year.

Cedar Ridge senior Ryan Rakouskas scored his first technical fall victory of the year, beating Eastern Alamanace’s Carson Gardner 20-3. Following a forfeit win over Panther Creek, Rakouskas improved to 27-2 on the season

Graylon Collins pinned Brayan Acosta in 1:35 to improve to improve to 18-11. It was his seventh pin of the season.

Cedar Ridge is now 14-8 overall.

Both Cedar Ridge and Orange will compete in the Eagle Invitational at the Mebane Arts Center later this afternoon. The tournament will conclude on Saturday.

Person 68, Orange 12: The Person Rockets wrestling team has the inside track on winning the Central Conference regular season championship for the first time after beating the Panthers at Rockets Gymnasium on Wednesday night.

Orange freshman Jordan Barbee, who won all five of his matches at the Rumble in the Jungle at Carrboro High last Saturday, pinned Christian Burwell in the final match of the night. Barbee is a seven-match winning streak and is 13-4 with nine pins.

Orange’s only other victory on the night came from senior Braden Crawford, who pinned Kai Montgomery at 138 pounds. Crawford is 13-4 with nine pins this season.

Person won all 12 of its matches by either pinfall or technical fall. Rockets senior Trevquan Gary, the 2024 3A State Heavyweight Champion, scored a technical fall over Orange’s Eli Clayton 15-0.

Person is 13-0 with wins over both Hillsborough schools. The Rockets edged Cedar Ridge 34-32 on November 26 in Roxboro.

Indoor Track and Field: Orange three-sport athlete Adelyn Alvis qualified for the State Indoor Track and Field Championships during the first Eastern Alamance Polar Bear event of the season in Mebane on Tuesday. Alvis, who was a starter for the women’s tennis team last fall, finished second in the 500 yard dash at 1:18.66. She came in just .54 of a second behind East Chapel Hill’s Ava Maughan.

The State Championsship qualifying standard is 1:22.24.

Orange senior Kingston Purefoy-Farrington came in second in the 55 meter dash at 6.70, just behind Southeast Alamance’s Augustine Koroma, who finished one-hundreth-of-a-second ahead at 6.69.

Orange junior Lucas Van Mater qualified for the State Indoor Championship earlier this fall in the 3,200 meters. It will be his second straight year in the State Championships, which will be held at the JDL Fast Track in Winston-Salem on February 14 & 15.

Last year, the Cedar Ridge wrestling team was dominant in its first-ever win over crosstown rival Orange.

On Wednesday night, a veteran and a grappler competing for the first time this season scored pins late in the night to break open a close match and secure the Red Wolves 2nd-ever win over the Panthers.

With Orange leading 30-28, Cedar Ridge sophomore Alejandro Briones pinned Markus Thomas at 144 pounds to put the Red Wolves ahead. Cedar Ridge would score pins in each of the last three matches to defeat the Panthers 52-30 at Panthers Gymnasium on Wednesday night. It was the first time ever that Cedar Ridge won at Orange.

Briones improved to 15-7 with his eighth pinfall win of the season.

In his first match of the season, Cedar Ridge junior Mikey O’Melia pinned Sebastain Guardia in 5:18 to put the Red Wolves ahead 40-30. At 157 pounds, the Red Wolves Ryan Rakouskas earned his team-leading 15th pin of the year by finishing Eben Petrides in 1:00. Rakouskas, who claimed his 100th win of the season last month, is 20-2 on the year.

Cedar Ridge senior Jordin Blue pinned Andrew Pavalonis to end the night in 57 seconds. Cedar Ridge improved to 10-5 overall, 2-1 in the Central Conference.

Orange fell to 3-2, 2-1 in the Central Conference.

None of the 14 matches went the distance and all were decided with bonus points. Cedar Ridge’s Shea Spiller started with a technical fall win over Conner Harward 18-2.

The Panthers, who started five freshman in the Jim King/Orange Invitational last week, surged ahead behind early pins from freshman Jordan Barbee, who defeated Will Meyer in 5:50. It was Barbee’s fourth pin of the season as he improved to 7-4.

