Orange Men’s Lacrosse

Cy Horner: The Division III Methodist lacrosse team has won four in a row. On Saturday, the Monarchs hammered Huntingdon College 13-3 at Monarch Stadium in Fayetteville. Horner came away with the hat trick for Methodist. He also assisted on the game-winning goal from Jay Legg as the Monarchs charged out to an 8-0 lead. This season, Horner has scored 20 goals over 13 games. Against William Peace on March 26, Horner scored six goals in an 18-7 win in Fayetteville, tying a career-high. He also had a hat trick against Averett. Horner now has 95 career goals.

Katie Wolter: The former goalkeeper for the Orange lacrosse team made her college debut for the Elon women’s team on March 15. Wolter played on defense and got a ground ball in the Phoenix’s 14-10 win over Monmouth at Kessler Stadium in West Long Branch, NJ. Elon is 6-5 overall, 3-1 in the Coastal Athletic Association.

Josiah Tisdale: A sophomore defensemen for Methodist, Tisdale has played in seven games this year, including Saturday’s win over Huntingdon. He has three ground balls and one turnover created this year. Methodist is 8-5 overall, 4- 1 in the USA South Conference.

Connor Kruse: The Lenior-Rhyne men’s lacrosse team is ranked #7 in Division II. On March 29, the Bears pounded Emory & Henry 24-3 at Food City Complex Stadium in Emory, VA. Kruse registered an assist and a ground ball in the Bears’ win. So far in his freshman season, Kruse has played in eight games. He has one goal and two assists. On Saturday, Kruse played in Lenoir-Rhyne’s 17-12 win over Newberry at Setzler Field in Newberry, SC.

Sascha Van Praag: Another former Orange defender playing for Lenoir-Rhyne, Van Praag played in his first college game against Emory & Henry on March 29. Lenoir-Rhyne is 10-2 overall, 5-2 in the South Atlantic Conference. They will host Tusculum at Moretz Stadium in Hickory on Saturday.

Jacob Driver: The leading scorer for Cedar Ridge last season, Driver made his college debut for Division II Mount Olive last month. Driver played in the Trojans 19-9 win at Lees-McRae in Banner Elk on March 8. Driver has also played in a win over Chowan and a loss to Belmont Abbey. Mount Oliver is 5-6 overall, 4-2 in Conference Carolinas.

Tigh Metheney: The former Orange Panther continues to play for Division II Catawba. He has played in four games this year for the Indians. He scored a goal in a 22-1 win over Emory & Henry on March 8.

Nick Cardone: A sophomore, Cardone has played in four games for Catawba this season. He had a ground ball against Emory & Henry. Catawba is 8-4 overall, 4-4 in Conference Carolinas.

Alden Cathey: Cathey, now at Division III Arcadia University, made his college debut in the Knights’ win over Gwynedd Mercy on March 1. Arcadia is 7-4 overall and won its opener in the Middle Atlantic Freedom Conference against FDU-Florham on Saturday.

Bryse Wilson: Wilson threw twice last week for the Chicago White Sox. On Friday, Wilson closed out a game against Detroit at Comerica Park, where he threw the final three innings. He entered the game with the White Sox trailing 5-1 and allowed one run off two hits with five strikeouts. Chicago made a late rally with three runs in the ninth but Detroit prevailed 7-4. On Tuesday, Wilson threw one-third-of-an-inning against Minnesota at Target Field. He allowed one hit and one walk. So far this year, Wilson five innings over four appearances with seven strikeouts and three walks.

Dante DeFranco: The Charlotte 49ers are 18-13 after a weekend series against Wichita State, where the 49ers won two-out-of-three games. Charlotte defeated South Carolina Upstate 8-4 on April 2. DeFranco entered the game as a reserve centerfielder in the ninth. DeFranco has played in six games this season.

Coltin Hedrick: A freshman at Wake Technical Community College, Hedrick has come out of the bullpen in five games this year. His most recent appearance came against Catawba Valley Community College, where he gave up one hit.

Wyatt Hedrick: Wyatt is a teammate with his brother at Wake Tech. On Sunday, he threw against two-thirds-of-an-inning against Guilford Tech and allowed one run off two hits. He has appeared in five games with a 12.71 ERA over five-and-two-thirds innings.

Jackson Berini: After playing in the opening weeks of the season for the Gaston College Rhinos, Berini will miss the remainder of this year. He recently underwent a medical procedure. Next year, Berini will play at Wichita State after two years in Gaston.

