Orange Wrestling

As crowds start to fill sports arenas and restrictions created by COVID-19 are eased back, it appears the pandemic may be showing signs of finally fading.

Its prolonged impact on high school sports, however, will continue to be felt for the remainder of this academic year.

Ordinarily, the Orange wrestling team would have already clinched a spot in the State Dual Team Tournament, which the Panthers have won five times in two different classifications.

But the North Carolina High School Athletic Association isn’t sanctioning a team tournament this year.

While individual champions will be crowned at the regional and state levels, the closest thing to a team championship Orange can earn this year will be this week.

And if there’s one thing that hasn’t changed in a pandemic world, it is Orange and Chapel Hill dueling for the Big 8 Conference Wrestling championship.

On Tuesday night, Orange and Chapel Hill will meet for the Big 8 title at Tiger Gymnasium for all the marbles. For the first time in 18 years, Orange will be looking to beat the team, as opposed to its unusual spot of being THE team.

Last January, Chapel Hill ended Orange’s streak of 16 consecutive conference championships in three different classifications with a stunning 32-30 win. It happened on Orange’s senior night.

Chapel Hill’s Porter Brice, then a freshman who was three years shy of being born the last time Orange didn’t win a conference title, scored a pin in the final match to send the Chapel Hill bench into a frenzy. It was the first time Chapel Hill wrestling defeated Orange in 32 years.

It was also Orange’s first conference loss since 2003.

Obviously, there’s nothing ordinary about that. Nor is there anything ordinary about wrestling in the spring, usually a sport contested in the dead of winter.

Third-year head coach Spencer Poteat, whose experience with Orange wrestling dates back to 1990 as a freshman under a young first-year head coach brand new from Chapel Hill named Bobby Shriner, doesn’t have his usual full allotment of wrestlers. Some are competing in track and field. A few are playing baseball.

For the first time possibly ever, Orange has had to forfeit every match at 106-pounds in all eleven of its dual matches this year.

The cherished wrestling room, where Poteat honed his skills in the 1990s en route to 102 career wins, isn’t even available right now. That’s sort of like the Pope being thrown out of Rome.

“We have maintenance going on right now in both of our rooms,” Poteat said. “They’re working on some air ducts. We have to practice in the gym. Everybody just has to adjust and keep moving.”

The Panthers have moved on. They’re 11-0, 6-0 in the Big 8 Conference. Senior Kessel Summers, a 132 pounds, is 11-0. He clinched his 100th career win after a forfeit win over Vance County on May 4.

Matthew Smith-Breeden is 9-2 with six pins. On May 13, Smith-Breeden pinned Riverside’s Ethan Louesy in 2:24, then claimed a forfeit win against Hillside. Smith-Breeden, who had 30 wins as a sophomore, also defeated Northwood’s Ian Morrison 10-2 in the Panthers’ 60-9 win over the Chargers on May 11.

At heavyweight, Tyler Larkin is 9-2 with six pins. Brendon Worsham, who finished with football season just in time for the wrestling season opener against East Chapel Hill on April 27, is 9-1.

For a program that relied on emotional balance regardless of the dozens of conference championships and regional titles it won across three decades, how does Orange respond after finishing second? It’s a question that all sports dynasties, from the Boston Celtics of the 1960s to UNC women’s soccer of the 1990s, had to answer at some point.

On Tuesday, Orange will have to find its own response if it wants to win the only championship it can this year as a team.

“This senior class, as juniors, they experienced something that this team hadn’t experienced in a long time,” Poteat said. “Chapel Hill did a great job last year in winning the conference championship. Our goal is to come and win it this year.”

We step back in the time machine for the retro Orange Panther of the Week. We journey back to the week of March 7, where the winner is senior wingback/linebacker Elliott Woods. On March 12, Woods scored Orange’s only touchdown in a 7-6 win over Northern Durham. On that touchdown drive, Woods had a crucial 12-yard catch on a 4th down, which enabled the Panthers to continue the drive. Woods also started on defense and made five tackles. This season, Woods was a co-captain for Van Smith’s Panthers. For the second year in a row, Woods led Orange with 65 tackles. He also had nine tackles for loss, which was second on the team. In 2019, Woods had 87 tackles. Right now, Woods is a part of Orange’s wrestling team, which will face Chapel Hill on Tuesday for the Big 8 Conference championship. After Woods graduates from Orange next month, he will attend N.C. State to focus on majoring in business. Orange will certainly miss Woods’ presence on defense, where he accounted for over 150 tackles, as well as rushing for 731 yards in 18 career varsity games.