Senior Jayden Medley put Orange ahead 12-5 after he pinned Daniel Silva in 51 seconds. Medley, who finished third in the Red Wolf Invitational last month, improved to 10-2 with his third pin.

At heavyweight, Carlos Baldwin pinned Orange’s Eli Clayton in 39 seconds. It was Baldwin’s seventh pin of the year as he won for the 12th time against six losses.

Juan Esparza Jaramillo put Cedar Ridge ahead with a pin of Max Molinar in 3:43. Jaramillo is 14-6. At 113 pounds, Favio Esparza Jaramillo pinned Brady McAdams in 1:02 to put the Red Wolves ahead 23-12.

Orange scored pins in three of the next four matches. At 120 pounds, Logan Scarantino defeated Angel Ramirez in 29 seconds. Cedar Ridge’s Pierce Prescod defeated Renn Van Hoose via technical fall to improve to 22-3, the most wins among the Red Wolves.

With Orange down 28-18, Adrian Sierra put the Panthers closer with a pin over Samuel Olmstead in 1:34. Panthers senior Braden Crawford defeated Graylon Collins at 138 pounds. Crawford is 9-3 after his seventh pin of the season.

The first female wrestling champions from Hillsborough in the Jim King/Orange Invitational provided a study in contrasts.

Thalia Paterno is a freshman at Cedar Ridge who has wrestled since her sixth grade year at Stanback Middle School.

Chloe Pankratz is a senior at Cedar Ridge who started wrestling last year mainly because one of her best friends was the Captain of the women’s team who successfully talked her into joining the squad.

In terms of experience, Pankratz and Paterno are different. In terms of success so far this season, they’re similar.

On Saturday, Paterno won her second individual championship at the JKO, which hosted a women’s tournament for the second time ever at Orange High School. In a four-competitor, round robin format, Paterno pinned all three of her opponents in less than one minute. She defeated Kailey Cabrera of Bartlett Yancey in 19 seconds, then finished off Angela Chen of Cary in 38 seconds. In the de facto championship match, Paterno pinned Sophia Gould of Millbrook in 33 seconds.

Paterno is 13-1 with nine pins in her freshman season. Her only loss came in the championship match of the season-opening Atkins Invitational in Winston-Salem.

“I think I was pretty good,” Paterno said. “My first match wasn’t great, but I think my other two were pretty good.”

Paterno started her career in middle school when her parents lobbied her to play a winter sport in middle school. She would have selected Ultimate frisbee, but Stanback didn’t have a team. So she chose wrestling.

She’s also on the Cedar Ridge women’s junior varsity cross country team.

“Wrestling is fun,” Paterno said. “I get to make friends and I get to stay in good shape.”

Shortly after Paterno became the first female wrestler from Hillsborough to win a JKO Championship, Pankratz became the second. She pinned all three of her opponents in the 132 pound tournament , none of the matches exceeding one minute. Pankratz, the top-seed, pinned Leilani Valai of Terry Sanford in 51 seconds. In the semifinals, she finished Anneliese Garcia-Rodriguez of Middle Creek in 36 seconds. In the championship match, Katie Lloyd of Seaforth scored an early takedown, but Paterno quickly reserved it and scored a pin in 59 seconds.

This season, she is 16-1. In each of her non-forfeit victories, she has pinned her opponents, 12 times overall.

Pankratz joined Cedar Ridge’s wrestling team last year at the urging of Zoey Moreno, who won the Red Wolf Invitational at 120 pounds last year. In one year’s time, Pankratz went from failing to place at the Red Wolf Invitational in 2023 to winning the championship last month at 132 pounds.

Though Moreno graduated in June and is now wrestles at Division III Greensboro College, Pankratz hasn’t forgotten her. She ties her hair up in pigtails for each of her matches, just as Moreno did, as a standing tribute.

“It takes maybe five minutes,” Pankratz said.

