Orange High School

Photo from Hilltopperlax.com

Since February, Connor Kruse’s farewell tour at Orange has consisted of him breaking or tying national and school records.

In his final regular season game, Kruse permanently etched his name in the North Carolina lacrosse record books.

On Friday night, Kruse broke the record for most career points by a player in North Carolina history. Kruse assisted for his fifth point of the game in the Panthers 14-3 win over Northwood in Pittsboro. It was his 505th career point, breaking the record held by Middle Creek’s Owen Caputo, who went on to play five seasons at Duke, reaching the Final Four twice.

Orange’s victory over the Chargers concluded an undefeated run to the Mid-Piedmont Conference championship, its fourth consecutive title. The Panthers also swept the season series from the Chargers, the defending 3A/2A/1A Eastern Regional champions.

Kruse holds virtually every offensive record in the Panther record book since he started playing during the pandemic-shortened season in 2021, which was the first great team in Orange lacrosse history. A year after playing in the final athletic event in the history of Stanford Middle School before it was renamed, Kruse played on the first unit alongside Ryan Merrill, Cy Horner and Caleb Davis. Facing Northwood in the round of 16 in the state playoffs, Kruse scored the game-winning goal as a freshman with 5:27 remaining in the fourth quarter off a feed from Horner, who now plays at Methodist University. It was the first time the Panthers reached the state quarterfinals.

On March 25, Kruse tied the national record with 16 assists in Orange’s 18-5 win over Southern Alamance at Dedmon Stadium in Graham. The only other recorded player in American high school history with 16 assists was Ryan Stadelmaier of Midland-Dow High in Michigan. In 2021, Stadlemaier had 16 assists against Linden High on May 20, 2022.

This year, Kruse has broken his own single-season record for most points in a year. He finished the regular season with 178 points across 21 games, where Orange finished 20-1, a new team record for most wins in a regular season. Last year, he tallied 150 points in 22 games. Earlier this year, he became the first Orange player with 400 career points in the Southern Alamance victory.

With attackers like Brian Williams, Brett Clark, Gray Crabtree, Matthew Macneir and Max Stern joining veterans Josh Crabtree and Josh Cowan, Kruse has set a new single-season assist record with 107 this year. The Panthers have defeated 4A teams like Apex, Jordan and Pinecrest, the latter game ending in overtime when Kruse assisted on the game-winning goal scored by Williams to cap a game that had 25 penalties, which had to be another record of some sort.

He holds the single-season school record for most goals in a year with 69, set in 2023. Going into the Northwood game, Kruse has 62 this season. Later this week, he will have a chance to set a new mark when Orange starts play in the 3A/2A/1A State Playoffs. The Panthers will be the #1 seed for the East Region after being the top-ranked RPI team for the entire season. The official bracket will be released today (Monday).

Last year, Kruse committed to play at Lenoir-Rhyne, along with teammate Sascha Van Praag. Earlier this weekend, Lenoir-Rhyne won the South Atlantic Conference Tournament championship. Last year, the Bears won the Division II National Championship for the first time.

Kruse is the son of Travis Kruse, who spent the first two seasons of his college career playing at Johns Hopkins. Eventually, Kruse transferred to North Carolina, where he played his final two years.

The Panthers win over Northwood extended its conference regular season winning streak to 44 straight games. Orange hasn’t lost a regular season conference game since April 27, 2019, when they fell to Northwood.

This week’s Orange Panther of the Week is senior catcher Ryan Horton. This season, Horton is tied for the team lead for home runs. On March 26, Horton hit two home runs as Orange defeated Northern Guilford 8-4. He became the first Orange player to hit two home runs in a game since Dante DeFranco did it against Northern Durham in 2019. Against Western Alamance on March 25, Horton went 2-for-3 with two RBIs, including a two-run double in the sixth inning that paved the way for Orange’s first conference win. Horton had a two-run double against Cedar Ridge in a 10-4 win at Red Wolves Field. This season, Horton is hitting .359 and leads the team with 17 RBIs. He has been Orange’s starting catcher the past two years and provided valuable experience on offense after the Panthers lost six starters from last year. Horton had an RBI single against Southern Alamance on Friday night, which put the Panthers back in a tie for first place in the Central Conference. Last week, Horton went 3-for-4 on senior night as the Panthers defeated Voyager Academy. Against Person on April 27, Horton went 2-for-3 with an RBI single in the first inning. After he graduates from Orange next month, Horton will attend Liberty University in Lynchburg, VA.