On Tuesday night at Southern Durham High School, Orange senior Kessel Summers became the 48th wrestler in school history to win 100 matches. Competing at 132 pounds Summers won via forfeit over Vance County. Last winter, Summers qualified for the 3A State Championships with a 3rd place finish in the 3A Mideast Regional. In the State Championships at the Greensboro Coliseum, Summers pinned Havelock’s Nate Lucio in 5:52 in the opening round. Summers went on to pin Josh Meyers in the consolation round. It was the second straight year that Summers qualified for the 3A State Championships. Shortly after the season ended, the pandemic struck. For a time, Summers was left wondering if he would be stuck at 96 career wins since there was no guarantee there would be a wrestling season last summer. Though it has started late, Orange wrestling is 6-0 after wins over Southeast Guilford and Cedar Ridge at Orange High Gymnasium on Thursday night. On Tuesday, Summers and his fellow seniors will be honored on Senior Night when Orange hosts Northwood at 6PM. Congratulations to Kessel Summers on his 100th career victory.

Women’s Soccer: The standard for goal scoring at Cedar Ridge for years, and possibly decades, to come will be 87 goals.

That’s what Cedar Ridge senior forward Emerson Talley ended her storied high school career with after the Red Wolves defeated Vance County 9-0 in Henderson on Monday. It was Talley’s 14th career hat trick and the fourth of the abbreviated 2021 season.

The Red Wolves ended the season 5-9 after Southern Durham forfeited the final game of the season, which was slated for Wednesday night. Talley, who vowed to former Cedar Ridge head coach P.J. Michaelson that she would score 100 goals in her career, likely would have exceeded that total in her junior season if it wasn’t for the pandemic.

Last week, Talley formally signed with Division II Lenoir-Rhyne.

As Talley’s career ended with a hat trick, a Red Wolf freshman had her first three-goal game. Rachel Alverson had a hat trick for Cedar Ridge, as well. In her final game, Cedar Ridge’s Nicol Anderson had a brace.

ORANGE 4, NORTHERN DURHAM 1

The Orange women’s soccer team concluded its most successful season since 2015 with a 4-1 victory over Northern Durham at James Armstrong Stadium on Wednesday night.

Sophomore Madison Orange scored two goals for the Lady Panthers, who finished the season 11-5. In her final game, senior co-Captain Logan Rogers notched a goal and dished out an assist. Sophomore Isabel Jones also scored a goal for Orange. Freshman Ella Wimsatt had two assists. Junior Bella Brown, who transferred from Alamance Christian School last summer, also assisted on a goal.

Brown ended the year as Orange’s leading scorer with 15 goals and four assists, as well as four hat tricks.

In terms of record, Orange had its best season since they went 15-4-2 in 2015.

WRESTLING: ORANGE 78, NORTHERN DURHAM 0; ORANGE 60, EAST CHAPEL HILL 18

For the first time this century, the Orange wrestling team started as challengers to the Big 8 Conference title as opposed to the defending champions. Things started promising as the Panthers defeated East Chapel Hill 60-18 on Tuesday night inside Panther Gymnasium.

On Thursday, Orange rolled past Northern Durham 78-0 in Hillsborough. Only four matches were contested as the Panthers claimed the other nine bouts via forfeit.

Matthew Smith-Breeden pinned Wyatt Gardner at 152 pounds. At 220 pounds, Hugo Vazquez scored his second pin of the week. Tyler Larkin earned a pin at heavyweight over John Neiman. Samuel Crawford scored his own pin at 145 pounds. Dillon Heffernan, Talan Pearley, Joshua Dunn, Kessel Summers, Avery Clark, Chase Harward, Nate Hecht, Brendon Worsham, and Korbin Nevius all earned forfeit wins.

