Uncategorized

When an adolescent Jerec Thompson played in the Mebane Parks and Recreation Department on a pee-wee team, he was so shy about entering games, his father Jeremy, who was also the head coach, begged him to go out on the floor and play.

Eventually, it worked, but it took a lot of pleading.

On Wednesday night, Thompson came full circle. His Orange career ended against Northwood–but he didn’t want to leave the floor in Pittsboro.

And he certainly didn’t want to take off his Orange uniform for the last time.

Thompson, who surpassed 1,000 points for his career against Western Alamance on Monday, scored 24 points in his final game for Orange. Northwood (20-3) relied on 20 points from 6-foot-11 center Kenan Parish to beat the Panthers 65-52 in the Central Carolina Conference Tournament semifinals.

As the clock wound down on this chapter of his life, Thompson ended it the same way he started it. He pulled up from ungodly distances to shoot, even making a 30-footer in the third quarter. When the game was no longer in doubt late in the fourth quarter, Thompson still sprinted after a loose ball going out of bounds, only to run into a metal stair handle that leads into the bleachers at Northwood. Momentarily, it was a scary moment, but as they say in the pro wrestling world, Thompson “didn’t sell it.” He just ran back on the floor as the final seconds of his career ticked down, showing no signs of pain.

He hugged classmates J.J. Thompson and Joshua Jackson. Together, they started playing recreation ball together, stuck through Stanford Middle School. On weekends and during the summer, they were together with the Mid State Magic in AAU travel ball. Center Hunter Burch, Orange’s fourth senior, eventually joined the Thompsons and Jackson in their journey together.

The Chargers, who are 13-0 against CCC opponents this year, will host Person on Friday night for the Central Carolina Conference Tournament Championship.

Orange ends the year 8-17.

While the Chargers beat the Panthers for the third time this year, Orange was competitive for the entire 32 minutes more than any other meeting this year against the CCC regular season champions. Thompson hit a 3-pointer early to give Orange its only lead of the game at 8-7. The Charges responded with an 8-0 run, five of which came from Parrish, to go ahead 16-7. Thompson and Burch finished the quarter with back-to-back field goals to trim the Charger lead to 16-11.

Burch scored on a finger roll to open the second quarter, but Northwood’s Max Frazier retaliated to snap the 6-0 Orange run. Northwood sophomore Drake Powell electrified the home crowd when he picked off a pass thrown by Orange and threw a laser to Frazier, who had it bounce off his hands. Powell sprinted down the floor, galloped down the lane and dunked spread eagle one-handed to send the fans into a frenzy.

Orange center Isaiah Seymour provided six points in the first half as the Panthers trailed 31-25 at the half.

The Chargers exploited its size advantage with Parrish, Frazier and Powell to push its lead to as much as 16 points in the second half. Thompson scored 13 points in the second half, while J.J. Thompson drained two 3-pointers in the third quarter to keep the Panthers within striking distance until the very end.

The game not only marked the end of the Orange careers of four seniors. It was the close of a vital chapter for Orange head coach Derryl Britt.

He started at Orange in the summer of 2018. It was the most tumultuous time ever for Orange’s men’s basketball program. Greg Motley, the winningest coach in school history, had resigned the previous spring after 20 years. A year later, Motley would take over at Southern Durham High School as men’s basketball coach while still teaching at Orange. One December day In 2019, Motley gave an Economics final exam to J.J. Thompson at Orange, then coached against him when the Panthers played the Spartans later that night in Durham.

Needless to say, it left Britt in a peculiar position. He started as a head coach in high school at North Carolina School of Science & Math, which is a two-year high school. After that, he stayed at Warren County for two years.

This was the first time that Britt had started with a group of freshman at a school and watched them grow to become seniors. Regardless of sport, the task of replacing a winning coach can be a thankless task. The seniors who are leaving Orange helped bridge that difficult transition to something more palatable to where Britt has become widely embraced by parents, students and school officials.

Britt said the thing he will remember about this team is resilience, particularly after Thompson missed the opening three games of the season after suffering a injury after he was undercut going up for a dunk during a preseason jamboree event in Franklinton. It was an injury that left Thompson in the hospital and various people connected to the Orange program furious.

In his first game back, Thompson scored 41 points against Science and Math on December 2, a career high.