Orange Panther of the Week: Ryan Horton

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Malykahi Justice was a quick study in his Orange football career. He played for just two seasons, but in that short amount of time he was able to earn All-Central Conference honors in his senior season. In 2023, Justice led the Panthers with ten sacks as a defensive end. After football season ended, Justice became a regular rotation player for the Orange men’s basketball team, serving as a forward while Coleman Cloer missed the first month of the season with an ankle injury. He helped Orange win its season-opener against Hillside and claimed a road win at Northern Durham. The Panthers would go on to win the Central Conference regular season and tournament championships. They also won a game in the 3A State Playoffs for the first times since 2016. On Friday, April 19, Justice officially signed to play football with St. Andrews College in Laurinburg, an NAIA school. During a ceremony inside Orange High School’s Gymnasium, Malykhai was joined by his mother, Asia, and his father, Jeffrey. Malykhai will continue to work hard in Laurinburg as he moves forward with his football career. His sister, Iyauna, has qualified for the regional track and field championships in the shot put even though she just started playing the sport this year. 

Orange defensive end Malykahi Justice signed with St. Andrews College

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The Orange baseball team has gained a split in its biggest two-game series of the season. On Friday night, the Panthers defeated Southern Alamance 10-6 in Hillsborough to tie the Patriots for first place in the Central Conference. Cameron Guentensberger had a huge night on three different levels. He went 2-for-3 with two doubles, driving in two runs during a six-run 3rd inning. Senior right fielder Elijah Santos grounded a two-run single up the middle in the third. Santos also had a hand in scoring the game’s opening run when he reached on a throwing error at third base, which scored Wyatt Hedrick. Guentensberger came on in the sixth inning to replace Garrett Sawyer on the mound and made the defensive play of the game. After the Patriots battled back from a 7-1 deficit to get the tying run on second base, Guentensberger took a short grounder hit by Noah Madren and flipped it to the plate to catcher Ryan Horton, retiring Carson Bolton on a force out. Guentensberger finished with his third save in four games. The Panthers need two more wins to secure a share of its fourth consecutive conference championship. They will face Eastern Alamance in the Panthers final regular season home game on Tuesday night at 7. They will travel to Mebane on Thursday.

Orange baseball’s Cameron Guentensberger & Elijah Santos discuss win over Southern Alamance

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The Orange baseball team will end this week the same way they started it.

In a tie for first place in the Central Conference. And they have their versatile centerfielder/leadoff man/bullpen closer to thank for it.

Cameron Guentensberger earned his third save in four games and laced two doubles, both of which led to crooked number innings that overwhelmed Southern Alamance in a 10-6  Orange victory at Panther Field on Friday night. The Panthers tied the Patriots for first place in the Central with two games remaining in the regular season.

Orange (15-5, 7-3 in the Central) needs to sweep a two-game series against Eastern Alamance next week in order to gain a share of its fourth straight conference championship.

Josiah Gibbs earned his 16th career win and improved to 6-0 on the season, receiving plenty of help from his batters as the Panthers jumped out to a 7-1 lead at the end of the third inning.

If you thought the Panthers would cruise to victory from there, then you don’t know Southern Alamance baseball. The Patriots engaged in a furious rally where they scored four unanswered runs, deepening the jubilation of the sizeable Southern Alamance contingent who filled the visitors grandstand for its first conference game at Orange in decades.

With the Patriots playing for a conference championship, tensions reached a fever pitch after Cooper Partin slammed a double off the left field fence to score Janden Evans and cut Orange’s lead to 7-5 in the top of the sixth. After reliever Garrett Sawyer walked Ethan Mann to load the bases, putting the tying run at second, Orange coach Jason Knapp called in Guentensberger from centerfield for a four-out save. Southern’s Noah Madren laid down a cue shot 20 feet from the plate, Guentensberger bolted from the mound, gloved the ball and softly underhanded it to catcher Ryan Horton, getting the force out as courtesy runner Carson Bolton slid into home plate a second late, resulting in a cacophony of cheers and boos from opposite side of the stands.

