Cedar Ridge High School

There was hope for a storybook finish in the final wrestling matches in the careers of Cedar Ridge’s Fernando Martinez and Orange’s Acoya Isley.

Each of them accomplished something in their own right when they reached their respective finals of the 3A State Wrestling championships at the Greensboro Coliseum last week. Martinez, who won the 113-pound Mideast Regional Championship in 2022, became the first wrestler for Cedar Ridge to ever reach a final in a 3A event.

Isley, at 195-pounds, is the first Orange wrestler to reach a state final since 2019. It’s only his second full year as a varsity starter.

Unfortunately, Martinez and Isley ran into quicker, stronger foes that denied them their dream finishes.

In the 113-pound final, Jacob Kresicki of First Flight defeated Martinez 8-3. Martinez was going for his second win against a regional champion in as many days. In the semifinals, Martinez defeated Israel Guerra of South Johnston, who won the Mideast Regional championship on February 11 at Cedar Ridge.

Dylan Smith of Fred T. Foard defeated Isley 10-4 in the 195-pounds championship. Smith, a senior, finished an undefeated season at 49-0.

Kresicki, a senior won finished 38-3, scored the opening takedown against Martinez just 24 seconds into the match with a single-leg. Martinez got an escape later in the period. Kresicki tossed Martinez off a collar-and-elbow tie-up to take a 4-1 lead at the end of the first period.

It remained 4-1 after two frames. Martinez had an escape point conceded by Kresicki to start the third period to make it 4-2. Kresicki shot in for a takedown, and after Martinez went for the back, Kresicki gets out and got the takedown with 1:31 remaining. Kresicki added another double-leg takedown late in the match.

Martinez ends his career as the most decorated 3A wrestler ever for Cedar Ridge. He finished with 143 career wins, 3rd in school history. The only wrestlers ahead of Martinez on the all-time wins list, Chandler Collins and Josh Collins, competed when Cedar Ridge was a 2A school. Martinez also became just the fourth Cedar Ridge wrestler to reach a state final.

Martinez was limited to 24 matches in his sophomore year because of COVID-19 restrictions. If he had a full season in 2021, he may have broken the all-time school record for career wins held by Collins, who had 166 from 2003-2007.

In the 195-pound title match, Smith double-legged Isley at the top of the circle just 25 seconds in. After a restart, Isley escaped to make it 2-1. Smith did most of his work in the second period as he started from the bottom. Isley tried to take him down but Smith escaped and got the reversal with three near fall points. Isley got a reversal. but Smith escaped to go ahead 8-3. Smith was fresher down the stretch as he prevented Isley from getting a takedown.

Smith is a member of the Fred T. Foard team that has won the Dual Team State Championships in 2022 and 2023.

Isley, known as “‘Bama,” ends the year 34-3. Last season, Isley qualified for the state championships at 195 pounds but didn’t place. He finishes his career with an overall record of 57-11 and helped Orange to back-to-back Central Carolina Conference championships.

Orange junior Jared Hutchins completed a successful season with a 5th place finish at 132-pounds. Hutchins reached the semifinals before he lost to Jackson Baglio of Central Cabarrus in 1:12. In the consolation round, Kevin Orien of West Rowan defeated Hutchins in 4:34. In the fifth place match, Hutchins defeated Barnett Klutzy of Wilson Fike 9-2. Hutchins led 5-2 after he scored the opening takedown with 38 seconds remaining in the first period, followed by two near fall points. Hutchins racked up three more near fall points in the second period. Hutchins ends the season 28-7.

Cedar Ridge’s Kaden Tatro finished sixth at 182-pounds. Tatro had a rematch against Pisgah’s Landon Pope, who he faced off with in the opening round. After Tatro won the first match 4-2, Pope took the battle in the consolation semifinals 5-2. In the fifth place match, Tatro had another rematch against Trevor Schweitzer of First Flight. Schweitzer, who lost to Tatro 6-2 in the quarterfinals, won the final match 2-0 off of two near fall points in the second period.

Tatro ends the season 54-8. He led the team in victories this season and has over 100 for his career.

Forget premature farewells and victories denied.

Cedar Ridge’s Fernando Martinez and Orange’s Acoya Isley are making their final days as high school wrestlers ones to remember.

Martinez and Isley have each reached their respective finals at the 3A State Wrestling Championships at the Greensboro Coliseum.

Martinez, competing in the 113-pound tournament, entered as the #4 seed from the Mideast Region. On Friday night, he defeated South Johnston’s Israel Guerra 6-4 in the semifinals. Guerra was the Mideast Regional Champion who captured the title at Cedar Ridge High School last Saturday.