Rivals on the field, the Orange and Cedar Ridge lacrosse are in a different type of competition to benefit the entire community.

Starting Monday, Orange and Cedar Ridge will compete in a food drive that will culminate at next Friday’s game between the two crosstown rivals at Auman Stadium in Hillsborough.

Fans can bring food to the contest, which begins at 7PM. The deadline for donations is the end of the first quarter.

The drive itself starts on Monday, when only online donations will be accepted.

Cedar Ridge attacker Josh Hart and Orange sophomore Jackson Wrenn have organized the food drive. Previously, Wrenn has organized similar efforts for Orange High’s PORCH club. He has raised 249 pounds of food in two previous food drives.

“We thought the competition would be a great way to get both schools involved,” Wrenn said.

Donations will go to PORCH Hillsborough, where it will be distributed.

Anyone wishing to donate online can go to porchcommunities.org. Write down Orange or Cedar Ridge in the memo to inform organisers which schools the donation is being sent on behalf of.

Starting Tuesday, donations will be accepted at Cedar Ridge front office as well as inside the athletic offices.

At Orange, donations will be accepted inside the Orange High Fieldhouse for Tuesday’s game against Southern Alamance. There is also a food donation box in Orange High’s front office.

Food can also be dropped off during Friday’s game between the Panthers and the Red Wolves, where the final count will be distributed and a winner declared during halftime.

This week’s Orange Panther of the Week is senior lacrosse defender Drew Jouannet. Over the past three years, Jouaneet has been a steady force for Orange lacrosse coach Chandler Zirkle on the defensive end. Since joining the varsity in 2023, Jouannet’s play has placed him on the long list of great Panther defensive players that have led to Orange becoming the dominant lacrosse program locally. Under the tutelage of former Panthers Nick Cardone, Alden Cathey, Sascha Van Praag, Josiah Tisdale and Kale Womble, Jouannet has helped Orange win the last three Mid-Carolina Conference championships and the 3A/2A/1A Eastern Regional Championship. This year, Jouannet has come up big in a win at Southern Alamance, helping the Panthers shut down the Patriots in the second half. In February, Jouannet officially signed with Lincoln Memorial University based out of Harrogate, Tennessee. This year, Jouannet helped Orange as they opened the year with wins over 4A teams Northern Guilford and Pinecrest. In 2024, Jouannet had 53 ground balls and created 22 turnovers for the most successful Orange lacrosse team in school history, going undefeated in the Mid-Carolina Conference and making it to the 3A/2A/1A State Championship game for the first time in school history. Orange will continue its season against Southern Alamance on April 8 inside Auman Stadium in Hillsborough.

Orange Panther of the Week: Drew Jouannet

This week’s Orange Panther of the Week is senior lacrosse defender Drew Jouannet. Over the past three years, Jouaneet has been a steady force for Orange lacrosse coach Chandler Zirkle on the defensive end. Since joining the varsity in 2023, Jouannet’s play has placed him on the long list of great Panther defensive players that have led to Orange becoming the dominant lacrosse program locally.

The dominance of the Orange lacrosse team has stretched on for so long, even their head coach didn’t know the last time they had lost a regular season conference game until it finally happened.

It was April 27, 2019. A span of 47 games.

“It was really that long?” Orange coach Chandler Zirkle said as he walked to the team field house postgame.

That was before the COVID-19 pandemic. Before Orange won four consecutive conference championships, the first four in program history. Before they hosted three consecutive 3A/2A/1A Eastern Regional championship games. Before they played for the state championship last spring.

It was even before Seaforth High School opened in 2021.

As Seaforth has done in so many different sports recently, they served notice that they are the new kings of the hill on Thursday night in Hillsborough. Behind five goals from junior Ivan Grimes, the Hawks outscored Orange 7-1 in the second half to win 11-6 at Auman Stadium.

Orange, who defeated Seaforth by scores of 17-3 and 22-6 during its Eastern Regional championship season last year, suffered its first loss of the season after opening the year beating 4A teams Pinecrest and Northern Guilford.

“They’re a tough squad,” Zirkle said. “They hit more tough shots and they got more ground balls. They deserved to win.”

Orange (6-1, 4-1 in the Central Conference) didn’t trail in the first half after junior Matthew Macneir opened with an overhand shot assisted by Aidan Monteith with 9:53 remaining in the first quarter. Grimes responded with an equalizer off a pass from Liam McCann. Brett Clark, who led Orange with three goals, notched his first off a feed from Brady Pfeiffenberger to put the Panthers ahead 2-1 at the end of the first quarter.

