Orange High School

The clever way of putting the new conference realignment plan for Cedar Ridge and Orange would be:

tired: trips to Alamance County.

Wired: trips to Granville County.

But that isn’t the truth. The fact is most, though certainly not all, of the athletes and coaches across both schools aren’t tired of the rivalries that have built up over the past four years in the Central Conference, predominantly comprised of teams from Alamance County.

The days of the Central Conference will end in May.

On Wednesday, the North Carolina High School Athletic Association released its final conference realignment plan. Orange and Cedar Ridge will remain in a conference together, both categorized as 5A teams. The new league, which hasn’t been named, will also include J.F. Webb, South Granville, Durham School of the Arts, Seaforth and Carrboro.

Cedar Ridge and Orange have been conference rivals in various leagues since 2012, when Cedar Ridge returned to the 3A ranks after being a 2A squad and the Hillsborough teams were placed in the old Big 8 Conference.

For the first time since 2012, Cedar Ridge will be in a split classification conference. Carrboro will be a 4A team in the new league, while the other six teams will be 5A squads. The last time Orange was in a split league was in the 2008-2009 academic year, when they were in the 2A/1A Mid-State Conference.

Under the new arrangement, Person will maintain its rivalries with the Alamance County schools. The Rockets will play in a three classification league with Walter Williams, Eastern Alamance, Southern Alamance, Southeast Alamance, Graham, Cummings and Western Alamance.

The realignment committee had a tall task of trying to maintain conference rivalries as the NCHSAA expanded from a four classification system, which dates back to 1960, to eight classifications in order to rectify the demands of one of the fastest growing states in the country.

The second draft of conference alignment was released in January. It proposed Orange and Cedar Ridge with South Granville, Webb, Seaforth, and DSA in a league comprised only of 5A schools. Orange principal Jason Johnson and athletic director Jason Knapp both made personal appeals to the realignment committee in Chapel Hill last month, asking that Orange remain with their current conference rivals.

“My reservation about going into a new conference is we’re killing our rivalries with Alamance County,” Johnson said last month during a basketball doubleheader. “We have longstanding rivalries. Eastern Alamance, Western Alamance, Williams. Those have been some of our biggest rivals. The community expects us to play those teams.”

The only change in the third and final draft was the addition of Carrboro, which originally was slated to be in a league with schools from Chatham and Randolph Counties.

Once that draft was issued, Johnson and Knapp sensed the direction things were going and didn’t bother making another appeal.

It’s widely believed the impetus to keep the Alamance County schools together was financial. With seven of the eight schools within Alamance County, it simply keeps schools from traveling long distances for league games.

The creation of the Central Conference in 2021 reinvigorated local rivalries with Eastern Alamance and Person, which had been put on the backburner for years. It created a dichotomy.

In regards to football, the timing couldn’t have been worse. After Payton Wilson graduated in 2017, the talent level around Orange football hasn’t been at the level of its peak in the 2010s under Pat Moser. At another time, an Orange-Eastern Alamance conference rivalry would have resulted in sellout crowds in Hillsborough and Mebane, particularly since they traditionally close the regular season against each other.

Even with Orange going seven straight years without a winning season, the attendance figures for conference football games against Alamance and Person County schools were strong. It was something athletic officials around Orange and Cedar Ridge were reluctant to part with.

For other sports, the Central Conference led to unprecedented success for the two Hillsborough schools in various sports. In the opening fall of the league back in 2021, Cedar Ridge volleyball survived a buzz saw of a schedule that included powerhouse teams from Northwood, Orange and Person and rode on to the 2021 3A state championship.

Orange volleyball won the 3A Eastern regional title in 2023. The Panthers’ men’s cross country team captured the state championship in November and has won three straight regional titles. The men’s swimming team won its first regional championship in February. The lacrosse team took the 3A/2A/1A Eastern Regional championship for the first time last May.

Orange won nine conference championships last academic year and has won the award for the top athletic program in the league each of the last two years.