What started as a hobby has turned into a borderline obsession for Pankratz. After every match, she scours video to find strengths, weaknesses and what to work on for the future.

With four wrestlers, Cedar Ridge still finished 4th in the women’s team standings with 51 points. Millbrook, with 12 competitors, won the women’s team championship with 153.5 points. Cary, fielding nine wrestlers, came in second with 65 points.

Orange’s Ava Lytle finished runner-up at 126 pounds. Lytle pinned Rebecca Parker of East Chapel Hill in the semifinals. Ellyaunnie Jacuinde Ramirez of Western Harnett took the championship.

Orange’s Rose Brady finished second in the 235-pound division. Brady pinned Ava Briel of Millbrook in 5:00 in the opening match of the round robin tournament. Cary’s Ella Taylor won the championship with a pin over Brady in the final.

This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is senior wrestler Chloe Pankratz. On Saturday, Pankratz won the 138-pound championship at the Jim King/Orange Invitational at Orange High School. It was her third individual championship of the year. Last month, Pankratz won the Atkins Invitational in Winston-Salem. She has also won the Red Wolf Invitational, pinning all three of her opponents in a round-robin tournament. Pankratz is part of the emergence of women in wrestling locally. She just started competing last year because her friend, Zoey Moreno, was a team Captain who encouraged Pankratz to give the sport a try. She has quickly developed a love of wrestling and wants to continue her pursuit of excellence after she graduates in June. Pankratz constantly studies video of her matches, win or lose, and is now part of a Cedar Ridge team that is competing in dual matches for females only. Last month, Pankratz was seeded #3 in the Watkins Invitational, but pinned the two higher seeds to win the championship. In the semifinals, Pankratz defeated Amelia Martino of East Mecklenburg in 18 seconds. In the final, she pinned the #1  seed, Jadyn Magallanes of West Forsyth in 56 seconds. On Saturday, Pankratz pinned Katie Lloyd of Southeast Alamance in the championship match at 138 pounds. Pankratz pinned all three of her opponents on Saturday, including Anneliese Garcia-Rodriguez of Midde Creek in the semifinals. Pankratz pinned all three of her opponents in less than a minute on Saturday.

Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week: Chloe Pankratz

This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is senior wrestler Chloe Pankratz. On Saturday, Pankratz won the 138-pound championship at the Jim King/Orange Invitational at Orange High School. It was her third individual championship of the year. Last month, Pankratz won the Atkins Invitational in Winston-Salem.

Not even three weeks into the winter sports season, it’s already been a landmark year for Cedar Ridge senior Ryan Rakouskas.

At the Atkins Invitational, the opening tournament of the year, Rakouskas defeated Brice Baker of Oak Grove High in sudden victory to win the 157-pound championship. He also became the eighth Cedar Ridge wrestler to win 100 career matches.

On November 23, Rakouskas won his second consecutive Red Wolf Invitational championship and defeated the top-seed at 157 pounds to do it. Rakouskas pinned Andrew Taylor of West Rowan in 56 to successfully defend his championship. Last year, Rakouskas defeated Thomas Gingerich of Green Level 9-3 to take the tournament title.

Despite being the defending champions, Rakouskas entered the tournament as the #2 seed. But he pinned four opponents in four matches to repeat as champion.

Rakouskas finished off Bilial Benzenmour of Southeast Raleigh in the semifinals just as the first period ended. Rakouskas led 6-1 when he scored the pin as the official hit the mat just before the buzzer sounded. In the quarterfinals, Rakouskas pinned T’mari Mcclelland of McMichael in 29 seconds. After receiving a bye into the second round, Rakouskas pinned his own teammate, Isaiah Craig, in 1:17 in a rare instance of two competitors from the same team facing each other.

Rakouskas stood above the rest in a crowded field to repeat as champion. Cedar Ridge finished 4th in the team standings with 139 points. Seaforth took the team championship with 179 points. West Rowan finished 2nd. Person, led by defending 3A State Heavyweight champions Trevquan Gary, finished 3rd.