Martinez, who is 46-11 on the season, bolted out to a 6-2 lead and held on as Guerra scored a reversal in the final 30 seconds. Martinez got called for a stall warning late, but time expired before Guerra could send the match to overtime.

Martinez, who is 3rd in school history with 142 career wins, becomes the first Cedar Ridge wrestler to ever reach the final of a 3A State Championship match. He is the first Cedar Ridge grappler to reach a championship final since 2006 when Chandler Collins finished 2nd in the 2A State Championships at 140 pounds. Randy Greenough also came in second at heavyweight in 2006 for Cedar Ridge.

The only Cedar Ridge wrestler to ever win a state championship was Josh Collins, who captured the 2A/1A 189-pound championship in 2005.

Martinez started Friday with a dominant performance over North Davidson’s Levi White in the quarterfinals. Martinez bull rushed White, scored an immediate takedown and hooked him into a pinning combination to score the fall at 1:07. Martinez, who finished fifth in the state at 113 pounds in 2022, opened the tournament on Thursday with an 8-4 decision over Kane Bryson of Pisgah, the Western Regional champion. Bryson fell to 44-3 after the loss.

Martinez will face Jacob Kresicki of First Flight for the 113-pound state championship. At the very least, Martinez will become just the third Cedar Ridge wrestler in history to finish as a state runner-up.

Isley became the first Orange wrestler to reach a state championship final since Levi Anderson in 2019. Facing Dudley’s Tayshaun Glover in the semifinals, Isley shook off conceding an early takedown to win 10-4. In the midst of the first period, Glover had to be checked out by his coaches, which required a trash can to be placed on the mat. As Glover got instructions, Isley pounded his chest with his right hand, then proceeded to take the lead with a takedown. In the final period, Isley clung to a 5-4 lead after Glover scored a reversal. Isley used his strength to backslide Glover’s shoulders down for a near fall in the final seconds. Glover, the Midwestern Regional Champion, suffered only his second loss of the season against 52 wins.

Isley started the day with a dominant win over Justin Bullock of Fike. Isley scored his second pin of the tournament in 3:34. He was ahead 5-1 at the time of the pin. On Thursday, Isley reached the quarterfinals after he pinned Eddie Solo of Asheboro in 2:34.

It’s the first time that Isley has ever placed in a state tournament.

Cedar Ridge’s Kaden Tatro fell in the semifinals at 182-pounds. North Iredell’s Brixon Burgess defeated Tatro 9-1 to advance to the final. Earlier in the day, Tatro defeated Trevor Schweitzer, the Eastern Regional Champion out of First Flight, 6-4. Tatro conceded a late escape but held on to win, his 54th victory of the year. Tatro, who surpassed 100 career wins earlier this year, will take on either Landon Pope of Pisgah or Braxton Berger of West Rowan in the consolation semifinals.

In the opening round, Tatro defeated Pope 4-2.

Orange’s Jared Hutchins reached the semifinals at 132 pounds. Hutchins went into attack mode against West Brunswick’s Luke Connick, the Eastern Regional Champion, and scored a pin in just 1:25. Central Cabarrus’ Jackson Baglio defeated Hutchins in the semifinals. Hutchins, who is 27-6, will face either Cristian Rothrock of Douglas Byrd or Kevin Obrien of West Rowan in the consolation semifinals. Rothrock held on to defat Hutchins 10-8 last week in the 132-pound Mideast Regional Final.

Orange’s Braden Crawford remains in contention to place at 126 pounds. Crawford had one of the most thrilling matches of the day in his consolation opener. Against Pisgah’s Matthew Mehaffey, Crawford trailed 5-0 at the end of two periods. He roared back to even it up with ten seconds remaining in regulation with three near fall points, then got the match-clinching takedown 13 seconds into overtime.

Crawford’s next victory wasn’t nearly as dramatic. He defeated Skylar Oxford of West Carteret 20-7. Crawford will face Cain Solis of Montgomery Central in the consolation quarterfinal on Saturday morning.

Cedar Ridge’s James Este-Wittinger (195), Jalen Williams (126) and Ryan Rakouskas (145) all competed in the state championships for the first time on Thursday.

Orange’s Ben Musser ended his season in the consolation round on Friday.

