Story by Curran Campbell

The Cedar Ridge Red Wolves JV football team took a quick trip down I-85 to face the newly named Southern School of Energy and Sustainability Spartans, who were previously the Southern Durham Spartans. Coming off a tough loss against the Chapel Hill Tigers, the Red Wolves bounced back in a big way against the Spartans.

Cedar Ridge received the opening kickoff and got off to a blazing start. On the first play from scrimmage, quarterback Will Berger connected with KJ Barnes on a deep pass for 65 yards to set up a first and goal, the drive would conclude with an Isaiah McCambry 1 yard touchdown scamper on fourth down would make it 6-0 Red Wolves a minute and a half into the game. Southern went 3 and out on the following possession, and the Red Wolves marched right down the field again, this time with Elijah Whitaker executing the read option perfectly and waltzing into the endzone for an easy six points and a 12-0 Cedar Ridge lead.

Still in the first quarter, Southern quarterback Jeremiah Lynch was picked off by Drew Carlson, and Cedar Ridge carved up the Southern defense for a third time already on the day as Alwin Garcia Mendez would punch it in on the ground this time, following the two point conversion, Cedar Ridge had a 20-0 lead.

Southern would bounce back however, as tailback John Brown Jr. took a 60 yard run to the house and cut the Red Wolves lead to 20-7. In the ensuing possession, a Will Berger pass was intercepted by Jewalace Holmes and Southern would turn that pick into points on a touchdown pass from Lynch to John Paulino. The seemingly insurmountable early Red Wolves lead was now only 20-15 after the two point conversion as the clock on the first quarter hit triple zeroes.

With the seemingly endless opening frame behind them, Cedar Ridge would get back on track to start the second quarter of play. Isaiah McCambry had a 60 yard touchdown run to extend the Cedar Ridge lead to 26-15 on the opening drive of the quarter. Later on in the quarter, Cedar Ridge head coach Antonio King was ejected from the game due to use of foul language.

When asked about the ejection, Coach King admitted his fault and said that “The two guys I left in charge did a very good job and the kids kind of responded to it, they knew what was happening, but it’s not fun. I’ve got the kids running wind sprints for acting the same way. They’ve got to be accountable, and I’ve got to be accountable.”

To start the third quarter, the Red Wolves came out with even more energy, the Cedar Ridge defense forced a three and out on the opening possession, and the offense drove down the field to score another rushing touchdown by way of Isaiah McCambry. A fumbled punt and a third McCambry rushing touchdown later, it was 38-15 Cedar Ridge.

The final frame only had one scoring play, a three yard rush on the read option play by Spartan wildcat quarterback and receiver Jewalace Holmes. The 2 point conversion was good to make it 38-23, but the ensuing onside kick failed to go ten yards and the Red Wolves just had to run out the clock en route to their third victory of the season.

Even after the win though, Coach King still says there are still fundamental aspects of the game that need to be worked on. “Tackling, blocking, all the basic, fundamental stuff that still seems to elude us in these types of situations. We’re going to keep working at it and keep getting better everyday.”

The 3-3 Red Wolves will take on their archrival Orange Panthers this Thursday, October 25th at Cedar Ridge Stadium.

Not only did Orange senior safety Eryk Mercado score his second touchdown in five days on Friday night, he also led the Northwood Chargers in receiving. Mercado had a 44-yard interception return during the 1st quarter of Orange’s 24-7 win over Northwood on Friday night in Pittsboro. He finished the drive with a 1-yard touchdown run to put Orange ahead 14-0. Mercado, who was All-Big 8 as a junior, now has three interceptions this season and has scored two touchdowns. As Orange ventures into its final three games of the season, Mercado is focused on trying to get the Panthers back into the state playoffs for the eighth straight season.

Orange Safety Eryk Mercado Discusses INT & TD vs. Northwood

Not only did Orange senior safety Eryk Mercado score his second touchdown in five days on Friday night, he also led the Northwood Chargers in receiving. Mercado had a 44-yard interception return during the 1st quarter of Orange’s 24-7 win over Northwood on Friday night in Pittsboro.

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Jack Schmid: The former Orange High quarterback made his season-debut for Division III Wheaton on Saturday. Schmid, who plays safety for the Thunder, entered the game as a reserve and was credited with a tackle. Washington University of St. Louis defeated Wheaton 17-10. The Thunder, who came into the game #12 according to D3football.com, are now 4-2.

Stone Edwards: In a fierce, fiery game at Vanderbilt Stadium which featured a near brawl during the second quarter, 2017 Orange graduate Stone Edwards recorded his first college sack for Vanderbilt. Edwards had a career-high four tackles. #14 Florida, which trailed 21-3 in the second quarter, came back to defeat the Commodores 37-27 in Nashville, TN.

Jordan Lloyd: The Division III Brevard Volleyball team earned its first two win of the season on Saturday, sweeping Berea 3-0 (25-21, 25-13, 25-20) at Boshamer Gymnasium in Brevard (25-21, 25-13, 25-20). Former Orange star Jordan Lloyd had ten kills, three aces, and 14 digs. Earlier in the day, Huntingdon defeated Brevard 3-1 (25-22, 25-22, 22-25 and 25-18). Lloyd had eleven kills, one ace and a team-high 22 digs. On Wednesday, Piedmont defeated Brevard 3-0. Lloyd had three kills, one ace and 12 digs in the loss to Lions.

Lili Henry: The 2017 Cedar Ridge graduate started for Division III Methodist volleyball team in a tri-match at Averett University in Danville, VA on Saturday. Methodist opened the day with a 3-1 win over N.C. Wesleyan (26-24, 21-25, 25-19 & 25-12). Henry had a career-best 48 assists, two kills, one ace and seven digs. It was the sixth time that Henry has set a personal best for assists this season. Later in the day, Averett defeated Methodist 3-0 (25-22, 25-20, 25-21). Against the Cougars, Henry registered 19 assists, one ace and 13 digs. On Wednesday, Methodist swept Salem 3-0 (25-18, 25-20 & 25-19) at the Riddle Center in Fayetteville. Henry finished with 29 assists, nine digs and one kill.