Orange finished 11th. The top Panther finisher was senior Jayden Medley who finished 3rd at 215 pounds. Medley, who was named All-Conference in football this week, defeated Quentez Butler of Asheboro in the consolation final 8-3. Medley pinned Gavin Jones of Person in the consolation semifinals.

Orange’s Braden Crawford finished 4th at 138 pounds. Crawford reached the semifinals after he pinned Graylon Collins of Cedar Ridge in 1:29. Jackson Young of Panther Creek defeated Crawford 6-2 in the semifinals. In the consolation semifinals, Crawford advanced when Person’s Jameer Farmer couldn’t continue due to injury. Stetson Collins of West Rowan, the top-seed, won the consolation final 9-2.

Cedar Ridge senior Pierce Prescod finished 3rd at 126 pounds. Prescod, the defending 120 pound champion, reached the quarterfinals before he was edged by Carter Furman of Northwest Guilford 5-4. Furman got an escape with 46 seconds remaining in the third period after Prescod earned a takedown to even the match at 4-4.

In the consolation round, Prescod earned technical fall win over Noah Vo of Panther Creek and Julian Combs of Person. In the consolation semifinals, Prescod’s match against Western Alamance’s Omar Rushing went to overtime. Prescod scored a rare pin in sudden victory to advance to the 3rd place match, where he faced Furman in a rematch. This time, Prescod led 11-8 before the match was stopped in the third period. Prescod was named the winner by disqualification.

At 150 pounds, Cedar Ridge’s Alejandro Briones finished 3rd at 150 pounds. Briones defeated Alexander Patino of Asheboro 19-11 in the 3rd place match. Briones, who won the 144 pound championship in the Central Conference Tournament last year, opened with a pinfall win over Gabriel Mumma of Panther Creek. Top-seeded Kevin O’Brien of West Rowan, the eventual champion, defeated Briones in the quarterfinals.

At 113 pounds, Cedar Ridge’s Favio Jaramillo Espar finished 4th. He opened by pinning Orange’s Mason Horne in 45 seconds. Jesse Farnsworth of Panther Creek edged Jaramillo 8-7 on a takedown coming with 18 seconds remaining. Farnsworth would upset the top-seed, Alex Raymundo of Randleman en route to the championship match.

Jaramillo scored a technical fall over Mason Browne of Apex Friendship to start his stint in the consolation round. He pinned David Matus of Athens Drive in 49 seconds. In the consolation semifinals, Jaramillo held off Damonte Bradley of Carrboro 3-0.

Raymundo won the 3rd place match 16-5.

Last year, Jaramillo finished 3rd at 106 pounds.

For the second year in a row, the Cedar Ridge women’s wrestling team crowned a champion at the Red Wolf Invitational.

In fact, they crowned two.

Chloe Pankratz claimed her first individual championship at 138 pounds, pinning all three of her opponents in a round-robin tournament that featured four other competitors.

At 100 pounds, Thalia Paterno defeated top-seeded Eva Serrano of Panther Creek in the semifinals and went on to claim the championship. She scored pins in both of her matches as the Red Wolves finished 4th in the women’s team standings with 54 points. Panther Creek captured the women’s team championship with 141 points.

Pankratz, who didn’t play in the 132-pound tournament last year, pinned Aaliyah McNeill of South Garner in 15 seconds in her opening match. Pankratz defeated Cece Maldonado of Southeast Alamance in 31 seconds. With the championship at stakge, Pankratz pinned Caroline Cook of Seaforth to clinch her first individual championship.

Last year, Cedar Ridge’s Zoey Moreno won the 120-pound title at the Red Wolf Invitational. Moreno pinned Adriana Gruner of Northern Durham in 15 seconds to take the 2023 championship.

The 100 pound championship turned into an all-Hillsborough matchup. After Paterno pinned Serrano, Orange’s Elyse Wilscam pinned Alexus Pementhal of West Rowan in 14 seconds to reach the final. Paterno pinned Wilscam in 1:03 to earn her first individual championship.