Now, Orange and Cedar Ridge will be put together against schools they haven’t shared a league with in many years and, in a few cases, ever.

J.F. Webb was in the Big 8 Conference with Orange and Cedar Ridge back in from 2013-to-2017. When Carrboro High opened in 2007, they were in a 2A/1A league with Orange. Durham School of the Arts, which traces its heritage to the original Durham High School, was in a league with Orange in the late 2000s.

DSA hasn’t fielded a football teams since its final days as Durham High School in the mid-1990s.

hamlin37 is on Mixlr

The Orange baseball team is off to a 3-1 start. Last week, the Panthers earned its first win of the season with a 9-5 victory over Chapel Hill at Panther Field. Orange scored four runs in the first inning, starting with a single by sophomore Kayden Bradsher, who later scored off a base hit by Oliver Van Tiem. Bradsher would finish 3-for-4 with three runs scored. It’s the second year in a row that Bradsher has been at the top of the Panther line-up following a solid freshman season in 2024, when Orange won a share of the Central Conference championship and reached the third round of the 3A State Playoffs. Senior Garrett Sawyer earned his first win of the year. In his first career start, Sawyer struck out four over four innings. After a shaky first inning, Sawyer didn’t allow another run in his final three innings of work. Sawyer also helped his own cause at the plate, going 2-for-3 with a double. Sawyer had an RBI single in the fourth inning to score Van Tiem as the Panthers added four more runs in the frame. Van Tiem, a sophomore, finished 2-for-4 with two RBIs. Orange will face Millbrook in Hillsborough on Friday night. Last year, the Wildcats defeated the Panthers in Raleigh.

Orange baseball’s Kayden Bradsher and Garrett Sawyer discuss win over Chapel Hill

The Orange baseball team is off to a 3-1 start. Last week, the Panthers earned its first win of the season with a 9-5 victory over Chapel Hill at Panther Field. Orange scored four runs in the first inning, starting with a single by sophomore Kayden Bradsher, who later scored off a base hit by Oliver Van Tiem.

From the moment he made his debut as a varsity member of the Orange baseball team, Garrett Sawyer has understood what pressure is. In 2023, he stepped up to the plate with the bases-loaded and Triton leading Orange 8-4 in the bottom of the 10th inning. Sawyer drew a walk, leading to a run scoring. It was his first varsity at-bat. The Panthers would go on to win 9-8 in an improbable comeback. On Wednesday night, Sawyer formally signed with Ferrum College with his stepfather Andrew, his mother Ashley and brother Silas. Sawyer has been a member of the varsity for two years on the baseball team. He hit .297 in his junior season. On the mound, he made 12 appearances and earned a win in relief over Topsail. Sawyer finished with a 2-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio with 31 strikeouts and 15 walks. Sawyer also played football for two seasons. In the season-opener last year, he threw a 76-yard touchdown pass to Kingston Purefoy-Farrington against Southeast Alamance. Swayer made 76 tackles with three sacks in 2024. In his junior season, he finished with 48 tackles with four sacks and an interception. Sawyer will join former Orange wrestlers Braden Homsey and Braden Crawford in going to Ferrum, which is in the process of transitioning from Division III to Division II. They will join Conference Carolinas.

Orange baseball’s Garrett Sawyer formally signs with Ferrum College baseball

From the moment he made his debut as a varsity member of the Orange baseball team, Garrett Sawyer has understood what pressure is. In 2023, he stepped up to the plate with the bases-loaded and Triton leading Orange 8-4 in the bottom of the 10th inning.