Immediately after making the defensive play of the game, Guentensberger led off the sixth inning with a double that slammed off the bottom of the left field wall. A line drive by Kayden Bradsher landed safely in left field for a hit, moving Guentensberger to third. Ryan Horton added a crucial insurance run with a sacrifice fly to right field. captured by Madren, but deep enough to plate Guentensberger. Freshman Oliver Van Tiem brought in Bradsher with a screamer to centerfield. After Wyatt Hedrick was hit on the foot by a pitch from reliver Eli Gilley, Sawyer lined another RBI single up the middle to increase the Panther lead to 10-5, scoring Van Tiem.

Southern wasn’t done keeping Orange fans worried, loading the bases in the seventh inning with no outs. Mark King got his first base hit of the series with a single to right field. Designated hitter Braxton Cain spaced an infield single to the left of the infield, then Bradley Capps walked. Guentensberger struck out Johnny Rojas. Evans sent a high liner to right field, where Elijah Santos made a jumping grab that was deep enough to score King. Eli Holland, who had reached in six of seven plate appearances in the two-game series, flew out to Sawyer, who had moved to centerfield to the game. It was the first time that Holland had been retired all night.

Knapp, who has known Patriots coach Jason Smith for 19 years, understood that a 7-1 lead with a conference championship on the line wasn’t safe.

“We’ve had many, many battles,” Knapp said. “The one thing I know about Southern Alamance is they do not quit. When we got up like we did, I told the guys “You’re going to have to finish this game. You’re going to have to continue to find runs.’ Great game. I feel fortunate to come out on top.”

Unlike Tuesday’s loss in Graham, Orange hit the ball against the Patriots on Friday. On Tuesday, the Panthers were 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position. On Friday, they were 7-for-17.

Orange senior Wyatt Hedrick grounded a single up the middle to lead off the second. After stealing second, Santos sent a nubber to third base, which was thrown away by Evans. Hedrick rushed around third to score the opening run.

The Patriots immediately tied things up when Capps reached on an infield single, then moved to second after a sacrifice bunt by Johnny Rojas. Evans sent a grounder that rolled into left field, plating Capps. Holland singled to left to move Evans to second with one out, but Gibbs struck out Partin and Mann to end the inning.

The Panthers’ offensive runneth over in the third inning, scoring six runs against Patriots starter Cayden Barnard. Ryan Honeycutt opened with a walk, while Horton lined a single to left field. With one out, Hedrick loaded the bases with an opposite field base hit. Sawyer scored Honeycutt with a bases-loaded walk. After Cross Clayton struck out, Santos banged a single over second base to score Hedrick and Henry Hoffman, who was running for Horton. That led to Guentensberger’s first double, a liner to Scoreboard Alley in right centerfield, the deepest part of Orange’s park that scored Sawyer and Santos to put the Panthers ahead 6-1. Bradsher skied a perfectly placed opposite field floater down the right field line for a double, bringing in Guentensberger.

Orange will host Eastern Alamance in its final regular season home game on Tuesday. The return trip to Mebane is slated for Thursday.

hamlin37 is on Mixlr

hamlin37 is on Mixlr

Photo by Bradly Nicholson 

Matchups between Orange and Cedar Ridge come and go. Some are competitive. Some aren’t.

On a night like Wednesday, it serves as a reminder that having the crosstown rivals in the same league can be a wonderful thing.

In what may have been the best matchup in women’s soccer in the history of the rivalry, the two teams combined for four goals in two, 10-minute overtime sessions.

With Orange trailing 5-4, junior Caroline Cathey took a short return pass off a corner kick from Lily Crayton and lofted it up from 25 yards. The ball bent under the crossbar and over the outstretched hands of Cedar Ridge goalkeeper Ellamarie Perel into the nylon. It was the final equalizer in a game full of them.

The game would end in a 5-5 tie, but it was fiercely contested down to the very last second in front of two grandstands full of fans that lived and died with every loose ball at Orange Soccer Field.