Clark’s goal started a 4-1 run that pushed the Panthers ahead 5-2. Following a man-up tally from Grimes to tie the game, Orange scored consecutive goals from Gray Crabtree, Jay Parker and Clark in a span of 1:18. Clark’s second goal, assisted by Macneir, came with 3:19 remaining in the first half.

The Panthers would notch just one more goal the rest of the game.

Seaforth junior Cameron Exley started the Seaforth comeback with a man-up goal after two Panthers were penalized. Senior Connor Yalch scored with 1:50 remaining in the first half off an assist from Exley to close Orange’s lead to 5-4.

The second half was total Seaforth domination. Grimes opened with the game-tying goal on a sidearm from 12 yards away to even it up at 5-5. The Panthers had uncharacteristic problems clearing the ball, leading to Seaforth dominating possession for most of the quarter. Grimes gave the Hawks the lead with his fourth goal off a pass from junior Jack Petrusa. Yalch added his second goal, followed by another marker from Exley with 1:16 remaining in the third quarter to compete a string of six consecutive Seaforth goals, pushing the Hawks lead to 8-5.

Clark scored Orange’s final goal with :48 remaining in the third quarter. Seaforth midfielder Jackson Powell squelched any chance of an Orange comeback when he took a pass from Exley in front of Orange goalkeeper Jackson Runkle and scored from point-blank range. Exley would finish with three goals and two assists.

On the chances Orange did muster in the fourth quarter, they were shut down by Seaforth goalkeeper Finn Prospero, a freshman who finished with 22 saves.

Exley, Yalch and Grimes all scored in the fourth period as the Panthers couldn’t take advantage of some man advantage opportunities late, including a 6-on-4 following a skirmish in front of the scorer’s table.

Earlier in the week, Orange defeated Cedar Ridge 13-4 at Red Wolves Stadium. The Panthers will face 4A foe Millbrook at Human Stadium on Wednesday night in Hillsborough, then return to conference action against Southeast Alamance on Friday.

Hillsborough Sports | Hillsborough Sports’s live audio

We cover Hillsborough Sports. Play-by-play for Orange and Cedar Ridge baseball, football, basketball, volleyball, softball and lacrosse!

hamlin37 is on Mixlr

The Orange lacrosse team may have lost the highest scorer in school history, but their expectations aren’t any lower for this season. After winning the 3A/2A/1A Eastern Regional championship, the Panthers have opened this season 2-0 with dominant victories over Southeast Alamance and Northern Guilford. On Tuesday, Owen Wimstt had a hat trick while Dylan Herndon scored two goals as the Orange dominated the Stallions in Haw River in the season-opener. Luke Nevius and Luke Stitz each recorded three points while Jackson Eakes added two goals. Overall, 13 different Panthers scored goals. Eakes handled duties as the faceoff circle, winning eight draws. Ryder Fesperman also had eight faceoff wins. In Orange’s home opener on Wednesday night, the Panthers defeated Northern Guilford 11-3. Jay Parker scored four goals while Brett Clark added three goals. Orange lost plenty on the defensive end with the graduations of Sascha Van Praag and Alden Cathey. Andrew Jouannet came up big on the defensive end against the Nighthawks. Holden Ray forced a takeaway and Aidan Monteith also had takeaways. Goalkeeper Jackson Runkle had seven saves. Orange has won four consecutive conference championships under head coach Chandler Zirkle. Next week, the Panthers will open conference play against Walter Williams at Auman Stadium in Hillsborough.

Orange lacrosse’s Holden Ray, Aidan Monteith & Drew Jouannet discuss 2-0 start to season

The Orange lacrosse team may have lost the highest scorer in school history, but their expectations aren’t any lower for this season. After winning the 3A/2A/1A Eastern Regional championship, the Panthers have opened this season 2-0 with dominant victories over Southeast Alamance and Northern Guilford.

Connor Kruse: The all-time leading scorer in Orange lacrosse history, Kruse wasted no time getting his college career going with a bang. Kruse scored a goal in his first college game as Lenoir-Rhyne, ranked #3 in Division II, defeated #12 Maryville 13-12 in overtime at Pope Saint John Paul II High School in Hendersonville, TN on February 1. Kruse’s first college goal came with 5:38 remaining in the first half off an assist from Robert Walker to put the Bears ahead 5-3. It was Kruse’s only shot on goal. Last Saturday, Lenoir-Rhyne defeated Barton 18-8 at Truist Stadium in Wilson. Kruse unleashed one shot. The Bears will host Rollins in its home opener on Saturday morning at 11AM.

