Orange Women’s Basketball

Grace Andrews has won a state softball championship playing in near-100 degree temperatures at N.C. State’s Dail Field. She’s won conference championships in basketball while enjoying macaroni and cheese as her favorite meal.

After Friday night, she can confidently say she has a hockey mentality.

Andrews chipped her front tooth during a scramble for a loose ball against Vance County at a point in the game when Orange was struggling. Her uniform was bloody, and while she briefly left the game, there was no consideration about calling it a night.

Not with the Lady Panthers already shorthanded at it is.

Without guard Mary Moss Wirt, the Lady Panthers finished with a 29-4 run in the final eight minutes to defeat Vance County 60-45 in Hillsborough on Friday night.

Orange sophomore guard Aaliyah Harris scored 20 points, including nine in the fourth quarter. Harris also had a season-high eight assists, six steals and six rebounds. It was the third time this season that Harris had 20 points or more in a game.

The Lady Panthers trailed 41-31 going into the fourth quarter after Vance’s Yumyah Hargrove scored a lay-in off a chest pass from Nashiya Branch at the end of the third quarter. Branch led the Vipers (7-5, 1-1) with 17 points, but she didn’t score in the second half.

Orange (7-3) won its third straight game to even its Big 8 Conference mark to 1-1.

“Really happy with the all around scoring we had,” said Orange coach B.J. Condron. “Erin Jordan-Cornell battled all night. We finally found her more in the 4th. She scored all 9 of her points in the 4th quarter.”

Jordan-Cornell, a freshman, scored all nine of her points in the fourth quarter. Andrews, Jarmil Wingate, and Jala Rainey also added nine points. Wingate had a career-high 14 rebounds.

Wirt, who injured her knee in the second quarter of the Carrboro game on December 12, missed her sixth straight game. Her absence has left an already young Orange team without a scorer who played in all 26 games as a freshman last season.

“She’s probably our best shooter, one of our better ball handlers and decision makers, and a leader on the court,” Condron said. “Right now she’s doing a great job being a leader off the court and other players are having to step up.”

Trailing 41-31, Orange opened the fourth quarter with 14 consecutive points. Harris assisted on the opening field goal by Jordan-Cornell, then Harris scored on back-to-back field goals off assists by Andrews, including a 3-pointer. Freshman Katelyn Van Mater took a pass from Harris and drained a six-footer to give Orange the lead for good. Wingate sank a critical 3-pointer from the corner off a relocation pass from Jordan-Cornell to increase Orange’s lead to 48-43.

It was a peculiar game offensively. Orange started the game on a 8-0 run off field goals from Andrews, Harris and Jala Rianey. After building a 16-6 lead, the Lady Panthers didn’t score a field goal in the second quarter, and went over ten minutes without a buckets overall. Vance reeled off a 22-5 run to take a 28-21 lead to the locker room. Branch hit a 3-pointer in the final minute of the second quarter.

Orange will host Cedar Ridge on Tuesday night in Hillsborough. Tipoff will be at 6. It was be the second game of a triple header. The junior variety boys game tips off a 4:30.

Scott Satterfield: The Louisville Cardinals football team ended its season with a 38-28 victory over Mississippi State to win the Music City Bowl in Nashville on Monday. The Cardinals, who trailed 14-0 in the first quarter, scored 31 consecutive points to take its first bowl victory since 2015, when they defeated Texas A&M to win the Music City Bowl. Louisville Head Coach Scott Satterfield, a 1991 Orange graduate, finished his first season in Kentucky with an 8-5 record, one year after the Cardinals went 2-10. He was named the ACC Coach of the Year last month. Louisville was picked to finish last in the ACC’s Atlantic Division this season. Instead, they finished second at 5-3. It was the seventh time in eight years that Louisville finished the year with eight wins. Several members of Satterfield’s family from Hillsborough attended the game in Nashville. After visiting Wake Forest and N.C. State this season, Louisville won’t play a regular season game in North Carolina next year.

Kate Burgess: The UNC rowing team started its season on November 2 in the Head of the Hooch in Chattanooga, TV. Burgess, a freshman at UNC who was selected to the rowing squad last fall as a walk-on, was aboard the first novice boat, which earned the highest finish of the day for the Tar Heels. The novice boat finished 3rd behind Alabama and Eastern Michigan at 17:33.762. Joining Burgess aboard the novice boat was captain Claire Taylor, Emma Brockman, Jessica Judge, Hannah Davis, Tianna Van Cura, Nicole Van Lew, Jackie Wilhelm and Meagan Harrington. On December 2, longtime UNC rowing coach Sarah Haney, who chose Burgess to join the team, abruptly resigned. UNC will continue its season against Clemson and Duke in the Carolina Cup on March 7 in Clemson, S.C.