Against East Chapel Hill, Orange scored nine pinfalls. Summers, a junior who has committed to wrestle at Bluefield College (NAIA) in Virginia, earned a pinfall victory. Joshua Dunn (126), Jose Grimaldo (145), Smith-Breeden (152), Hecht (170), Worsham (182), Nevius (195), Vasquez (220), and Larkin also scored pins for Orange.

CEDAR RIDGE 52, SOUTHERN DURHAM 24

On Thursday night, the Cedar Ridge wrestling team earned its first win of the young season with a 52-24 victory over Southern Durham. The Red Wolves got pins from Fernando Martinez at 120 pounds and veteran James Rosati-Brown at 152 pounds.

Daina Pritchard, fresh off of wrestling season ending, scored a major decision over Thomas Johnson 14-5 at 145 pounds. Mac McGhee, Gavin Mintz, Kaden Tatro, C.J. Jackson, Wyatt Robinson, and Aiden Kearns all claimed forfeit wins.

On Tuesday, Cedar Ridge participated in a tri-match against Northwood and Providence Grove. The Chargers edged the Red Wolves 40-36. Martinez scored a pin at 1:16 in his match. Pritchard, Rosati-Brown and Tatro all earned pinfall victories, as well. At 195 pounds, Wyatt Robinson pinned Northwood’s Jason Schroeder in 1:59.

Providence Grove defeated the Red Wolves 60-21. Martinez earned another pin over Logan Armfield in 1:18. Pritchard pinned Derrick Isley in 1:43. Rosati-Brown pinned Nathan Hutcherson in 3:03. Robinson grinded out a 5-2 decision over Gavin Hardister at 195.

MEN’S TENNIS:

CEDAR RIDGE 9, SOUTHERN DURHAM 0

Will Ballenger and Colby Alford ended their senior seasons successfully for the Cedar Ridge men’s tennis team on Wednesday afternoon. The Red Wolves rolled past Southern Durham to conclude the regular season 9-4. It was Cedar RIdge’s most successful dual season since 2017, when the Red Wolves finished 10-3.

Ballenger started at #1 singles and captured a 6-1, 6-1 win. Alford started at #2 singles and won 6-0, 6-2. Junior Derrick Stephens, Bowen Woods and Leo Filley also picked up singles wins for the Red Wolves.

In doubles, Ballenger and Alford teamed for a win at #1. Walker Richards-Baker and Jason Pattison won at #2 doubles. Woods and Filley completed the sweep at #3 doubles.

Cedar Ridge will start play in the Big 8 Conference Men’s Tennis Championships inside Lindsey Linker Tennis Courts at East Chapel Hill High School on Friday afternoon.

ORANGE 6, SOUTHERN DURHAM 0

The Orange men’s tennis team completed its fourth straight winning season with a 6-0 victory at Southern Durham on Tuesday.

Colin O’Hagerty, Joseph Clark, Finn Kelly, Tristan Plummer, Brandon Kessler and Jackson Panning took singles wins for the Panthers.

Braden Homsey: Now a junior for the Ferrum College wrestling team, Homsey competed in the National Wrestling Coaches Association Division III Championships at Xtreme Arena in Coralville, Iowa on Friday. Wrestling at 197 pounds, Homsey opened with a 16-1 technical fall victory over Greensboro College’s Khalil Belk. In the round of 16, Homsey dominated Scott Anderson of Elmhurst 12-2. In the quarterfinals, Cody Baldridge edged Homsey 3-2. In the consolation round, Logan Hagerbaumer of Millikin University defeated Homsey 13-9. Ferrum’s schedule was greatly impacted by the pandemic with only two dual matches. On February 6, Homsey won his senior night match against Shenandoah via forfeit. Homsey ended the year 6-2.

Adam Chnupa: After nearly upsetting the #1 ranked team in the Football Championship Subdivision on March 6, the Elon football team had a disappointing 38-14 loss to Richmond at Rhodes Stadium on Saturday. Chnupa had a tackle for the Phoenix, who fell to 1-3, 0-2 in the Colonial Athletic Association.

Bryse Wilson: In his second spring training outing for the Atlanta Braves, Wilson threw three innings against the Pittsburgh Pirates last Tuesday at CoolToday Park in Sarasota, FL. He surrendered two runs, both earned, on four hits. Wilson struck out four and walked one in a no decision. Pittsburgh took a 10-1 win.