This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is sophomore swimmer Quinn McCrimmon. Last week, McCrimmon competed in two events at the 3A State Swimming Championships at the Triangle Aquatic Center in Cary. In the 200 yard individual medley, McCrimmon finished 13^th in the state with a time of 2:24.19. McCrimmon also qualified for the 100 yard butterfly. She finished 13^th in the state, as well, in the butterfly as she touched the wall at 1:03.94. Last month in the Central Carolina Conference championships at the Orange County Sportsplex, McCrimmon won the conference championship in the 200 yard individual medley. She took the bronze medal in the 100 yard butterfly. In the 400 yard freestyle relay, McCrimmon teamed with Abbygale Pearce, Sophia Stinnett and Hala Zafar to finish 2^nd in the conference with a time of 4:17.65. This was the first time that McCrimmon had a chance to swim in the state championships. In her freshman year, Cedar Ridge was forced to miss the state championships because of a COVID outbreak. Now that Cedar Ridge swimming has reached the offseason, McCrimmon will work with her travel team in preparation for next winter when her junior season begins.

Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week: Quinn McCrimmon

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The career of one of the most successful Cedar Ridge wrestlers ever to put on a singlet will wind to a close this weekend at the 3A State Championships. Fernando Martinez started when he was a freshman under head coach Scott Metcalf in 2019. Since then, he has won the 113-pound Mideast Regional Championship in 2022. He has won 140 matches in his career, good enough for third all-time in school history. Only Chandler Collins (Class of 2007 with 166 wins) and Josh Collins (Class of 2005 with 151 wins) are ahead of Martinez. He has also qualified for the state championships twice. On Thursday, in the opening round of the 3A State Championships at the Greensboro Coliseum, Martinez defeated Kane Bryson of Pisgah, the 113-pound Western Regional Champion 8-4. Martinez also won the Central Carolina Conference championship at 113-pounds last month. He defeated Person’s Christian Lemaire in the championship match. Martinez has a goal of placing in this weekend’s tournament in Greensboro. He will attempt to reach the semifinals on Friday morning. In the second round, Martinez will face Levi White of North Davidson. This season, Martinez is 44-11.

Cedar Ridge’s Fernando Martinez discusses State Wrestling Tournament

The career of one of the most successful Cedar Ridge wrestlers ever to put on a singlet will wind to a close this weekend at the 3A State Championships. Fernando Martinez started when he was a freshman under head coach Scott Metcalf in 2019. Since then, he has won the 113-pound Mideast Regional Championship in 2022.

Cedar Ridge women’s basketball guard Amiyah Ware made more history in the Red Wolves regular season finale. On Wednesday night, Ware scored 51 points as the Red Wolves defeated Durham School of the Arts 65-57 at Sykes Gymnasium. It came just five days after Ware scored 54 points against Western Alamance, breaking the Orange County record which had stood since 1978. Ware is the first player to ever score 50 points in a game twice in a season in Orange County history. She did it in the span of three games. Ware scored all but one of the Red Wolves points in the second half as Cedar Ridge earned its fourth win of the year. Ware has 12 20-point games this season ever since she made her debut in a Red Wolves uniform against Voyager Academy in December. Ware had her second 50-point game just hours removed from LeBron James setting the all-time NBA scoring record against Oklahoma City in Los Angeles. While she sometimes looks up to James, Ware is a big Jayson Tatum fan. Cedar Ridge will start play in the Central Carolina Conference Tournament on Monday night against an opponent to be determined. There’s a chance Ware could face Western Alamance in the opening round, where Ware broke the county record last Friday.

Cedar Ridge’s Amiyah Ware discusses scoring 51 points vs. Durham School of the Arts

Cedar Ridge women’s basketball guard Amiyah Ware made more history in the Red Wolves regular season finale. On Wednesday night, Ware scored 51 points as the Red Wolves defeated Durham School of the Arts 65-57 at Sykes Gymnasium. It came just five days after Ware scored 54 points against Western Alamance, breaking the Orange County record which had stood since 1978.

DURHAM–It would be easy to draw comparisons between Amiyah Ware and LeBron James.

Just 24 hours removed from James breaking Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s NBA all-time scoring record, Ware made her own history inside Durham’s venerable Paul Sikes Gymnasium on Wednesday night. Against the Durham School of the Arts, Ware scored 51 points to propel the Cedar Ridge women’s team past the Bulldogs 65-57 in the Red Wolves’ regular season finale.

She became the first player in the history of Orange County, male or female, to have two 50-point games in the same season. It happened only five days after Ware set the Orange County record by scoring 54 points against Western Alamance, She topped the record set by Orange High’s Ronnie McAdoo in 1978 when he scored 53 against Southern Durham.