Sascha Van Praag: The former Orange defenseman is also on the roster for Lenoir-Rhyne as they start the season.

Josh Mauer: Another former Panther, Mauer is a redshirt season at Mt. Olive, where’s he the top face-off man. Last weekend, Mauer won 17 out of 22 faceoffs as the Trojans defeated Virginia State 12-6 at Ray McDonald Complex. He was credited with one shot. In the season-opener, Catawba defeated Mt. Olive 14-11 at Shuford Stadium in Salisbury. Mauer won 7 out of 17 faceoffs.

Jacob Driver: The leading scorer for Cedar Ridge last season, Driver is starting his freshman season at Mount Olive. Driver was an All-Mid Carolina Conference selection last year. Mt. Olive faces Lincoln Memorial on Saturday.

Cy Horner: The Division III Methodist men’s lacrosse team opened its season with a 18-6 loss to Sewanee at McGee Field in Sewanee, TN on February 8. Horner, a former attacker for Orange, was credited with seven shots.

Josh Crabtree: A freshman who played on Orange’s 3A/2A/1A Eastern Regional Championship team last year, Crabtree had one shot in his debut for Methodist against Sewanee. Methodist will face Goucher College in Baltimore on Saturday.

Josiah Tisdale: A former Orange defenseman, Tisdale is starting his sophomore season at Methodist. Last year, Tisdale played in five games with the Monarchs. He recorded two ground balls and caused one turnover against Warren Wilson College.

Nick Cardone: A former All-Conference defenseman at Orange, Cardone has started his sophomore year at Division II Catawba. As a freshman, Cardone played in one game against Virginia State.

Tigh Metheney: Another former Panther who is now a sophomore at Catawba.

Katie Wolter: Wolter will be the first player who played at a Hillsborough high school to suit up in a women’s lacrosse game for Division I Elon. Last week, the Phoenix opened its season against Duke. The Blue Devils won 16-7 at Koskinen Stadium in Durham.

Mary Moss Wirt: The Elon softball team opened its season by going 1-4 in the Elon Softball Classic at Hunt Softball Park last weekend. Wirt, a former shortstop for Orange, started four games as catcher. Saturday’s game against North Carolina Central matched up two former Hillsborough products as Wirt faced Takia Nichols, Cedar Ridge’s all-time home run hitter. Wirt, a junior, went 1-for-2 with a walk in a 12-8 loss to Ohio in the season-opener. Wirt scored her first run of the season in an 8-2 loss to Connecticut last Friday. She went 1-for-3 in a 4-3 loss to Ohio State. The Phoenix will host the Elon Softball Phoenix Invitational this weekend. They will start play against Morgan State on Friday afternoon.

Takia Nichols: Entering her junior season, Nichols was selected second-team Preseason All-MEAC. North Carolina Central dropped all four of its games in the Elon Softball Classic. Nichols went 0-for-2 with two walks in the loss to Elon on Saturday. Nichols drove in her first run of the season on an RBI groundout in a 14-5 loss to UNC Greensboro. She got her first hit in the season-opener last Thursday, an 8-0 loss to Ohio. On Friday, Central will journey to Covington, GA to start play in the HBCU Collegiate Invitational. The Eagles will play a doubleheader on Friday, starting with Southern University to start a series of games against opponents from the SWAC. Later, they will face Alcorn State.

Mia Davidson-Smith: Davidson continues stellar play with Diablos Rojos del Mexico in the Mexican Softball League. The Red Devils are 10-1 and are in first place in the league. On Sunday, the Diablos defeated Charros de Jalisco 8-4. Davidson hit a home run. Davidson leads the league with seven home runs and 19 RBIs.

The Orange lacrosse team has risen to statewide prominence over the past five years. Last spring, the Panthers won the 3A/2A/1A Eastern Regional championship and secured its fourth consecutive conference championship. Last week, two of Orange’s premier defenders signed with Lincoln Memorial University in Harrogate, Tennessee. Drew Jouannet, a defender who created 22 turnovers in 2024, officially signed with the Railsplitters. Jouannet will start his third varsity season next month. Last season, Jouaneet had 63 ground balls. Joining Jouannet at Lincoln University will be senior midfielder Aidan Monteith. Last year, Monteith had 25 ground balls across 20 games and played in the 3A/2A/1A State Championship game. Also signing during a ceremony last week was senior Gray Crabtree. Last May in the Eastern Regional championship game, Crabtree scored seven goals in a win over Croatan, the biggest win in Orange lacrosse history. Crabtree signed with Division II Mars Hill University. Crabtree has scored 53 career goals. In his junior season, Crabtree had 40 goals. He finished with 46 points for the most successful Orange lacrosse team in school history. During the past three years, Jouannet, Monteith and Crabtree have helped Orange amass a 59-9 overall record with a 39-0 record against Central Conference opponents in the regular season. Orange will start its new season against Northern Guilford on February 24 at Auman Stadium in Hillsborough.