In the final scoring attempt, Orange senior Ella Wimsatt sent a long ball that led to a chase between Cathey and Cedar Ridge wingback Rachel Alverson. The two players collided as the buzzer sounded. Cathey was shaken up and was checked on by Alverson and several teammates as the long battle ended.

Orange has now gone unbeaten in its last eight games against the Red Wolves. Cedar Ridge’s last victory over the Lady Panthers came on April 17, 2019.

Cedar Ridge junior Fleury Nicholson finished with two goals. Cathey finished with two goals for Orange (7-4-1, 4-3-1 in the Central Conference).

It was yet another battle in a Central Conference that has turned incredibly competitive over the final weeks of the regular season. Both Cedar Ridge and Orange had wins over defending 3A State Champion Eastern Alamance last week. Orange is currently ranked #10 in the 3A East Region, with Cedar Ridge at #11.

Cedar Ridge appeared set to end Orange’s dominance in the rivalry when they bolted out to a 3-1 lead. Rose Garysmith, a Red Wolf centerback, completed the opening goal when she took a corner kick from freshman Kate Finnegan and kneed the ball into the lower right corner past Orange netminder Makayla Davis in the 16th minute.

Orange’s leading scorer, Elliana Sullivan Gaddy, tied it up after she took a throw-in from Wimsatt and chipped it past Perel from the right corner of the box from 17 yards.

Cedar Ridge had six corner kicks in the opening half. After Wimsatt disposed of a corner by Finnegan, Cedar Ridge’s Katie Paulakonis was grabbed by Orange’s Channing Mahaney in the penalty area, leading to a foul. Nicholson’s first goal came off the subsequent penalty kick, putting the Red Wolves back ahead 2-1.

Orange took the kickoff to the second half and Sullivan Gaddy’s attempt was blocked by Alverson. That sparked a quick Cedar Ridge counter where Paulakonis fed Nicholson, who switched to her right foot for a better angle and fired it past Davis from 19 yards with 38:29 remaining in regulation.

Orange controlled possession for the next few minutes until Cora Bailey scored to put Orange within a goal. Sullivan Gaddy’s corner led to a failed clearance by the Red Wolves. Bailey pounced on the loose ball and drilled it into the heart of the net.

Orange evened the game in dramatic, if somewhat controversial, fashion. The referee’s assistant ruled Orange got the ball on a throw-in with 1:48 remaining. Sullivan Gaddy launched down the right flank and fired in a shot from 20 yards with 1:10 remaining in regulation to tie it up at 3-3.

Cathey gave Orange its only lead of the night when she was fouled by Adelynn Nasseri in the box just 16 seconds into overtime. Cathey scored the penalty kick to put Orange ahead and she fired it into the upper left corner.

Finnegan, who had two assists in the game, took a throw-in and scored in the upper left corner with 3:49 remaining in the first overtime to even it up at 4-4.

Finnegan wasn’t done. With 1:32 remaining in the opening overtime, Finnegan took a loose ball and fed Paulakonis inside the nine-yard box. Paulakonis tucked it in with ease to put the Red Wolves back ahead 5-4.

Nate and Jaylan Sorrells were raised together. They attended school together. They played football together. So it was only natural that they signed together to play football at Mars Hill College. Their father, who was raised in Georgia, played football at Mars Hill. Nate Sorrells was a four-year varsity player for the Panthers. He endured the difficult pandemic year, where the Panthers played games during the spring. Nate scored his first touchdown against Cedar Ridge. He went on to score eight touchdowns in his career. This week, Nate secured a conference championship with the Orange lacrosse team, where he is playing his first season. Jaylan barely had a play off for Orange the past two seasons. He played on the offensive and defensive lines. Last year, Jaylan finished with 45 tackles in his senior year. In addition, Jaylan has finished first in several outdoor track and field meets this year. He competes in the shot put and the discuss for the Panthers and is trying to qualify for regionals, which will be held in Pembroke next month. Jaylan and Nate were instrumental in helping Orange football coach DeVante Pettiford get his program established after he took over for Van Smith in 2022. A signing ceremony was held for Jaylan and Nate inside Orange High Gymnasium on April 12.

Orange football’s Jaylan & Nate Sorrells discuss signing with Mars Hill

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