Carson Bradsher: Last Saturday, the Division III Averett University softball team swept Meredith University in a doubleheader at Meredith Softball Complex in Raleigh. Bradsher factored in heavily as the Cougars came back from a 2-0 deficit to defeat the Avenging Angels. In the 3rd inning, Bradsher had an RBI double to score Hannah Jones. In the seventh, Bradsher reached an infield single and scored the game-tying run off a bases-loaded double by Kadence Woodlief. Averett completed the sweep with a 12-3 win in six innings. Bradsher went 2-for-3 with an RBI single during a seven-run 2nd inning. She also had a stolen base. On Tuesday, Christopher Newport University swept Averett in a doubleheader at Captains Park in Newport News, VA. Bradsher went 1-for-4 with a stolen base in the opener, which Newport won 6-1.

Mary Moss Wirt: On March 2, Wirt started for the Elon softball team against UNC Greensboro in the second game of a doubleheader at UNCG Softball Stadium. Starting at catcher, Wirt drew three walks. UNC Greensboro defeated the Phoenix 16-4 in five innings. Last Saturday, Wirt went 1-for-4 as Sacred Heart defeated Elon 4-1 at Hunt Softball Park in Elon. The Phoenix are 7-11.

Takia Nichols: On Tuesday, Nichols had an RBI single for North Carolina Central against Gardner-Webb. The Runnin’ Bulldogs wound up winning in five innings.

Ava Lowry: North Carolina Wesleyan dominated Valley Forge 25-1 in five innings at North Myrtle Beach Softball Complex during the FastPitch Dreams Spring Classic on Monday. Lowry, starting at shortstop, drew a walk and scored a run. Also last weekend, Waynesburg defeated Wesleyan 4-1 Monday. Lowry finished went 1-for-3 with a sacrifice fly RBI. N.C. Wesleyan is 3-5 and will play at Walnut Creek Park in Raleigh. They will open with Oberlin on Friday afternoon.

Brianne Foster: The former Orange catcher went 1-for-2 for Wake Tech’s softball team on Tuesday. Louisburg defeated the Eagles 11-1 in the opening game of a doubleheader. Foster started at catcher. Last weekend at Brunswick Community College, Foster went 1-for-3 in the second game of a doubleheader. The Dolphins defeated the Eagles 5-3 in the back end of a doubleheader. Foster also played second base in the opening game of the twin bill.

Olivia Aitkin: As Amherst softball prepares to start its season on March 16, Aitkin was recently the subject of a behind the microphone segment from the university.  

Jackson Berini: Currently, Berini is in his sophomore year at Gaston College in Dallas, North Carolina. Next year, he will move on to play at Wichita State of the American Athletic Conference. Through 12 games this year, Berini is hitting .261 with the Rhinos. Among the highlights of Berini’s season so far is going 1-for-3 with three runs scored in a 10-0 win over Hartford Community College on February 14. On February 9, Berini went 2-for-4 with a double in a 13-6 win over Catawba Valley Community College. Gaston is 15-6-1 overall, 3-3 in Region X of the National Junior College Athletic Association. Jackson’s older brother, Joey, has joined the Orange baseball staff as an assistant coach.

Cross Clayton: Clayton made his college debut with Gaston College against Wake Technical Community College on February 25. Clayton threw two-thirds of an inning and allowed two runs off three hits. Gaston won 11-3. Clayton graduated from Orange last year and was the first Panther pitcher since Wilson to win 20 games in a career.

Wyatt Hedrick: The Wake Tech baseball team fell to the North Carolina Wesleyan junior varsity squad 6-5 on February 27. Hedrick made his debut for the Eagles and threw a perfect fourth inning, striking out the side. Wake Tech is 9-10 overall, 6-3 in Region X.

Bryse Wilson: So far in spring training, Wilson has thrown in two games for the Chicago White Sox. On Wednesday, he started against the Milwaukee Brewers, where he played the past two seasons. Wilson allowed one run off three hits in three innings. He also had three walks and three strikeouts. On February 26, Wilson threw two shutout innings against the San Diego Padres. He struck out one and allowed two hits.

hamlin37 is on Mixlr

DURHAM–In the dead cold of an early Monday afternoon, Orange sophomore Kayden Bradsher delivered a shot of lightning.