Orange lax Drew Jouannet & Aidan Monteith sign w/Lincoln Memorial; Gray Crabtree signs w/ Mars Hill

The Orange lacrosse team has risen to statewide prominence over the past five years. Last spring, the Panthers won the 3A/2A/1A Eastern Regional championship and secured its fourth consecutive conference championship. Last week, two of Orange’s premier defenders signed with Lincoln Memorial University in Harrogate, Tennessee.

The long nights where Connor Kruse fired shots into an empty net long after practice ended have long since paid off for him.

Now, in the dearth of summer, comes the gravy.

Kruse, the all-time leading scorer in Orange lacrosse history, was named  an All-American by USA Lacrosse for the third time in his career. Last week, Kruse also was named the HighSchoolOT.com winner for Best Offensive Lacrosse Player. Kruse became the first Orange lacrosse player to win a HighSchoolOT.com award, which is determined by online voting.

Kruse’s extraordinary final chapter at Orange, the greatest individual season in school lacrosse history, predictably led to a slew of postseason honors from coaches in the Mid-Carolina Conference. Kruse was named to the All-Conference team, one of seven players who earned a spot on the squad. He was also named to the All-State team for the third time by the North Carolina Coaches Lacrosse Association. He is the first player in the history of Hillsborough to make the All-State team three times. He also made the All-Region team for the third time. He was second-team All-Region as a freshman.

Kruse became the first Orange player to score over 200 points in a season. He registered 72 goals, which is five short of his own single-season record of 77, set in 2022.

On March 25, Kruse tied the national record for most assists in a game when he racked up 16 in a 18-5 win over Southern Alamance in Graham. He set the school record for most assists in a season with 130.

Kruse was the spark plug behind an Orange team that had the greatest season in school history. The Panthers won the 3A/2A/1A Eastern Regional championship for the first time ever, beating Croatan 14-9 at Auman Stadium on May 13. They advanced to the State Championship match, where Lake Norman Charter claimed its third consecutive crown at Durham County Memorial Stadium.

Kruse paced Orange to its fourth consecutive league championship, outscoring opposition 298-54 in the Mid-Carolina Conference. Orange had a school-record 24 wins with its only regular season loss coming against Holly Springs, a 4A team.

A starter since his freshman year, Kruse actually made history before he even put on an Orange uniform. He started for Stanford Middle School in a game against Roxboro Community School in Person County in March 2000, scoring the opening goal seconds after winning the face-off in an easy Charger victory. It was the final game before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, which shut down middle school athletics across Orange County for 18 months. It was also the final game in the storied history of Stanford athletics before the Orange County School Board mandated the school be rebranded to Orange Middle.

Once high school sports emerged from the slog of the pandemic, Orange coach Chandler Zirkle immediately stuck Kruse, as a freshman, on the front unit with veterans Ryan Merrill, Caleb Davis and Cy Horner. The Panthers won its first-ever conference title and reached the state quarterfinals, upsetting Northwood along the way. From that point forward, the balance of power in local lacrosse shifted away from the Chapel Hill-based schools and directly to Hillsborough.

After Merrill, Horner and Davis graduated, Kruse took control of the offense his sophomore season. He set a school-record of 77 goals and 139 points as the Panthers finished 11-0 in league play.

In 2022 and 2023, Orange hosted the Eastern Regional Championship games. In his junior year, Kruse scored 69 goals and 150 points, leading Orange to an undefeated conference regular season.

Last December, Kruse signed with Lenoir-Rhyne University, which reached the Division II National Championship game in May. In 2023, Lenoir-Rhyne won its first national championship game.

Kruse and his cousin, swimmer Katie Belle Sikes, formed a tandem that led to unprecedented success in their respective sports at Orange. In February, Sikes was named the Most Outstanding Swimmer of the 3A State Championships for the second time in her career. Sikes, who will swim at the University of Georgia, claimed five individual state championships and three relay state titles, the first Orange female swimmer to win a state championship.