Orange’s Ava Lytle finished 3rd at 126 pounds. After Gianna Susser of Garner, the eventual champion, won in the opening round, Lytle Andrea Thornton of Asheboro via pinfall in 1:32. In the consolation final, Lytle pinned Aaliyah Pearson of Southeast Raleigh in 18 seconds.

Pankratz started the season with a runner-up finish in the Atkins Invitational at Atkins Academic and Technology High School in Winston-Salem on November 14. Pankratz scored three pins on her way to the final. She defeated Leora Hein of Oak Hill Academy in 36 seconds. She pinned Ashley Hernandez of Oak Grove in 1:12, then pinned 2nd-seeded Amelia Martino of East Mecklenburg in the semifinals in 5:13. Top-seeded Jadyn Magallanes of West Forsyth claimed the championship.

Paterno also reached the finals of the Atkins Invitational at 100 pounds. In a five-competitor field, Paterno pinned Naria Selomith of West Forsyth in 14 seconds. Victoria Pioquinto of West Forsyth pinned Paterno in 3:36 in the final, though Paterno did have a 5-1 lead with 1:00 remaining in the second period.

Also at the Atkins, Cedar Ridge’s Melissa Avendano won her opening round match at 165 pounds. In the quarterfinals, Avendano defeated Aaliyah Page of East Mecklenburg. Isabelle Clemmons of Atkins Academic won the championship over Janiyah Quidachay of Southeast Alamance in the final.

The Cedar Ridge women’s team has grown to the point that they’re now holding standard dual meets against Central Conference opponents. Last week, the Red Wolves women’s team won its first dual match when they defeated Person 24-12, though all of the matches were forfeits because Cedar Ridge had four wrestlers who were unrivaled in their respective weight classes. Caroline Donjuan, Pankratz, Paterno and Mariana Duqum all claimed victories.

Also in the tri-meet against Person, Cary defeated Cedar Ridge 42-18. Of the three matches that didn’t end in forfeit, Cedar Ridge won two of them. Pankratz defeated Treasure Harvest at 138 pounds via pinfall. At 100 pounds, Paterno pinned Angela Chen.

The Orange women’s team started the season at the Wolverine Challenge at Wakefield High School in Raleigh on November 16. At 100 pounds, Wiscam finished in third place after she pinned Alena McNaughton of Panther Creek in 2:56. In the opening round, Wiscam advanced to the semifinals with a pinfall victory over McNaughton in 3:30.

Orange’s Ava Lytle was the top seed in the 126 pound tournament and finished fourth. Lytle pinned Miracle Lester of Hoke County in the consolation round. In the consolation semifinals, Lytle pinned Vanity Martinez of Currituck County.

Despite losing seven starters from last year’s Central Conference championship team, Cedar Ridge wrestling is still a force to be reckoned with.

Red Wolf senior Ryan Rakouskas won his 100th career match en route to the 157-pounds championship as Cedar Ridge won the Atkins Invitational at Atkins Academic and Technology High School in Greensboro on Saturday. Rakouskas defeated Brice Baker of Oak Grove High in overtime 14-11 in the championship final.

Rakouskas becomes the eighth Cedar Ridge wrestler to win 100 career matches. He is the fourth grappler in the last three years to win 100 matches. Fernando Martinez, who graduated in 2023 and now wrestles at UNC Pembroke, won 100 matches during his senior year. Last year, Kaden Tatro also joined the 100-win club. Senior Pierce Prescod surpassed 100 wins last winter.

Rakouskas finished 35-13 with 29 pins last season. He opened his first tournament of the 2024-2025 season with a pin over Braxton Bragg of East Mecklenburg. In the quarterfinals, Rakouskas pinned Adam Curry of Asheboro in 1:02. He secured a spot in the championship match with a 10-4 victory over Jack Martin of Mount Airy.

