Just three days removed from competing in the oldest Track & Field event in the United States, Orange’s Jamar Davis began to get healthy.

The back heel that plagued him during the Penn Relays on Saturday began to get better by the time the Big 8 Track and Field Championships started on Tuesday.

And. It showed.

Davis captured the Big 8 Long Jump and Triple Jump Championships for the second consecutive year at Southern Durham High School. Davis won the Long Jump championship with a leap of 22-feet-four inches, two inches longer than runner-up Terry Green of Chapel Hill.

In the triple jump, Davis beat the field by a full six feet with a jump of 49-feet, six inches. Jordan Purvis was the next closet at 43-feet, four inches.

Last season, Davis also won the long jump and triple jump championships, along with being a member of the 4×400 meter relay team that won a conference championship.

Davis advanced to the 3A Mideast Regionals on May 12th at Southern Guilford in Greensboro in three events. Davis finished 2nd in the 300 meter hurdles, just behind Dominick Green of Southern Durham.

Davis was the only conference champion from the Hillsborough schools,  but several others qualified for regionals. In the 400 meter dash, Cameron Michalski of Orange finished 3rd with a time of 52.06. Cedar Ridge junior Eli Tilley came in fourth with a time of 52.64.

Cedar Ridge senior Brian Finch qualified for two events. He finished 4th in the 800 meters at 2:04.03. In the 1,600 meters, Finch finished 5th at 4:48.28.

Keyshawn Crisp of Cedar Ridge qualified for the regionals in the 110 meter hurdles with a time of 16.40 seconds.

The Cedar Ridge boys team had three relay teams qualify for regionals. The 4×100 team had a photo finish, finishing 2nd to Hillside by .06 of a second.

Cedar Ridge’s sophomore finished 2nd in the boys pole vault at 12-feet.

Orange freshman Cory McKoy finished 5th in the discus with a distance of 102-feet, 11 inches.

In the 3,200 meters, Orange’s Kyle Van Tubbergh came in fifth with a time of 10:26.81.

In the women’s events, Orange freshman Sasha Godfrey came in 2nd  in the 800 meters, running at 2:25.60, coming in just three-tenths-of-a-second behind Chapel Hill senior Anna Stouffer for 1st place. Cedar Ridge sophomore Allison Musty finished sixth.

Godfrey also qualified for regionals in the 1,600 meters by finishing 3rd at 5:25.94.

In the 3,200 meters, Cedar Ridge freshman Anne Morrell crossed the finish line 3rd at 12:10.75 to advance to Greensboro.

In the 300 meter hurdles, Orange’s Kate Burgess came in third at 48.89 seconds.

Orange’s 4×200 meter relay team finished 3rd with a time of 1:49.06.

In the high jump, Orange freshman Erin Mink had a runner-up finish with a leap of 5-feet, actually tying her with Hillside’s Gabrielle Ryan.

The Orange Women’s Soccer team ended its season on Wednesday. Night with a 3-1 loss to Northern Durham at OHS Soccer Pitch. Jordan Rogers assisted on the only goal of the night. Rogers was one of seven seniors on the Orange squad this year. She was named the Prom Queen on Saturday night, and discussed her surprise at winning the honor. 

Orange Senior Striker Jordan Rogers Discusses her Final Game at OHS

The Orange Women’s Soccer team ended its season on Wednesday. Night with a 3-1 loss to Northern Durham at OHS Soccer Pitch. Jordan Rogers assisted on the only goal of the night. Rogers was one of seven seniors on the Orange squad this year.

Cedar Ridge captured its first conference softball championship in school history on Tuesday with a 22-0 win over Southern Durham. Left fielder Amy Stutzer scored two runs after walking twice. Going into the regular season finale on Thursday, Stutzer is hitting .250. On top of winning the conference championship on Tuesday, Stutzer celebrated her birthday on Wednesday. Her mother made sure the occasion was equipped with the right refreshments.

Cedar Ridge LF Amy Stutzer Discusses Winning a Conference Championship on her Birthday

No Description

There wasn’t a sense of finality for the Cedar Ridge Baseball team on its senior night. They will likely be playing at home again next week in the state playoffs.

But Adam Chnupa picked a poetic time for his first grand slam.

The senior, who attended Elon University’s spring football game on Saturday, drove in five runs as Cedar Ridge routed Southern Durham 23-1 on Tuesday night at Red Wolves Stadium. Chnupa blasted the grand slam during a nine-run 3rd inning.  He also tripled in the fourth.