“This team had to deal with COVID and injuries,” Britt said. “Everything I asked them to do, they did. This has been a special group. This is the first time I’ve had kids from their freshman through senior years. This group will always be special to me. JJ, Jerec, Josh and Burch. I’ll never forget them. There were a lot of tears in the locker room just now. The wins will come, but this was a great group to have.”

The Orange women’s basketball team earned its first win of the season on Tuesday night. The Lady Panthers traveled to East Chapel Hill and defeated the Wildcats 39-29 at Wildcats Gymnasium. The top three scorers for the Lady Panthers were all seniors, led by Samantha George, who finished with ten points. Guard Aaliyah Harris had seven points, while Jarmil Wingate added eight. George also finished with seven rebounds as the Lady Panthers defeated East Chapel Hill for the third straight in its last four visits to Wildcats Gymnasium. Harris has had a busy summer. A four-year varsity player, Harris has visited schools like Brevard College, Lees-McRae and Roanoke College to potentially play at the next level. Orange will continue a busy week on Thursday night with a trip to Durham to face the North Carolina School an Math. On Saturday, they will travel to Pittsboro to take on Northwood in its Central Carolina Conference opener.

This week’s Orange Panther of the Week is cross country runner Spencer Hampton. Last Saturday, the Orange men’s cross country completed its most successful season in modern team history by finishing 3rd in the 3A State Championships at the Ivey Redmon Sports Complex in Kernersville. It tied for the highest finish in team history. The Panthers also won the 3A Mideast Regional Championship at Northwood High School in Pittsboro on October 30. In that race, Hampton finished 2nd in the region with a time of 16:13.71. It was the second-time ever that Orange men’s cross country won a regional title. On September 27, Hampton won a meet a Central Carolina Conference meet, also at Northwood High School, that included Northwood, Eastern Alamance and Western Alamance. Hampton also finished second in the Central Carolina Conference championship meet last month. In June, Hampton came in second at the 3,200 meters in the 3A State Track & Field Championships at North Carolina A&T University in Greensboro. That meet came after he won the Mideast Regional championship in the 1,600 meters at Southern Lee High School in Sanford. There’s no rest for Hampton. He’s already preparing for indoor track season for Orange.

The Cedar Ridge Red Wolves volleyball team has won the 3A Eastern Regional volleyball championship. Not only that, but the Red Wolves didn’t lose a set in winning its five matches in the Eastern Region of the state playoffs. Cedar Ridge swept J.H. Rose 3-0 on Tuesday night in a packed Red Wolves Gymnasium. Cameron Lloyd led the Red Wolves in kills as Cedar Ridge won became the first team in school history to win 30 games in a season. Julie Altieri served out Cedar Ridge to win the first set. Altieri had an ace on set point to win the first 25-21. Junior middle blocker Cameron Lanier scored a block to win the second set 25-20. Cedar Ridge became the first 3A team to sweep J.H. Rose this year. Ever since Cedar Ridge defeated reigning 3A State Champion D.H. Conley on August 19, they’ve had the 3A State Championship in their sights. Now, the Red Wolves is one step away. Cedar Ridge will face North Iredell for the 3A State Championship on Saturday afternoon at Reynolds Coliseum on the campus of N.C. State University. First serve will be at 1:30.

On a team whose rotation is largely comprised of juniors, two sophomores played a huge role in Cedar Ridge volleyball winning the 3A Eastern Regional championship on Wednesday night. Addie Reid had several huge blocks throughout the Red Wolves 3-0 sweep of J.H. Rose inside a packed Red Wolves Gymnasium. Sophomore Graylinn Serge served out Cedar Ridge in the second set, scoring an ace to put the Red Wolves ahead 21-20. Serge would go on to serve the final five points as the Red Wolves won the frame to go ahead 2-sets-to-nothing. Reid spiked home match point to set up a big celebration as the Red Wolves won its final home game of the season. Cedar Ridge finished 17-1 at home this season. They become the first regional champion in a team sport at Cedar Ridge since the 2017 men’s lacrosse team. Cedar Ridge will play North Iredell for the 3A State Championship on Saturday afternoon at Reynolds Coliseum in Raleigh. The Red Wolves are now the most successful volleyball high school team in Hillsborough history, with a 30-2 record and a regional championship.

Photo by Shannon Bradsher

It would be accurate to say that Appalachian State softball has recruited Carson Bradsher for several years.

It’s also fair to say that Bradsher has been recruiting Appalachian State for just as long.

