Cedar Ridge High School

Over the summer, the 21-year-old scoreboard at Cedar Ridge Stadium got an overhaul, courtesy of one of its most famous alumni.

As Trenton Gill prepares for his second NFL season with the Chicago Bears this weekend against the Green Bay Packers, he can rest assured that the soccer team he once played on put enough goals on the very board he helped fund to remain undefeated.

Not that everyone in a Red Wolves uniform was happy.

Junior Alejandro Macero-Ramos scored two goals, the first of his varsity career, to propel the Red Wolves past Person 5-0 in Hillsborugh on Wednesday night. Cedar Ridge (5-1-1, 1-0 in the Central Carolina Conference) won its league opener.

Sophomore Edber Lopez added a goal and an assist for the Red Wolves. Abazar Babiker and Salomon Hernandez each added a goal for the Red Wolves, who are off to its best start since at least 2010. Gael Antunez-Nunez added two assists for Cedar Ridge.

Senior co-Captain Iliah Babcenko had two assists.

Cedar Ridge sophomore goalkeeper Erik Galunas made six saves to earn the win. He made six saves. Midway through the second half, junior Ben Miller replaced Galunas in net and made two saves to keep the clean sheet intact.

On Thursday night, Cedar Ridge’s undefeated string came to an end. East Chapel Hill narrowly defeated the Red Wolves 1-0 at Dave Thaden Stadium.

Cedar Ridge will resume play in the CCC with its first conference road trip to Southern Alamance on Monday night in Graham.

Western Alamance 5, Orange 1: Konner Johnson notched a hat trick for Western Alamance to beat Orange in the Panthers’ conference opener at David Morton Field in Elon.

The Panthers fall to 1-4-1. Emanuel Mil Cruz scored Orange’s only goal on an assist from Yore Tapia Mendez. Orange will host Williams in Hillsborough on Monday night.

The tenure of Steve Mayhew as Cedar Ridge men’s and women’s tennis coach has brought unprecedented success to the programs.

His son, Josh, graduated in June as the most accomplished men’s player in the history of Hillsborough. Josh became the first player in Cedar Ridge or Orange history to reach the 3A State singles final four times. He also played for the 3A Mideast Regional championship four times. Mayhew was the captain of the 2022 Cedar Ridge men’s team that won the Central Carolina Conference championship, the first such title in school history.

While Josh has moved on to Belmont-Abbey, his sister, Cameron, has goals of her own for her senior year. On Tuesday night, amid a sticky and sweltering evening at Red Wolves Tennis Court, Cameron Mayhew, Raven Mowles-Airing, Catherine Ballenger, Annabeth Lundberg and Dupree Sorenson commemorated Senior Night with its first win over Orange since 2019.

The Red Wolves won four singles matches to defeat the Lady Panthers 6-3. All four singles wins came from Cedar Ridge seniors.

Mayhew and Ballinger each captured two victories as the Red Wolves (4-2, 2-0 in the Central Carolina Conference) remained undefeated in league play.

Mayhew defeated Erinn Sollars at #1 singles 10-2. Later, Mayhew and Adeline Cummings became the first team to defeat Orange’s top doubles team of Erinn and Shannon Sollars this season. in a match that captured the attention of everyone on hand since it was the last of the night, Mayhew and Cummings won 8-5.

Mayhew and Cummings are now 4-1 as a team in 2023.

“That’s the best I’ve seen Adeline play,” said Steve Mayhew, a former tennis player at Orange. “She was solid. She and Cameron complimented each other. It was a great, great match. It was close. The Sollars are a great team. There were a lot of close matches.”

While Mayhew and Cummings’ victory was icing on the cake, it was Ella Caltabiano and Ballenger who ensured the Red Wolves’ victory. Caltabiano and Ballenger defeated Molly Kruse and Ellie Wilson 8-0 for Cedar Ridge’s fifth win of the night.

Earlier in the night, Ballenger defeated Kruse 10-7 at #5 singles.

Mowles-Airing defeated Ellie Wilson 10-2 at #4 singles. Lundberg knocked off Orange sophomore Kyla Mehl 10-5.

In the tightest match of the night, Orange’s Makayla Davis and Kyla Mehl defeated Mowles-Airing and Lundberg 9-8 in a contest that came down to a 7-point tiebreaker. Davis and Mehl won 7-5.

This fall marks a farewell tour for Steve and Cameron Mayhew. It’s Cameron’s senior year. Steve will step down as Cedar Ridge tennis coach at the conclusion of the women’s tennis, partly because he wants to follow Josh’s at Belmont-Abbey.