Phillip Berger: The winningest pitcher in Cedar Ridge history started for Division III William Peace in a 3-2 loss to Brevard in the second game of a doubleheader on Friday. He faced 18 batters over four innings with six strikeouts. He surrendered two runs off four hits in a no decision. Peace is 8-7 at will open play in the USA South Athletic Conference against Pfeiffer on Thursday.

Cooper Porter: The former Orange High utility man continues to play for the Pensacola State Pirates. In a doubleheader against Delgado Community College on March 6, Porter went 1-for-4 in a 9-2 loss for the Pirates. Porter started at 2nd base in the nightcap, which Pensacola won 2-1. Porter went 0-for-2. Porter has played in six games for Pensacola State.

Mia Davidson: Ole Miss took both games against #23 Mississippi State at the Ole Miss Softball Complex in Oxford, Mississippi over the weekend. In the Rebels 4-1 win on Sunday, Davidson went 2-for-3. On Saturday, where Ole Miss won 6-0, Davidson went 0-2.

Montana Davidson: Montana started both games at third base for Mississippi State against Ole Miss. She went hitless on both days. The Bulldogs are 15-7, 0-2 in the Southeastern Conference.

Tori Dalehite: The UNC Greensboro softball team opened Southern Conference action by taking the series against the College of Charleston at UNC Greensboro Softball Stadium over the weekend. Dalehite was a pinch runner in the opening game of Saturday’s doubleheader, a 9-1 Spartan victory. UNCG has now won 10 of its last 11.

Grace Andrews: Once again, Andrews faced her former Orange High teammate Jaden Hurdle when Andrews’ Catawba Valley Community College Red Hawks faced Patrick Henry Community College at Highland Recreation Center in Hickory on Sunday. Catawba Valley swept the doubleheader. In the second game, Andrews drilled a two-run homer to left center in the second inning, her fourth dinger of the year. Andrews opened the game with a sacrifice fly RBI to score leadoff batter Ashlyn Parsons. Andrews went 2-for-3 with 3 RBIs and two runs scored in a 17-8 win. The Red Hawks also took the opener 6-5, where Andrews went 0-for-3, r-3, but she knocked in Parons on another sacrifice fly in the 5th inning to put the Red Hawks ahead 3-2.

On Saturday, Catawba Valley swept Surry County Community College 5-1 and 11-3 in six innings in Hickory. In the opener, Andrews went 2-for-3 with an RBI in the third inning. Andrews also doubled in the first inning. In the nightcap, Andrews finished 2-for-3 with an RBI. In the first inning, Andrews singled to third to score Alleigh Himes. After she reached on a fielder’s choice in the third inning, Andrews scored on an error. In the fifth, Andrews singled to left. Catawba Valley has won six in a row and is 12-5 overall, 5-2 in Region X of the National Junior College Athletic Association.

Jaden Hurdle: Hurdle started at first base for Patrick Henry Community College in the opener against Catawba Valley on Sunday.

Dylan Boyer: The Division II Queen’s University men’s lacrosse team dominated Mars Hill 20-12 at Mears Stadium in Mars Hill on Saturday. Boyer assisted on three goals for the Royals, who have beaten the Lions five straight times. Boyer also had two shots, both on net. Queens improves to 3-2, 3-0 in the South Atlantic Conference.

Bruce Mitchell has been a pro wrestling journalist for over 35 years. He grew up going to the Greensboro Coliseum to enjoy shows from Jim Crockett Promotions. Bruce has traveled all over the world for wrestling shows. On this edition of the Rodcast, Bruce joins Jeff Hamlin and Jon Franklin to discuss the final edition of Monday Nitro, which happened 19 years ago this week. We discuss why WCW folded, how Nitro changed the industry and why wrestling hasn’t been the same since. Check out Bruce’s podcast and column at PWTorch.com. Thanks for joining us on this edition of the Rodcast!