Her first journey to Boone came when she was 12 years old, still with dreams about playing college softball. However, she had just been diagnosed with type one diabetes, which left her with doubts.

Janice Savage, who was the Appalachian State Softball coach at that point, invited Carson to Boone to tell her about one of her own players, who was also a type one diabetic, to prove that her dream wasn’t dead before she started high school.

During the trip, she sat down with her family at the Sunrise Grill along Highway 105 over some chocolate chip pancakes.

From that point forward, Bradsher was hooked.

It was the first of 15 visits she’s taken to Boone. Ten of those trips were with Carolina Elite, her travel team with coach Rick Webster. The rest have been simply to enjoy the pure pleasure of the high country, where her mother Shannon and father Wayne share a trailer with family friends in Banner Elk for vacations.

“Last year, I went for my 16th birthday just to go,” Bradsher said. “We ate at the Daniel Boone Village because I really like that place. Then we walked downtown with Kinsley and Kadence and got our nails done.”

There was another college offer from South Carolina Upstate. Elon, where Bradsher’s teammate Mary Moss Wirt will play next year, also showed interest. But if there was ever a tipping point, it came two weeks ago when Bradsher soaked in an Appalachian experience unlike any other. She watched from the student section at Kidd Brewer Stadium, along with the rest of the softball team, as the Mountaineers’ football squad defeated #14 Coastal Carolina off a 24-yard field goal by Chandler Staton as time expired, setting off a raucous celebration that started when thousands of students rushed the field and carried on well into the following morning.

The next day, Bradsher committed to Appalachian.

“I just liked the atmosphere,” Bradsher said. “When I put that (Appalachian) uniform on, it was like a dream come true. Since I was 12, I wanted to go there. I loved Elon and USC Upstate, but I’ve wanted to be in Boone. I felt relieved because I worked so hard for this.”

Last spring as a sophomore, in her first full season at Orange, Bradsher was named to the North Carolina Softball Coaches Association All-State team. She also earned All-Big 8 Conference honors after she led the Lady Panthers in seven offensive categories.

She hit .700 in a regular season shortened to eight games by the pandemic. Bradsher also led the team in hits (28), runs scored (24), RBIs (20), doubles (7), triples (4) and stolen bases (16). The Lady Panthers finished 8-0, the first undefeated regular season in school history en route to the Big 8 Championship.

In 2020, Bradsher played four games as a freshman before the season suddenly ended because of the pandemic.

Playing at Orange has been a family tradition in the Bradsher family. Shannon was a member of the last slow-pitch softball team that Orange ever fielded, coached by Dave Murr. One of Shanon’s teammates was Constance Poteat, who went on to play basketball at N.C. State under Kay Yow.

While her father, Wayne, never participated in sports at Orange, he has been instrumental in developing Carson with constant weekend trips throughout the country for travel ball. Wayne is currently an assistant coach for Orange, alongside head coach Johnny Barefoot.

“Everyone always told me I could be a college softball player, but you always have that doubt in your mind,” Bradsher said. “I just kept working hard and I always went to Appalachian camps and stuff. They’d always kind of hint at me that they were interested, but they weren’t allowed to come out and say it. So I think the hints from them and other softball coaches helped me.”

At Appalachian, Bradsher will play under Shelly Hoerner, who is in her fourth season in Boone. She was previously the head coach at Georgia Tech.

“They’re the best,” Bradsher said of the coaching staff. “I never met anyone like them. They’re very family oriented. Coach Hoerner is like a mother figure. Coach Show (Shane Showalter, the hitting coach) is like a father figure. They’re really close and they’re all really close to their players. But they also push you so that’s exactly what I needed.”

Bradsher’s commitment to Appalachian comes during a sudden growth surge for the Sun Belt Conference, where the Mountaineers have played since 2014. Over the past week, the Sun Belt has added Southern Mississippi, Old Dominion and Marshall from Conference USA. They’re all expected to officially join their new league in 2023, just in time for Bradsher’s freshman year. Since almost all college sports conference realignment occurs because of football, it’s expected that James Madison will start the process of leaving the Colonial Athletic Association to join the Sun Belt following this week’s Virginia gubernatorial election. The Dukes will probably be the latest team from Virginia to move from the Football Championship Subdivision to the Football Bowl Subdivision.

By the time she arrives to Boone in the fall of 2023, Bradsher will likely play conference games against a James Madison squad that became the darlings of America after a stunning run during the Women’s College World Series last summer, highlighted by pitcher Oddici Alexander.