“We feel fortunate to get the win,” Mayhew said. “We didn’t have many unforced errors. They had to beat us and we forced errors. That’s what you have to do in doubles.”

On Wednesday night, Cedar Ridge continued a span of three matches over three sweltering days by beating Eno River Academy 7-2 at Red Wolves Tennis Courts. Mayhew, Cummings, Caltabiano and Ballenger each won two matches.

Mayhew defeated Abby Winslow 8-0 at #1 singles. Cummings knocked off Betts Roney at #3 singles 8-1. At #1 doubles, Mayhew and Cummings teamed to beat Winslow and Roney 8-1.

Caltabiano won at #2 singles over Rebecca Kirby 8-2. Ballenger defeated Quinn Parker 8-0 at #5 singles. Caltabiano and Ballenger won at #2 doubles against Kirby and Chiara Menolascino 8-1.

At #3 doubles, Mowles-Airing and Lundberg defeated Parker and Lily Kate Philipps 8-3.

For Eno River, Eleanor Finkle defeated Mowles-Airing 8-5. The Bobcats’ Menolascino defeated Lundberg 8-1.

The Red Wolves will resume CCC play on Thursday when they travel to Mebane to face Eastern Alamance.

“It’s very nice,” Mayhew said. “Our players have stepped up and played outstanding. I couldn’t be more proud of them.”

It speaks to the higher standards of Cedar Ridge men’s soccer than they tied their win total from all of last season on Wednesday night, but still came away disappointed in their performance. The Red Wolves defeated Person 5-0 at Red Wolves Stadium, Cedar Ridge’s first home game since the season-opener against Eno River Academy on August 14. Yet Cedar Ridge missed out on several scoring opportunities that could have increased the scoring total. Junior Alejandro Macero-Ramos notched his first two goals at the varsity level. Senior Abazar Babiker, junior Salomon Hernandez and sophomore Edber Lopez also had goals for the Red Wolves. Cedar Ridge senior co—Captain Iliah Babchenko, this academic year’s first winner of the Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week, had two assists. Cedar Ridge won its Central Carolina Conference opener and improves to 5-0-1, improving on the best start for the team in over 13 years. Gael Antunez-Nunez also had two assists. Cedar Ridge will turn around and travel to Dave Thaden Stadium on Thursday night for a non conference game against East Chapel Hill. Then the Red Wolves will travel to Graham to face Southern Alamance on Monday night. Next Wednesday, the Red Wolves will host Orange in the first leg of the Hillsborough Derby at Red Wolves Stadium.

CRHS soccer’s Iliah Babchenko, Alejandro Macero-Ramos,Abazar Babiker & Salomon Hernandez talk win

It speaks to the higher standards of Cedar Ridge men’s soccer than they tied their win total from all of last season on Wednesday night, but still came away disappointed in their performance. The Red Wolves defeated Person 5-0 at Red Wolves Stadium, Cedar Ridge’s first home game since the season-opener against Eno River Academy on August 14.

There was plenty to celebrate for the Cedar Ridge women’s tennis team on Tuesday night. It was senior night for players Cameron Mayhew, Catherine Ballinger, Annabeth Lundberg, Raven Mowles-Airing and Dupree Sorenson. On top of that, Cedar Ridge defeated crosstown rival Orange 6-3. It was their first win over Orange since August 28, 2019. Mayhew won her match at #1 singles. Later, on a hot, sticky night, she teamed with junior Adeline Cummings to defeat Erin and Shannon Sollars 8-5. It was the first time anyone this year defeated the Sollars sisters, who qualified for the 3A State Doubles Tennis Tournament last year. Ballinger teamed with junior Ella Caltabiano to wrap up the dual match win for the Red Wolves with a victory at #2 doubles. Ballinger also won her singles match. Cedar Ridge is undefeated in the Central Carolina Conference after beating the defending co-conference champions. It was also the final senior night for head coach Steve Mayhew, who is in his fourth season. Mayhew, a former player at Orange High, will step down at the end of this fall. The Red Wolves are now 3-2, 2-0 in the CCC. They will host Eno River Academy on Wednesday at Red Wolves Tennis Courts. On Thursday, they are slated to travel to Eastern Alamance. The Red Wolves would love to qualify for the state dual team tournament for the first time since 2016, when they won the Big 8 Championship.

Cedar Ridge women’s tennis seniors discuss Senior Night win over Orange

This week’s Orange Panther of the Week is senior volleyball outside hitter Ella Wimsatt. Through the first nine matches of the season, Wimsatt leads Orange with 152 kills. That includes a career-high 24 kills in a win at Falls Lake. She also had 19 kills against Southwest Randolph on August 19 at East Chapel Hill High School.