Brandon Homsey: As a sophomore, Homsey has qualified for the NCAA Division III Wrestling Tournament. Competing for Ferrum College, Homsey finished third in the NCAA Southeast Regional at Messiah College in Mechanicsburg, PA over the weekend. On Friday, Homsey lost his opening match to Washington & Jefferson’s Alex Donahue 3-1 in overtime. That left Homsey needing to win four matches to qualify for the national championships. He started Saturday by pinning Waynesboro University’s Adam Rigney. Homsey earned a 3-0 decision over Jack Bauer of Wilkes University, then rolled past Michael Reinhart of York University 7-1. Homsey received a medical forfeit against McDaniel College’s Anthony Wuest, then won a rematch over Donahue with a 10-0 decision in the third-place match. Homsey is 33-10 with four pins this season.

Landon Riley: The Liberty baseball team combined for its first no-hitter in 20 years when they defeated Marist 6-4 at Worthington Field on Saturday afternoon. Three pitchers participated in the no-no and Riley earned his first victory of the season in relief as the Flames won its fifth straight game. In two innings, Riley faced six batters and struck out three of them. Marist scored four runs on eight walks, three hit batters and an error, but no hits. On Friday, Riley earned his third save as the Flames defeated the Red Foxes 4-3. Riley retired four batters, striking out two and walked one. Liberty has won six in a row. They’re scheduled to host Elon on Tuesday in Lynchburg, VA.

Brad Debo: The #8 N.C. State baseball team swept all three games in the CambriaCollegeClassic at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis over the weekend. On Saturday, the Wolfpack defeated Purdue 6-0. Debo went 1-for-2 with a run scored. It was his only action of the weekend. N.C. State is 11-0.

Phillip Berger: Berger suffered his first loss at William Peace University against Greensboro College on Saturday. The Pride defeated the Pacers 11-8 at Ted Leonard Park in Greensboro. Berger threw two-and-two-thirds innings. He surrendered eight runs on six hits. He walked three and struck out three. Peace falls to 9-3, 1-2 in the USA South Athletic Conference after dropping two of three against the Pride.

Montana Davidson: The Mississippi State softball team won the Alex Wilson Memorial Tournament over the weekend, finishing 5-0 against UAB, Alcorn State, and UT Martin. On Sunday, the Bulldogs swept a doubleheader, beating Alcorn State 9-1 and UT Martin 6-1. Montana went 3-for-5 on the day, including going 2-for-3 against the Skyhawks. It was her second multi-hit game of the year. She tied her career high with four assists against the Braves. She went 1-for-3 with a run scored against UAB in a 16=6 win over the Blazers on Friday.

Mia Davidson: Mia made her first start of the season at third base during Mississippi State’s win over Alcorn State on Saturday. She eventually moved across the diamond to first base for the first time in her college career. Mia went 1-for-4 in Saturday’s game against the Braves, which extended her hitting streak to eight, the longest by any Bulldog this season. The streak was snapped the following day in Sunday’s win over the Braves when Mia went 0-for-3 with two runs scored and an RBI. On Friday, Mia went 1-for-4 with a double in the win over UAB. Mississippi State is 18-3 . They will host UT Martin on Monday afternoon.

Lauren Cates: The Wake Tech Community College women’s basketball team surprised Louisburg College 87-73 in its regular season finale on Saturday at the Taylor Center in Louisburg. Lauren Cates, a freshman for the Eagles, returned to the starting lineup and scored 16 points off 5-of-9 shooting from the field. Cates was 4-of-6 from three-point range. She also had eight rebounds and three assists as Wake Tech avenged a 14-point loss from January. Wake Tech completed the regular season 18-7. They will travel to the Region 10 Tournament in Martinsville, VA, where they will open against USC Salkehatchie on Thursday night at 6 PM.

This week’s Orange Panther of the Week is 126-pound junior wrestler Kessel Summers. Over the weekend, Summers won two matches in the 3A State Wrestling Championships at the Greensboro Coliseum. In the opening match, Summers pinned Havelock’s Nate Lucia in 5:52. In the consolation round, Summers defeated Northside-Jacksonville’s Josh Myers via pinfall in 2:20. Summers ends the year 42-14. Last year, Summers qualified for the state championships at 113 pounds. In his sophomore season, Summers went 39-14 with 17 pins. Next year, Summers will start his senior year with 97 career wins. Summers won a Orange Person Athletic Conference championship in his 8th grade year at Stanford Middle School. Now that wrestling season has ended, Summers will return to the weight room and focus on returning to the state championship once again next year as the Orange wrestling team looks to return to the top of the Big 8 Conference.