Caroline Compton & Lindsay Thompson: The Cape Fear Community College volleyball team had a dramatic 3-2 victory (18-25, 16-25, 25-21, 25-20, & 15-13) over Pitt Community College in Winterville on Wednesday. Former Orange star Caroline Compton started for the Sea Devils and finished with 46 assists, one kill and five digs. 2017 Cedar Ridge graduate Lindsay Thompson finished with one ace and 17 digs. Because of Hurricane Michael, Cape Fear’s tri-match scheduled for Fayetteville Tech Community College on Thursday was postponed.

Bailey Lucas: The 2018 Orange graduate came off the bench as the Meredith volleyball team defeated Greensboro College 3-0 in a tri-match on Saturday at Hanes Gymnasium. Meredith has now won eleven straight matches and is now 16-3.

Chandler Compton: The 2016 Orange graduate came off the bench for the Wofford men’s soccer team on Tuesday as the Terriers defeated UNC Greensboro 2-1 in double overtime at Snyder Field in Spartanburg, S.C. On Saturday, Mercer defeated Wofford 5-2 in Macon, GA. Wofford

Rachel Shinnick: On Friday, the Mercer women’s soccer team defeated Wofford 3-0 in Snyder Field. Shinnick, who graduated from Orange in 2015, made her ninth start of the season. She has appeared in 15 games this season for the Terriers, who are 3-11-1 overall, 1-6 in the Southern Conference.

Kayla Hodges: The Elon freshman fired a shot on goal in the Phoenix’s 2-0 loss to Northeastern at Parsons Field in Brookline, MA last Sunday. Hodges has played in four games this season. Elon is 3-7-2 going into Sunday’s game against Hofstra.

Lionel Reid-Shaw: The Division III Dickinson Red Devils are now tied for first in the Centennial Conference. On Saturday, the Red Devils defeated Gettysburg 2-0 at Miller Memorial Field in Carlisle, PA. Reid-Shaw made his 14th start of the season. Dickinson is now 9-3-2 overall, 4-1-1 in the Centennial Conference.

Brittany Daley: The Division III Greensboro College women’s soccer team is still undefeated after beating Salem College 3-1 on Saturday at Pride Field in Greensboro. Daley, who graduated from Cedar Ridge in June, made another start at centerback. On Tuesday, Greensboro edged N.C. Wesleyan 2-1, another match that Daley started. Greensboro is 13-0, 5-0 in the USA South Athletic Conference. Daley has started eleven of the Pride’s 13 matches.

Jordan Rogers: On Saturday, N.C. Wesleyan defeated the William Peace University women’s soccer team 2-0 at Scalf Field in Rocky Mount. Rogers, who graduated from Orange in June, fired the Pacers’ only shot of the game. On Wednesday, Meredith defeated William Peace 3-0 at Meredith Athletic Field in Raleigh. Rogers fired a shot on goal in the loss to the Avenging Angels. This season, Rogers has started all eleven of Peace’s matches, registering one goal and two assists.

Last week, Sarah McCuiston played the final home volleyball match of her three-year varsity career at Cedar Ridge. She finished with 13 kills, four digs, one ace and one block as the Red Wolves swept Southern Durham 3-0. Over her three years at Cedar Ridge, McCuiston has 397 kills. So far this season, she has a career-high 176 kills. Her best effort of the season came on September 20 at Orange, where she had 19 kills against the Lady Panthers. McCuiston has been the leader of the Red Wolves the past two seasons on and off the court. On Tuesday night, Cedar Ridge travels to Northwood in the opening round of the Big 8 Volleyball Tournament. Even if McCuiston’s Cedar Ridge career comes to an end on Tuesday, she’s still pursuing playing at the next level.

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Uploaded by Hillsborough Sports on 2018-10-09.

Since he was a freshman, Francisco McKinley has played varsity sports at Orange. He has won three conference championships as a member of the football team, where he’s been the punter since his freshman year. This season, he’s also playing goalkeeper for the Orange men’s soccer team. Last week, he posted a clean sheet in the Panthers’ win over Hillside. On Monday night, he got another shutout against Cedar Ridge in the 2nd leg of the Hillsborough Derby as the Panthers defeated the Red Wolves 2-0. Francisco is also a wrestler and will embark on his final season as an Orange grappler next month under Panther wrestling coach Spenser Poteat.

Orange Panther of the Week: Francisco McKinley

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Cedar Ridge junior cross country runner Connor Blankfard finished 4th in the Red Wolves’ first home meet of the season on September 25. It was an emotional day for the Red Wolves men’s and women’s cross country teams. The meet came three days after the death of Union Pines cross country runner Samantha Davis, who collapsed during a race in Charlotte. As a tribute, Blankfard and the rest of his teammates  wore light blue and white armbands & headbands, the colors of Union Pines High. Blankfard followed his solid performance at Cedar Ridge with a top ten finish last week at Orange. Now, Cedar Ridge looks forward to its next home meet on Wednesday, which will feature Chapel Hill and Northwood.

Cedar Ridge Cross Country Junior Connor Blankfard Talks #samanthastrong

Cedar Ridge Men’s Cross Country Runner Connor Blankfard finished fourth in the Red Wolves’ first home meet of the season on September 25, which also featured Northwood, East Chapel Hill & Hillside. It was also an emotional day. The meet came just days after the death of Union Pines cross country runner Samantha Davis, who collapsed during a race in Charlotte.