GRAHAM–There’s a classic throwback feel once you enter Southern Alamance’s gymnasium.

There’s no air conditioning. The fans from the ventilation system above the bleachers squeak. The only thing keeping the floor from getting soaked with players’s sweat, even on a mild day like last Thursday, are fans placed on opposite ends of the end zones. Long rallies are tougher because of a low roof, where no less than four balls clanked off the rafters for Cedar Ridge’s volleyball match against the Patriots on Thursday.

“The Battleground,” as is it described on Southern Alamance’s scoreboard, makes visiting teams earn victories, regardless of the opposition’s quality. Despite early setbacks, Cedar Ridge emerged victorious in its first conference matchup against the Patriots.

Sophomore Claire Hargett finished with 13 kills and 19 digs as the Red Wolves swept Southern Alamance 3-0 on scores of 27-25, 25-14 and 25-10. Senior Addie Reid added nine kills and two blocks, while Graylinn Serge had eight kills and 16 digs.

It was Cedar Ridge’s 42nd consecutive conference win. The Red Wolves (4-3, 2-0 in the Central Carolina Conference) will host Orange on Tuesday in a showdown for first place in the CCC at Red Wolves Gymnasium.

“It took us a while to settle in tonight,” said Cedar Ridge volleyball coach Latcha De Oliveira. “We were a little antsy tonight. The defense was better in the second set. I think we settled in at that point. We were a little frazzled the first set.”

There were six lead changes in the opening set, which saw Cedar Ridge spring out to a 10-6 lead. Southern Alamance (2-4, 0-1) come back with a 7-2 run to take a 16-13 lead. Cedar Ridge responded with seven of the next eight points, included three consecutive kills by Reid. The Patriots were on the verge of taking the set after an ace by Autumn Jones, which put them ahead 25-24. On set point, an attack by junior Ava Duggins was dug by Serge and went off the net. Hargett went to her knees to keep the ball alive and passed it over to Kayla Still, who wound up with the kill to send it to overtime.

Reid factored in on the final two points, assisting on a kill by Hargett. On match point, Reid got the kill off a feed from Hargett.

Reid scored seven points in the second set, tallying five kills and two blocks. Cedar Ridge jumped out to an 8-2 lead and were never challenged. The Red Wolves closed the third set on an 8-1 run, ending with a kill by Ellamarie Perel. Rachel Alverson finished with 31 assists, while sophomore Mia Marty added seven assists.

Cedar Ridge will go into the crosstown matchup against Orange having beaten the Panthers eight straight times.

“It’s gonna be down to the wire every game in this conference,” De Oliveira said. “We have a big game coming up against Orange. I think everybody is gunning for that top spot this year.”

Orange 3, Western Alamance 0:

Things were considerably less dramatic for Orange in its latest trip to Elon. Last year, Western Alamance extended the Lady Panthers to five sets. This year, Orange swept the Warriors to open their CCC slate.

Senior Ella Wimsatt, sophomores Ava Wilkerson and Aubrey Jordan each had double-digit kills for Orange, who won 25-16, 25-22 and 25-21. Wimsatt finished with 13 kills, while Wilkerson had eleven and Jordan ten. Sophomore Katie Silcott finished with 33 aces and seven digs. Senior libero Sadye Porter had 13 digs as Orange won in its ninth straight road game.

In the nine road games, Orange has gone 6-3. The Panthers trailed only twice in the entire match and never in the third set. Wimsatt had seven kills in the opening set, while Wilkerson added six.

After its contest against Cedar Ridge, Orange (7-3, 1-0) will finally have a home game against Person on Thursday.

Men’s cross country: Orange 17, Cedar Ridge 44, Southern Alamance 55, Person 183: Orange senior Gabriel Schmid started his farewell tour at Orange with a first place finish at a meet in Roxboro.

Schmid, the 2022 3A State Champion in men’s cross country, keyed an Orange victory with a time of 18:39 at Rockets Stadium. Orange, the defending Central Carolina Conference champions, had the top four finishers: Alden Cathy, an All-Conference performer in lacrosse, finished second at 19:25, junior Peter Musser came in third (19:33) while sophomore Myles Jermyn finished fourth (19:36).

Cedar Ridge sophomore Henry Alexander, who finished third in a meet at Eno River Academy on August 23, was the highest placer for the Red Wolves. Alexander finished fifth at 20:27. The Red Wolves’ Ryan Matthews came in sixth at 20;34.