On the first pitch of the game, Bradsher jolted a fastball to the centerfield fence at the new Northern Durham baseball field. While the dimensions aren’t posted, Bradsher nearly lifted it over the deepest part of the young park for a stand-up triple, easily the hardest hit ball on a day that lacked fireworks.

From there, Orange’s young but promising pitching staff did the rest.

Bradsher would score off a passed ball, which would be all the offense the Panthers needed. In his second start, Ryan Sawyer struck out eight in just three innings as Orange blanked Northern Durham 6-0.

Sawyer improved to 2-0 as the Panthers won its third straight to improve to 3-1.

It was just the second game at Northern’s new campus ballpark. Last week, the Knights defeated Roxboro Community School 10-0 in its long-awaited debut on its own field that was delayed over a year. Last spring, the Knights had to play games at its longtime location along Latta Road.

Garrett Sawyer, starting in right field, scored two runs. In the opening frame, following Bradsher’s triple, Sawyer walked, then stole second. Following the passed ball, Sawyer took third. Dominic O’Keefe sent a grounded into the faded grass along Northern’s infield that hasn’t been wetted due to the lack of sprinklers. O’Keefe legged out an infield single to score Garrett Sawyer.

Of Northern’s nine outs in the opening three innings, Ryan Sawyer struck out eight of them. Northern loaded the bases in the opening inning behind singles from J.P. Rodio and Liam Hawkes, followed by a walk from Mason Wilkins. Sawyer struck out J.D. Williams swinging to shut down the Knights only threat while the margin was close.

Orange sent nine batters to the plate in the third inning. Camryn Raspberry stroked an RBI single to right field to score Garrett Sawyer, who drew a one-out walk. Henry Hoffman, who also walked, came home after a dropped ball at second base hit by Mason Bullard. Hunter Albert, who just finished indoor track & field season, sent an RBI single to right field to bring in Raspberry.

Orange is scheduled to face Grimsley at First National Bank Field in Greensboro, the home of the Greensboro Grasshoppers, on Wednesday night at 6.

Cedar Ridge 11, South Granville 1, six innings: Ian McGuffey attacked South Granville on the mound and at the plate in the Red Wolves first win of the season on Friday night in Hillsborough.

McGuffey finished 3-for-3 with a double. He also earned the win by striking out five over five innings as the Red Wolves earned a run-rule victory over the Vikings. Cedar Ridge improved to 1-2.

McGuffey doubles in the opening inning, then created his own run. He stole third and took home after a wild pitch while Walker Holmes was at-bat.

Cedar Ridge scored five runs in the third to bust the game open. Sophomore John Grove reached on an error. Grant McGuffey sent a double down the left field line to bring in Noah Heckman, a courtesy runner for Grove. McGuffey stole third and Aidan Ryan stoked a RBI single to left field. Hudson Kelly lifted a sacrifice fly to centerfield, allowing Ryan to score. Quinn Finnegan sent a cue shot up the line which the catcher threw away. After Finnegan advanced to second, Ian McGuffey lined a single to centerfield to score Finnegan.

Finnegan would hit his first home run of the season over the deep centerfield fence at Red Wolf Stadium.

On Monday night, Wake Forest defeated Cedar Ridge 12-1. The Red Wolves are scheduled to travel to Chatham Central on Wednesday in Bear Creek. On Thursday, Cedar Ridge will host East Wake Academy.

hamlin37 is on Mixlr

There are plenty of new faces for Orange softball as they start the new season.

First-year coach Emily Pearce got power up and down her lineup to win her first game against an eight-time state champion.

Junior Katie Carden slammed two home runs while Allie Carden added another dinger as the Lady Panthers hammered South Granville 10-1 in Creedmoor on Wednesday night. In her first varsity game, freshman Kylee Allen also homered as the Lady Panthers accomplished the rare feat of beating the Lady Vikings.

South Granville has won eight straight conference championships and 51 consecutive conference games, stretching back to its days as a 2A team.