Like millions of others, Ware stayed up past her bedtime late Tuesday night to watch James sink a fadeaway for his 38,353rd point. Just as James captured the attention of the sports world, Ware’s domination of the Bulldogs riveted the fans inside Sikes Gymnasium, practically a miniature version of Cameron Indoor Stadium with bleachers on the lower-level and six rows of dark blue wooden seats circling the upper-deck and a crow’s nest.

Except Ware is more of a Jayson Tatum girl. She watched him play for her college team, Duke, growing up and thinks he’ll lead the Celtics to its 18th World Championship this year.

Ware closed out Cedar Ridge’s regular season by avenging an earlier loss to the Bulldogs. On November 21, the Bulldogs rolled past the Red Wolves 55-26 in Cedar Ridge’s home opener.

It should come as no surprise that Ware wasn’t in the lineup that night for the Red Wolves, still working her way back from a torn ACL in her right knee suffered last spring.

On Wednesday night, there was all sorts of obstacles that Ware overcame to lead the Red Wolves to its fourth straight victory of the year. At halftime, Cedar Ridge went to the locker room leading 32-28, with Ware scoring 18 in the first half. Yet when the Red Wolves walked out to start the second half, the overhead scoreboard read 32-30, the first of several discrepancies between the two teams’ scorekeepers on the night. After lengthy deliberation between the three officials, Cedar Ridge started the half with its four-point lead intact.

In the second half, Ware scored 33 of Cedar Ridge’s 34 points. Senior Grace Young’s fourth quarter free throw was the only exception to the Red Wolves’ second half scoring total.

Ware had to play the final quarter with four fouls. On the other hand, she fouled out three DSA guards sacrificed with the unenviable task of defending her all night. That included Lindsay Suitt and Nylah Daniels, the Bulldogs’ top two scorers.

Late in the game, a DSA reserve got extra aggressive and caught Ware with a hand across the face, which fired up the Cedar Ridge bench, not to mention Ware. Late in the game, Ware laid down a crossover move on another DSA substitute which left the hapless  Bulldog sprawling to the floor flat on her backside, sending every fan in the gym reeling. It led to Ware’s final free throws of the game.

Ware’s latest extraordinary effort led to a successful farewell for seniors Cameron Copeland, Cierra Copeland, Grace Young, Beysi Asencio, and Deepmala Ford-Williams, all of whom won their final regular season game.

Men’s Basketball: Durham School of the Arts 62, Cedar Ridge 56

Cedar Ridge hoped that a viral campaign to make guard Landon Dalehite eligible for Wednesday’s game against Durham School of the Arts would be enough to carry the Red Wolves to victory.

Though Dalehite was allowed to play by the NCHSAA, DSA was able to avenge a loss from November.

Josh Dorsette scored 25 points as the Bulldogs (6-16) defeated the Red Wolves 62-56. Early in the third quarter, Cedar Ridge took a 35-34 lead after a lay-in by Colton Taylor, who paced the Red Wolves with 21 points. Cedar Ridge built its lead to 37-34 after a transition basket by Taylor on a feed from Dalehite. Shortly afterwards, Taylor was called for his third and fourth fouls, which sent him out of the game for the final 3:02 of the third quarter.

The Cedar Ridge scorekeeper had Taylor for one foul at the end of the first half, but the Durham School of the Arts scorekeeper had him with two. The home scorebook is the official scorebook for all games at non-neutral sites.

After Taylor picked him his fourth foul, Cedar Ridge was never able to regain momentum offensively. Jaden Haynes drilled a 3-pointer late in the third quarter to put the Bulldogs back ahead. Dorsetts scored eight points in the fourth quarter.

Cedar Ridge (6-15) will start play in the Central Carolina Conference Tournament on Monday night against an opponent to be determined. If Orange defeats Eastern Alamance this Friday, and if Person knocks off Walter Williams, then the Red Wolves will travel to Orange for the opening round.

On Tuesdays night in Burlington, Walter Williams defeated Cedar Ridge. Dalehite was ejected after two technical fouls that Red Wolves coach Mike Jones, along with many others on the team, took issue with. It led to the Cedar Ridge Instagram account starting a viral campaign named #Freelando. It worked, as Dalehite was cleared to play by the NCHSAA hours before tipoff.

Women’s Basketball: Cedar Ridge 65, Durham School of the Arts 57: 

Cedar Ridge: Amiyah Ware 51, Annora Leaf 2, Grace Young 4, Jamee Rose Watson 8.

Durham School of the Arts: Nylah Daniels 15, Lindsay Suitt 27, Eboseta Arhuidese 11, Genesis Danies 2, Tatyana Cheek 2.