Orange also had the seventh place finisher in Nolan Hufner, a sophomore, at 21:07. Cedar Ridge’s Ender Buchanan came in 10th at 21:52. Red Wolves’ senior Grayson Weisenfeld (11th) and Michael O’Melia (12th) helped Cedar Ridge to a second place team finish. Orange’s Lucas Van Mater came in 13th, while Cedar Ridge’s Eli Auchter finished 15th.

Women’s cross country: Cedar Ridge 15, Person 82: The Cedar Ridge women’s cross country team had the top top five finishers to win its Central Carolina Conference opener at Person High. Naomi Dyreng, who won three regional championships in outdoor track & field last year, was the top finisher for the Red Wolves with a time of 22:35. Junior Abigail Klaitman finished second at 22:50.

On August 23, Klaitman finished first at a dual meet at Eno River Academy. Cedar Ridge’s Serena Summers finished third at 25:35. Kaitlyn Horn (27:02) and Cia Biddix (27:14) rounded out the top five.

Orange’s Kassi Scarantino was the highest-placing runner for the Panthers, finishing sixth at 27:31. Scarantino finished one second ahead of teammate Channing Mahaney.

Cedar Ridge’s Gracie Whitaker (8th) and Rebecca Fullwood (10th) had top-ten finishes for the Red Wolves. Orange’s Mia Blake came in 14th, while Cedar Ridge freshman Samantha Quade finished 15th.

Women’s Tennis: Williams 7, Orange 2: In a match that has huge implications for the Central Carolina Conference championship, the Bulldogs gained revenge against Orange from last year.

The Bulldogs swept all six singles matches to defeat Orange in Hillsborough on Thursday. In 2022, Orange defeated Williams to claim a share of the CCC title, the first tennis championship for the Panthers (men’s or women’s) in team history.

The most competitive match of the day was at #2 singles. Williams junior Jaden Wilson defeated Orange’s Shannon Sollars 6-2, 2-6, 10-5. Sophomore Abigail Brown, Freshman Lindsay Oler, Senior Gracie Hartle, junior Lauren Turner and senior Gracie Gabrielli all claimed singles wins for the Bulldogs.

Orange got their victories in doubles play. The team of Erin and Shannon Sollars won over Brown and Oler 8-5. The Sollars sisters are 5-0 this season. Makayla Davis and Molly Kruse defeated Hartle and Gabrielli 9-8, winning the tiebreaker 7-2.

Orange is 4-2, 1-1 in the CCC.

Cedar Ridge 8, Southern Alamance 1: The Cedar Ridge women’s tennis team won its conference opener in Graham on Thursday. The Red Wolves won all of the singles matches

Senior Cameron Mayhew won at #1 singles over Paicey Cameron 6-1, 6-1. Junior Ella Caltabiano rolled past Madalyn Corbett 6-1, 6-1. Caltabiano also won at #1 doubles, teaming with Catherine Ballenger to defeat Cameron and Corbett 8-1.

Ballenger won her singles match over Ava Lynch 6-0, 6-1. Cedar Ridge’s Raven Mowles-Airing defeated Morgan Edmunds 7-5, 6-4. Annabeth Lundberg won in straight sets over Cherish Ray 6-0, 6-0.

In doubles play, Cedar Ridge’s Madeline Galindo-Woodring and Terra Proctor defeated Lynch and Ray 8-4.

Cedar Ridge is 2-2, 1-0 in the CCC. They will host Orange on Tuesday at Red Wolves Tennis Courts, the first of three matches in three days. The Red Wolves will host Eno River Academy on Wednesday, then travel to Eastern Alamance on Thursday.

Mayhew, the younger sister of three-time CCC men’s player of the year Josh Mayhew, is 3-1 this year in singles play. Cameron Mayhew qualified for regionals in her freshman and juniors years with the Red Wolves.

Random thoughts regarding high school sports as we enter September.

–This Tuesday will mark the first big conference volleyball match of the season between Cedar Ridge and Orange inside Red Wolves Gymnasium. Watching 90,000 fans fill Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, NE on Wednesday night to see Nebraska face Omaha led to me quipping on Facebook “I hope no one yells when Omaha serves or else someone from J.H. Rose will complain.” It was a joke from last year when they was a controversy regarding fans yelling during serves during the 3A Eastern Regional Final match between Cedar Ridge and Rose. That post led to a lengthy thread where local referee Chris Andrews weighed in saying “It’s up to the opposing coach to come to the official to complain. The official can judge whether or not proceed and have the Game Day Admin handle the situation. But the official can’t tell the fans to be quiet.” This will most likely become an issue at various matches over the next two months, so please keep that in mind.