Even Orange’s 2017 3A State Championship team, featuring Mia Davidson and Carden’s cousin Jayden Hurdle, lost to South Granville.

Pearce, who was raised around a softball powerhouse at Alexander Central, was posed with the dilemma of replacing three-year starting pitcher Caden Robinson, who graduated last year. Sophomore Addison Guentensberger stepped in and allowed just three hits in a complete game victory, striking out three.

South Granville’s Chaleigh Currin struck out 12 over seven innings.

Katie Carden finished 4-for-4 with six RBIs. She immediately struck for a RBI single to drive in Hayleigh Hammond, who stole second after walking in the first inning. The Vikings’ Tiatana Bates drove in Avery Wilson to even the game for the Vikings only run in the bottom of the inning.

The game remain tied going into the fourth inning until Allie Caden stroked a triple to right field. Senior Karley Neighbors lined a single to left field to bring in Carden, starting a string of nine unanswered Orange runs.

Katie Carden’s first home run ignited a four-run fifth inning that put the game out of reach. After leadoff batter Sadie Cecil reached on a single to centerfield, Carden drove one deep to right that landed on a steep hill over the fence. Orange hit back-to-back-to-back home runs with Allie Carden and Allen each hitting dingers to put the Lady Panthers ahead 6-1.

Cecil drove in Guentensberger with an RBI single in the sixth. That led to Katie Carden’s second home run, a three-run blast scoring Cecil and Reese Blank.

Orange’s game against Apex Friendship was canceled on Friday. They’re scheduled to host Southeast Alamance in its home opener on Monday afternoon in Hillsborough.

Cedar Ridge 16, Chapel Hill 1: Junior Mia Best struck out nine as the Red Wolves defeated Chapel Hill 16-1 for its first win of the season on Wednesday at CHHS. Best finished 2-for-5 with three RBIs.

Senior Charlotte Lowry, who started in the circle in Cedar Ridge’s season-opener against Wakefield last week, hit a three-run homer in the third as the Red Wolves finished off the Tigers in six innings. Reagan Simmons, who spent last season at Apex, returned to the Cedar Ridge lineup starting at catcher.

Junior Laci Sykes drove in the opening run in the second inning with a bloop pop-up in the infield that eluded the Chapel Hill infielders. Raegan Remaly, who lined a double to right earlier, scored. Best drove in Sykes and Madeline Galindo-Woodring with a double to right field.

Lowry blew the game wide open with a three-run blast in the third. Simmons and Remaly both reached on errors to start the frame.

Simmons, Rylee Capps and Remaly all drew walks to open the fifth inning. Galindo-Woodring lined a single to right field to bring in Simmons and Capps. Best drove in Remaly with a single that reached the edge of the right field grass.

Senior Kimber Shambley, who has signed with Western Carolina, opened the sixth inning with a double to centerfield. Shambley would later score off an error.

Cedar Ridge will host Eastern Alamance in its Central Conference opener in Hillsborough on Monday night at 6.

ROXBORO–There was nothing unexpected in Orange’s seventh game in 13 months against Person on Friday night.

The players were exceedingly familiar with each other, right down to which player would be matched up on another. They knew their seasons would be on the line because this was the second round of the 3A State Playoffs. Everyone understood there would be an overflow crowd waiting to get in to watch two conference rivals battle in the state playoffs for the first time in modern history.

Indeed, there was a line stretched around Person’s auxiliary entrance 15 minutes before tipoff. The wait for tickets was so long, along with metal detectors at the gate, the crowd didn’t fully settle in until midway through the second quarter.

What was unusual about Friday night was how Person won. It was with defense.

Orange shot just 2-of-15 from 3-point range.

What wasn’t unusual was the play of Lance Clarke, who put in a stellar performance as the Rockets won their biggest battle ever against Orange.

Clarke finished with 20 points to send Person onto the Sweet 16 of the 3A State Playoffs with a 56-53 win. The Rockets (27-2) claimed its 14th straight win and will host White Oak on Tuesday night. It was the Rockets third win over the Panthers in February.