Braden Homsey: The Division III Ferrum wrestling team returned to action on December 30 at the 2019 Citrus Invitational at the Great Lauderdale/Broward County Convention Center in Ft. Lauderdale, FL. Homsey finished 5th in the 197-pound division. Getting a bye through to the second round, Homsey started the tournament with a 3-1 win over Wyatt Richardson of Augsburg University. Homsey advanced to the semifinals with a 5-2 decision over Daniel Sblendorio of Williams College. Zeckary Lehman of Baldwin Wallace grinder out a 5-0 decision over Homsey in the championship round. In the consolation bracket, Brad Basham of Washington & Lee defeated Homsey 6-4. Homsey claimed 5th place via forfeit over Liberty’s Austin Amos. Ferrum finished fifth in the team standings with 103 points. Augsburg won the team championship with 192 points. Homsey, a sophomore, is 13-5 with one pin this season. Ferrum will return to action on Saturday in the Crytzer Memorial Tournament in Lexington, VA.

Kaylen Campbell: The Division III Trinity women’s basketball team had its nine-game winning streak come to an end on Thursday. Smith College defeated the Bantams 58-51 in Hartford, CT. Campbell, a redshirt sophomore, came off the bench and played eight minutes. She scored four points off 1-of-5 shooting from the field. She also had a rebound. On Monday, Trinity defeated Farleigh Dickerson University-Florham 60-36 in Madison, NJ. Campbell played 18 minutes. She finished with four points, two steals and one rebound. Trinity is 9-2. They will host Western New England on Saturday in Hartford.

Featuring Josh Jackson, Jimmy Rogers, Carson Bradsher, Caitlin Carden and Maddie Bartlett

Colin Guentensberger: The former Orange High linebacker celebrated his 19th birthday by suiting up for the Appalachian State football team on Saturday. Appalachian defeated UAB 31-17 to win the R&L Carriers New Orleans Bowl at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans. It was the Mountaineers fifth straight bowl victory since joining the Football Bowl Subdivision officially in 2015. Since becoming eligible to play in bowl games after emerging from the Football Championship Series in 2015, Appalachian is 5-0 in bowl games and has four Sun Belt Conference championships. Guentensberger spent his freshman season in Boone as a walk-on. Though he didn’t play this season, Guentensberger is the first former Orange Panther for a bowl game since Alvis Whitted, who was a kick returner for N.C. State in the 1995 Peach Bowl. The Wolfpack defeated Mississippi State 28-24 at the Georgia Dome.

ASU’s win concluded an whirlwind period for Appalachian players, fans and staff alike. The day after winning the Sun Belt Conference championship over the University of Louisiana, reports circulated that former head coach Eliah Drinkwitz would leave for Missouri. Former Appalachian player Shawn Clark was named the new head coach of the Mountaineers last week. Guentensberger was the 2018 Orange football player of the year. A starting linebacker, he was second on the team in tackles. He also was 2nd on the team in receptions.

Icez Barnett: The Division II Chowan women’s basketball team defeated Converse 64-56 at the Weisiger Center in Spartanburg, S.C. last Thursday. Barnett came off the bench for two minutes of action. The Hawks ended a five-game losing streak and improved to 2-4 in Conference Carolinas. Last Tuesday, Barton hammered the Hawks 79-56 at Wilson Gym in Wilson. Barnett played five minutes and grabbed one rebound. So far in her college career, Barnett has played nine games. She had a season-high 20 minutes against UNC Pembroke on November 30. Barnett scored four points against North Greenville on November 23. Chowan will return to action on January 2 when they host Converse.

Lauren Cates: The Wake Tech women’s basketball team has won five of its last six. The Eagles defeated Bryant & Stratton College last Wednesday in Raleigh. Cates scored eleven points on 3-of-9 shooting from the field. She was 3-of-6 from 3-point range. Cates also had five rebounds and three assists. On December 14, Wake Tech defeated Southwest Virginia 89-75. Cates scored 13 points on 3-of-7 shooting from the field, all from 3-point range. The Eagles are 8-3 overall, 4-2 in Region X of the National Junior College Athletic Association. Cates is second on the team in scoring with 10.9 points per game. She’s shooting 40% from 3-point range.

Jamar Davis: The N.C. State indoor track & field team started its season in the Gamecock Opener in Columbia, S.C. on January 17-18. Davis will start his sophomore season in Raleigh. During his freshman campaign, Davis was a second-team All-American in the triple jump for indoor track. In the outdoor season, Davis finished 2nd in the Raleigh Relays in the long jump with a distance of 23’11.75″. He qualified for the NCAA Championships after a 51’5″ leap. Davis finished sixth in the ACC Championships in the triple jump.

This week’s Orange Panther of the Week is point guard Aaliyah Harris. The Orange women’s basketball team is 4-0. Harris has established her career-high twice this season at a time when the Panthers are trying to replace its top two scorers from last year. She scored 17 points in a 47-39 win over Southern Alamance in Graham on December 6. Last Thursday, Harris had 21 points, including 13 in the 4th quarter, as the Lady Panthers held off Carrboro 53-49 at Jaguars Gymnasium. She was pressed into scoring duties for Orange after Harris’ fellow guard, Mary Moss Wirt, was injured in the second quarter. Of the 17 points Orange scored in the 4th quarter against Carrboro, Harris scored 13 of them.Orange will start play in the Big 8 Conference on Tuesday night at East Chapel Hill starting at 7.