–There will be a larger column on this issue later, but the North Carolina High School Athletic Association will go to seven classifications in 2025. It’s been four months since athletic directors across the state voted to pass a measure to expand classifications, yet many questions remain unanswered by the NCHSAA. One of them is: will there be conferences? I’m waving the banner to keep conferences alive. Not every team is a state championship team, even with more of them being legislated. So there needs to be secondary levels of achievement. Otherwise, the regular season becomes too narrow. To use a pro wrestling term, you need some Interconential Champions and U.S. Heavyweight Champions because there can be only one Roman Reigns or Hulk Hogan. For instance, Orange volleyball hasn’t won a conference title in 18 years. If this current group can win the Central Carolina Conference title this year, it will mean a lot to them.

–There was quietly a landmark occasion on Friday night as the Person Rockets football team defeated Northern Durham. It was the final game between the two teams at Durham County Stadium. In the 1980 and 1990s, Durham County Stadium was the modern-day equivalent to Bryant-Denny Stadium for the Alabama Crimson Tide (The Knights will have an on-campus stadium when they open their new school this week). Northern was every bit the juggernaut back then that Georgia and Alabama are now. They won 17 consecutive PAC-6 Conference championships between 1984-2001 and didn’t lose to another team from Durham County from 1976-2000. Person won there in 1990, then went decades without a victory over the Knights, in Roxboro or Durham. While the modern Northern Knights are hardly similar to the powerhouse teams of the past, winning the final tilt in Durham County had to bring some satisfaction to those in Roxboro, who remain loyal to their high school teams in the stands and in the media. You would think that Northern Durham’s potential final game inside DCS would draw some media attention after they were the center of the high school football universe for decades, but alas, it went largely ignored. I guess Mack Brown losing 60 pounds was more important to the Herald-Sun.

Those are my thoughts. Now on to the Magnificent 7 for week 2 of the season, ranging from August 21-26. Seven great local performances in no particular order.

1. Ella Wimsatt, Orange, Sr. The Orange volleyball team hasn’t had a home game since their season-opener on August 15, but it hasn’t impacted them in the slightest. Against Seaforth on August 21, Wimatt had 18 kills and ten digs. Three days later, Wimsatt had a career-high 24 kills in a 3-1 win at Falls Lake in Creedmoor. Falls Lake entered the match #1 in the 1A East Region RPI rankings.
2. Naomi Dyreng, Cedar Ridge, Jr.: Dyreng finished tenth for the Cedar Ridge women’s cross country team in the Early Bird Challenge on August 19. She finished at 20:58.90. Last year, Dyreng was the top finisher among Hillsborough female runners in the 3A State Cross Country Championships in Kernersville. She also won three regional championships at the Mideast Track and Field Championships last May.
3. Dominic McNerney, Cedar Ridge, Jr.: The Cedar Ridge men’s soccer team is 4-0-1, it’s best start in at least 13 years. McNerney assisted on a goal in the Red Wolves 3-1 win over Vance County on August 21. Against Northwood, McNerney scored the Red Wolves’ only goal in a 1-1 tie in Pittsboro. McNerney is a co-Captain for a Cedar Ridge team aiming to make the state playoffs for the first time since 2016.
4. Ryker Stein, Orange, Sr. : With 54 seconds remaining against Carrboro on August 23, Stein scored the equalizing goal as Orange tied the Jaguars 1-1. For Stein, it was the fifth goal of his career. Last year, he scored three for a Panther team that reached the state playoffs for the first time in five years.
5. Mason Cates, Cedar Ridge, Sr.: Had eight tackles for the Cedar Ridge football team in its loss to Granville Central on August 18. Cates also had 40 yards rushing. A two-sport athlete, Cates also was an All-Conference pitcher for the Cedar Ridge baseball team last spring on a Red Wolves team that made the state playoffs.
6. Makayla Davis, Orange, Sr.: Won both of her matches for the Orange women’s tennis team in a 5-4 loss to the Durham School of the Arts on August 22. Davis teamed with Molly Kruse to defeat Yunah Park and Nina Goffney 6-4. In her singles match, Davis defeated Sadie Miller 6-4, 6-4. This season, Davis has a 9-1 record in singles and doubles matches.
7. Addie Reid, Cedar Ridge, Sr: Reid had nine kills in Cedar Ridge’s 3-1 win over East Chapel Hill on August 21. She also had two blocks and two digs. Reid also had eight kills in a 3-1 loss to Carrboro where the Jaguars won two sets by a score of 25-23. Reid, a member of Cedar Ridge’s 2021 3A State Championship team, also had a block.