Orange ends the season 19-9. Junior guard Kai Wade paced the Panthers with 18 points.

It’s Person’s first trip to the third round of the state playoffs since 2012, when they were a 4A team playing in the old PAC-6 Conference.

Orange suffered its worst shooting performance since the fifth-place game of the South Granville Holiday Invitational in Creedmoor, where they went 2-of-16 against Cedar Valley (Utah) on December 31. Even that performance comes with an asterisk because Cedar Valley had won its previous two games in the tournament. The only reason they played Orange in the fifth-place game was because they had a catch a flight back to Eagle Mountain, Utah and needed to play early in order to fit in a third game on its east coast trip.

Kai Wade drilled a 3-pointer for the game’s opening field goal. Clarke immediately galloped down the floor to the basket, scored on a lay-in and was fouled by Orange senior Michael Clark. The Rockets scored 12 in a row playing stiff defense, including Clarke stripping the ball away from Freddy Sneed for a lay-in to put Person ahead 12-3, leading to an Orange timeout. The Panthers went over four minutes without a point and played catchup the rest of the night.

To make matters tougher for Orange, they lost Clark to three fouls in the first quarter. Clark scored the game-winning 3-point play with :36.7 remaining to beat C.B. Aycock on Tuesday night.

Yet Person’s fortunes from downtown weren’t any better. The Rockets were 1-of-15 from 3-point range. Kyan Lunsford made Person’s only 3-pointer midway through the second quarter to give Person its largest lead at 25-11.

Orange had sprung a big comeback before in Roxboro. In its 67-65 win on January 9, the Panthers shot 12-of-15 from the field in the 3rd quarter to erase a 28-9 Person lead, including 6-of-9 from 3-point range. While the shots weren’t falling on Friday, the Panthers still made a rally and had a chance to tie twice in the final two minutes.

Kai Wade started a run with his patented pull-up jumper from 15-feet early in the fourth quarter. Then Sneed stripped the ball away from Person guard Quante Bowman and slammed it down, his final points as a Panther. Clark made a theft off a pass and with a chance to cut Person’s lead to three points, Sneed was called for a charge, taken by Bowman.

Clark came alive in his final quarter as a Panther. He scored a 3-point play to cut Person’s lead to 44-40 with 6:09 remaining.

Just as he did during the Central Conference Tournament last week, Lunsford came through in crucial moments. He scored an old-school 3-point play, then on a lay-in following a steal by Clarke.

With Person leading 50-44, Wade got a uncontested lay-in off a steal for a lay-up. Then Clark picked off a pass and scored on a lay-in. Clarke took a pass and sank a jumper in the paint to extend the Person lead to 52-48.

Wade drained Orange’s only 3-pointer of the second half to cut it to 52-51. The Rockets missed a lay-up on its next trip and Orange had a chance to take the lead with :44 left, but the Panthers missed from deep. Bowman got the rebound to trigger a transition basket, which ended with Clarke finding Lunsford to put the Rockets up by three. Orange missed another 3-pointer, resulting in a lay-in by Clarke with :19 left.

Clark scored on a short jumper with :10.3 left, reducing Person’s lead to 56-53. On the subsequent inbounds pass, Person’s Tae Winstead dropped the ball out of bounds. With another chance to tie, a shot fell short for Orange and the Rockets ran out the clock.

A remorseful Orange locker room was emotional afterwards following a successful season Despite losing its top scorer in Coleman Cloer, who transferred to Caldwell Academy, and center Mason Robinson, who left for Greensboro Day School, the Panthers won 19 games, including road wins at Chapel Hill and Person.

In the end, seniors Xandrell Pennix, Michael Clark, Freddy Sneed, Ethan Ellis, Jamari McDaniel, Conrad Graham, Barrett Liner and Ian Wilson just wanted one more shot to go down against a Person team that beat Orange three times in February by a combined margin of six points.