“The Sun Belt is also competitive in softball,” Bradsher said. “That’s just going to make it tougher.”

They’re also changes back home for Bradsher. Orange’s new league, the Central Carolina Conference, will include 2019 3A State Champion Eastern Alamance and perennial power Western Alamance. There’s also 2019 Big 8 Champion Cedar Ridge, which will return the league’s Player of the Year, Takia Nichols, who has committed to play at North Carolina Central. Bradsher grew up playing on travel teams with and against several players who will soon be conference rivals. Her final two years at Orange will not lack for intensity or competition.

Orange lost third baseman Emma Puckett and first baseman Gracie Colley at the end of last season, but there will be seven returning starters, including Wirt, Serenity McPherson and the Big 8 Pitcher of the Year, Gracie Walker.

“We have a good team,” Bradsher said. “Our conference is a lot tougher. We’re not going to have as much room for error, but I think if we work hard this offseason, we should be able to compete. It will be more interesting to play with the new teams.”

When Bradsher graduates from Orange in two years, she will journey to Boone. But she won’t exactly be going away, because she’ll go to a place that reminds her so much of the Cedar Grove Ruritan Club, where she first put on a glove.

“This will be like home to me,” Bradsher said.

For the first time in six years, there will be a representative from Hillsborough in the 3A State Women’s Golf Tournament.

On Tuesday, Orange senior Samantha Durham qualified for the state championships after a solid finish in the Central Regional at Greensboro National Golf Course. It was the second time in five months that Samantha played in the regionals.

Samantha Durham will become the first competitor in the 3A State Women’s Golf Tournament for Orange since Amanda Hill, who reached the state tournament in 2015. To say the competition that year was stiff would be an understatement. The winner of the tournament was Chapel Hill’s Gina Kim, who has gone on to win a national championship with the Duke women’s golf team and currently is in the process of qualifying for a LPGA Tour card.

The 3A State Championship is a two-day event that starts on Monday at Foxtrot Resort and Golf in Pinehurst. It will continue on Tuesday.

Golf runs deep in the Durham family. Samatha’s younger sister, Sarah, also qualified for the Central Regionals for the third year in a row. They both competed in the regionals last May. On most Sunday mornings, Sarah Durham can be found on the driving range at Occoneechee Golf Course in Hillsborough, the official golf course of the Orange and Cedar Ridge men’s and women’s golf teams.

It’s one of the favorite courses of the Durham sisters.

“It’s a good course,” Samantha said. “It’s nice and open. There’s not a lot of water. So I personally like it and it’s close.”

Reaching the state tournament is a fitting final accomplishment for Samantha Durham. When she started at Orange, golf it became more than just something she did every now and then.

“We started playing when we were younger,” said Samantha. “Our father played and our brother played so it was just a family activity. We started taking lesson and last year we started taking it a little more seriously. That’s when we started playing more in school and playing in more tournaments.”

Things would get competitive among members of the Durham family.

“We always want the best for each other,” Samantha said. “I definitely want Sarah to win tournaments. She’s always rooting for me and I’m always rooting for her.”

Samantha and Sarah aren’t the only members of the Durham family to represent Hillsborough in high school golf. Their brother, Matthew, qualified for the regional and state tournaments as a student at Cedar Ridge. Last spring, Matthew Durham graduated from Campbell University and has served internships with the Professional Golfers’ Association in Oakmont, PA and Ootwah, TN in the hopes of becoming a golf pro. He also served as a tournament director for several events at Campbell.

As any golfer will tell you, golf is all about routine. Samantha, who was recently honored during senior day at Occoneechee, says it’s not easy to maintain focus.

“You need good course practice,” Samantha said. “Then when you’re on the golf course, you’re thinking the same things. It’s just ‘stroke, keep your head down, good contact with the ball.’ Every time you swing your club, you just want to make good contact and get it to the hole.”

High Point Central’s Emma Niebauer won the Central Regional championship shooting an even-par, 72. Emily Matthew of Eastern Alamance, the Central Carolina Conference champion, came in second with a 74, 2-over for the afternoon.

Cedar Ridge’s Olivia Aitkin also qualified for the Central Regionals. Aitkin, who recently committed to play softball at Amherst College in Massachusetts, is a three-sport athlete at Cedar Ridge. She seems in the winter, along with playing centerfield for Allan Byrd’s softball team.