Cedar Ridge finished with 159 points, tops in the 25-team field. Atkins Academic and Technology finished second with 137 points.

“I thought we had a shot to crack the top five,” said Cedar Ridge coach Scott Metcalf. “I’m shocked that we won, honestly. We lost seven starters from last year’s team so it’s hardly imaginable that we could be better this year. But this is a really good group of kids who get along great and work really hard. So it’s entirely feasible if things keep coming together.”

The surprise of the weekend was Will Meyer, who captured the 190-pound championship. Meyer has spent the past three years on junior varsity and appeared in three matches at the varsity level last year. He pinned all four of his opponents in the tournament, including a victory over Matthew Oliver of R.J. Reynolds in the semifinals at 2:41. In the championship match, Meyer pinned Glenn Huskey of Rockingham County in 1:58.

Meyer faced a higher-seeded competitor in each of his four matches. He opened by pinning 7th-seeded Michael King of Reagan High in 3:10.

The Red Wolves had three others reach the finals in their respective weight classes. Jordin Blue won three matches in the 165-pound tournament, pinning Jack Steele of Southeast Guilford in the semifinals. Cooper Ranson of Atkins Academic on the championship over Blue. In the quarterfinals, Blue scored a technical fall over Kolvin Walker of Alexander Central.

At 126 pounds, Prescod reached the championship match. Prescod, the top-seed, defeated Braylen George of Mt. Airy 18-2 to advance via technical fall. In the championship match, Omar Rushing of Mt. Airy held off Prescod 4-3. Prescod took a 1-0 lead into the third period, but Rushing scored the only takedown of the match with 37 seconds remaining in the third period. Prescod got an escape in the final seconds, but couldn’t gain the final point.

Alejandro Briones, the defending Central Conference champion at 144-pounds, reached the final at 150 pounds. Briones, who won both of his matches in the season-opening tri-meet at Uwharrie Charter Academy last Thursday, pinned Daniel Runion of R.J. Reynolds in 1:57 in the semifinals. Briones scored two pins and a tech fall leading up to the championship match. Cole Kenerley of East Mecklenburg pinned Briones in 3:09 to win the title. Briones led 6-1 in the opening minute of the match, but Kenerley scored four near fall points in the final 30 seconds of the opening period.

Favio Jaramillo Esparza finished third at 113-pounds. In the consolation final, he pinned Gavin Cranford of Montgomery Central in 3:49.

In the women’s tournaments, Cedar Ridge’s Thalia Paterno reached the final at 100-pounds. Paterno pinned Naria Selomith of West Forsyth in 14 seconds. Victoria Pioquinto of West Forsyth won the championship via pinfall in 3:36.

At 138 pounds, Cedar Ridge’s Chloe Pankratz reached the final, finishing runner-up. In the semifinals, Pankratz pinned the 2nd seed, Amelia Martino of East Mecklenburg in 5:13. Jadyn Magallanes of West Forsyth won the championship.

This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is junior wrestler Pierce Prescod. This season, Prescod finished 47-11 and had 36 pins. He won the 120-pound Central Conference championship at Walter Williams High School. He pinned Pedro Manuel Ramon of Walter Williams and Adrian Sierra of Orange to win the tournament. It was a season full of individual accolades in tournaments for Prescod. He captured the Red Wolf Invitational in November, when he pinned Bearik Bigelow of Green Hope in the championship match. This year, Cedar Ridge won the Central Conference championship, its first-ever team championship as a 3A team and only its second in wrestling. They defeated crosstown rival Orange for the first time in history. He also finished third in the prestigious Tiger Holiday Invitational at Chapel Hill High School. Prescod went undefeated in league matches, going 10-0 including the Central Conference Tournament and state dual tournament. Cedar Ridge reached the state quarterfinals of the 3A State Dual Team Tournament at Currituck County, winning in the opening round over Carrboro and then pinning Person’s Julian Combs. It was Cedar Ridge’s best-ever showing in the 3A State Dual Team Tournament. Presocd finished 4th in the Gate City Grapple. Prescod will be relied upon to be one of the leaders for next year’s Cedar Ridge wrestling team as he enters his senior year.

Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week: Pierce Prescod

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This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is senior wrestler Kaden Tatro. This season, Tatro won the Central Conference Championship at 165 pounds at Walter Williams High School in Burlington. Tatro ended the year 49-5. He completed his career with 159 wins, the second-most in school history. This season, Tatro helped Cedar Ridge win the Central Conference regular season championship, their first team title at the 3A level and just their second regular season championship ever. He also helped Cedar Ridge beat crosstown rival Orange for the first time. Tatro won two conference championships in his career. He finished third in the Mideast Regional championships at 165 pounds. As a junior, Tatro helped Cedar Ridge win the Central Conference Tournament at Orange High School in February 2023. In his junior season, Tatro finished 54-8 and finished second at the Mideast Regional championships. He wound up finishing sixth in the 3A State Championships at the Greensboro Coliseum. Tatro’s name will forever be etched in Cedar Ridge wrestling history when his name on the all-time wins list is adorned inside the team’s wrestling room on a banner. Tatro also played lacrosse during the pandemic in 2021 when the Red Wolves made the state playoffs under the direction of former head coach Patrick Cavanaugh.

Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week: Kaden Tatro

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As the dual season ends for the Cedar Ridge Red Wolves wrestling team, they can take pride in the fact they are the first of its kind.

They were the first team in school history to reach the state quarterfinals in the 3A State Dual Team Playoffs. They were the first Red Wolf team since 2010 to win a match in the state dual playoffs. They were the first Cedar Ridge team to ever beat Orange in a dual meet and just the second team in school history to win a regular season conference championship.

The Jacksonville Cardinals defeated the Red Wolves 49-27 in the 3A State Dual Quarterfinals on Wednesday night in Jacksonville. Later that night, Union Pines would claim its third consecutive 3A Eastern Regional championship when they defeated the Cardinals 47-18.

Union Pines will face Eastern Guilford for the 3A State Championship at Novant Fieldhouse in Greensboro on Saturday.

Cedar Ridge ends the dual team season 18-9.

Red Wolf senior James Este-Wittinger opened the night with a 6-4 decision over Alexander Perry to give Cedar Ridge a 3-0 lead. Este-Wittinger will go into the 3A Mideast Regionals with a 31-11 record. At heavyweight, Jacksonville’s Eteuati Taula pinned Aaron Olivares in 3:04. It was only the third loss in the last 12 matches for Olivares.

At 106 pounds, Cedar Ridge’s Favio Jaramillo Esparza pinned James Wernimont in 3:53 to give the Red Wolves a 9-6 lead. Cole Hunt of Jacksonville pinned Trevor Long at 113 pounds, but Cedar Ridge’s Pierce Prescod pinned Maxwell David in 2:18. Prescod leads the team with 33 pins this year with an overall record of 44-9.

Jacksonville dominated the middleweight classes with five straight wins. Gavin Nipper claimed a 9-3 decision over Nathan Vendura at 126 pounds to even the match at 15-15. The Cardinals’ Gavin Costillo (132), Mason McMullen (138) and Joseph Gabriel (144) all claimed pins. At 150 pounds, Brock Smith earned a major decision over Angus Pritchard 13-5, vaulting the Cardinals ahead 38-15 with four matches remaining.

Cedar Ridge junior Ryan Rakouskas pinned Anthony Campbell in 1:20. Rakouskas is now 32-11 after his 94th career win.

At 165 pounds, Kaden Tatro pinned Ethan McWaters in 51 seconds. Jacksonville’s Jonathan Moses pinned Shea Spiller to clinch the match for the Cardinals.

Next up for Cedar Ridge will be the Women’s Mideast Regionals on Friday and Saturday at Jack Britt High School in Fayetteville. The Red Wolves’ Zoey Moreno will try to reach the 3A State Women’s Individual Championships after barely missing out last year.