3-pointers: Cedar Ridge 2 (Watson 2) Durham School of the Arts 3 (Daniels 3)

Fouled Out: Durham School of the Arts (Suitt, Daniels, Kamryn Ettson)

Men’s Basketball: Durham School of the Arts 62, Cedar Ridge 56

Cedar Ridge: Colton Taylor 21, Jonovan Wingate 4, Hayden Kirk 5, Braedon Wilbourn 8, Landon Dalehite 4, Harrison Perel 2, Luke Orstad 6, Corin Wingate 6.

Durham School of the Arts: Darryn Johnson 10, Josh Dorsette 25, Kaleb Lucas 6, Jaden Haynes 17, Billy Dupree 4.

3-Pointers: Cedar Ridge 3 (Taylor, Orstad, Wilbourn) Durham School of the Arts 4 (Dorsette 2, Haynes 2)

Earlier this winter, Cedar Ridge junior Zoey Moreno became the first female Red Wolves wrestler to win a tournament.

While she didn’t quite reach the North Carolina High School Athletic Association’s Women’s Invitational Tournament last weekend, she didn’t leave empty handed.

Moreno won her bracket at the Women’s Wrestling Showcase, held at the RISE Sports Complex in Bermuda Run, last Friday. Competing at 120 pounds, Moreno was the only competitor from Hillsborough in the event.

Moreno defeated Anella Fabriziani of Willow Spring 7-4 in the opening match. It took Moreno 1:04 to score the opening takedown. Fabriziani came back with a reversal and two back points to take a 4-3 lead at the end of the first period. Moreno notched four points in the final period to earn the win.

In the second match, Moreno defeated Amyna Denton of Hayesville via pinfall in 49 seconds. In the finale, Moreno pinned Annaleigh Tinoco of North Henderson in 44 seconds.

On January 26, Moreno competed against eleven other wrestlers in the 120-pound division of the Mideast Regional at Jack Britt High School in Fayetteville. Moreno defeated Jenna Phelps of Triton via pinfall in 1:09 of the opening round. Joce Carter of Hoke County, who went on to finish runner-up in the tournament, defeated Moreno in the 2nd round.

In the consolation round, Moreno pinned Ariana Anampa of Green Hope in 2:53. Jack Britt’s Samantha Dedeaux defeated Moreno in the consolation semifinals, which determined who would advance to the state tournament.

Moreno concludes her season with a 12-5 record.

In December, Moreno won the Green Hope Girls Grapple in Cary. Moreno defeated Ana Lytle of Wakefield for first place via pinfall in 33 seconds to win the championship.

Indoor Track: 

The Orange Indoor Track & Field team will have five competitors in the 3A/2A/1A NCHSAA Indoor Track and Field State Championships at the JDL Fast Track in Winston-Salem on Friday.

Junior Aedan Sampey cleared 11-feet, 6-inches in the pole vault during the Eastern Alamance Polar Bear at Fred Brady Stadium in Mebane on January 31. The minimum qualifying standard is 10-feet. Previously, Sampey qualified for the state championships when he cleared 11-feet at the Eastern Alamance Polar Bear #2 on January 10.

Orange senior Issac Seymour will be going to the State Championships in the high jump. On December 10 at Dave Thaden Stadium, Seymour cleared 5-feet, 10-inches to finish in second place at the East Chapel Hill Polar Bear #2 meet. The minimum high jump standard is 5-feet, 8-inches. At the Eastern Alamance on January 10, Seymour won the high jump with another top leap of 5’8′, two inches better than Bron Rogers of Walter Williams.

Last week in the final regular season meet of the indoor season, Seymour again cleared 5’8″. He finished third. Brayden Garrett of J.F. Webb came in first with a leap of 5’10”.

Seymour also won the East Chapel Hill Polar Bear #4 meet on January 21. He cleared 5’10” for a new personal best.

The Orange men’s 4×400 meter relay team qualified for the State Championships at the East Chapel Hill Polar Bear on January 21. They won a meet, comprised of seven team, with a time of 3:42.16, beating the Wakefield squad by .23-of-a-second.

Also on January 31, Orange junior Katheryn Scully qualified for the high jump. She won the event with a leap of 5-feet. The qualifying standard for high jump in the state championships is 4’10”.

At the East Chapel Hill Polar Bear on January 21, Orange’s Grace Pell had a jump of 4’10”, earning her a spot in Winston-Salem. Pell qualified for regionals for the Orange women’s cross country team last November.

Orange junior Gabriel Schmid, who won the 3A State Cross Country Championship last fall, qualified for the state championships in the 3,200 meters during the first meet of the season on November 19 at the New Balance Dash for Doobie 3,200 in Pfafftown.