Cedar Ridge is guaranteed to finish no lower than second place in the Big 8. They can still tie for the Big 8 Championship if they beat Southern Durham on Thursday and if East Chapel Hill wins at Chapel Hill. On Tuesday night, Chapel Hill clinched a share of the Big 8 regular season championship by edging East Chapel Hill 2-1.

If Cedar Ridge clinches a share of the Big 8 Championship, they will receive the top seed from the Big 8 for the 3A State Tournament, which begins Tuesday.

Chnupa was one of six Cedar Ridge seniors playing their final regular season home game at Red Wolves Stadium. Centerfielder Sailor Ramos, 1st baseman Chris Cox, right fielder Erik Zehnder, designated hitter Landon Badger and 3rd baseman Nicholas Starr were the other seniors honored before the game. All six started.

Ramos hit two doubles and finished 4-for-4, improving his batting average to .417, which leads the team. Ramos also leads the team with 25 hits and 18 RBI. He has hit safely in five consecutive games, which is tied with Dante DeFranco for the longest streak on the team.

Cox went 2-for-2 with a double and scored three runs, driving in two. Erik Zehnder went 2-for-3 with 4 RBI and three runs scored. Badger went 2-for-3 with an RBI. Cedar Ridge finished with a season-high 19 hits.

Cedar Ridge has now won 11 straight games, the longest winning streak of any team from the Big 8 Conference this year.

Mattthew Kahn earned the win, striking out ten in four innings. Starr came on in the final inning for mop-up duty.

Kahn is now 6-2  with a 3.26 ERA. He has struck out 37 while walking 17.

Cedar Ridge (16-5, 10-3 in the Big 8) will conclude the regular season on Thursday when they face Southern Durham at Pete Shankle Field in the Bull City.

Jaydin Poteat’s final plate appearance at Orange High Field was befitting of his entire high school career. He was hit by a pitch to lead off the bottom of the sixth inning against Northern Durham. Poteat stole second, took third after Joey Berini was also hit by a pitch and scored off an infield single by Dayne Watkins. It was the 63rd run of Poteat’s career and helped the Panthers defeat the Knights 9-4 to improve to 11-10. Orange now has sole possession of 3rd place in the Big 8 with a 9-4 record.

Orange Senior CF Jaydin Poteat Discusses Scoring a Run in his Final Plate Appearance at Orange High

No Description

Sometimes, baseball can become a sudden sport. On Tuesday night, Orange starting pitcher Will White was struck on the right foot by a line drive. He left the game an inning later. On short notice, Kaymin Matsko entered the game. Matsko, a senior, threw 4-and-one-third scoreless innings. Behind Matsko’s arm, Orange rallied from a 4-1 deficit to defeat Northern Durham 9-4 to take over sole possession of third place in the Big 8. It was Matsko’s third win of his varsity career. Even though Matsko is a middle reliever, Tuesday night’s game wasn’t his longest outing. Last month against Wake County HomeSchools, Matsko threw six innings of relief.

Orange Senior Kaymin Matsko Talks Getting a Win on Senior Night

No Description

On a night where four seniors played their final games on the Orange softball field, it was a junior and a sophomore who ensured the Lady Panthers would return to the postseason.

Junior 3rd baseman Olivia Ruff went 4-for-4 with a double and a home run, while sophomore pitcher Jaden Hurdle hit her 3rd homer of the season to push Orange past Northern Durham 14-4 on Tuesday night at Panther Softball Field.

The win ensures Orange will finish at least 4th in the Big 8 Conference, which will put them in the state playoffs, which begin on Tuesday.

After a rocky start where Northern scored four runs in the first inning, Hurdle finished the game throwing four shutout innings to improve to 6-6 in the circle.

The Knights stormed out to a 4-0 lead, but Orange scored 14 consecutive runs to improve to 10-8 overall, 8-5 in the Big 8.

Orange started the comeback with five runs in the 1st, starting with Hurdle singling to centerfield. Hurdle rounded the bases without a hit, taking second on a passed ball, stealing third and scoring on another passed ball. After Hayley Funk and senior Alysann Lloyd each walked, Funk scored off another wild pitch. Freshman Emma Puckett double to right to bring in Lloyd. Ruff’s first hit of the game plated Puckett to tie the game 404. Senior Olivia Latta-Harshaw reached on an infield single that went off the glove of Northern pitcher McKenzie McCullen, scoring Ruff and putting Orange ahead 5-4.

Orange struck for eight runs in the fourth. Hurdle led off the inning with a double to centerfield. After a bunt single by Funk, Lloyd reached on an error to score Hurdle. Alisha Pettiford knocked in Funk off a hard ground ball to the shortstop. Ruff swatted a three-home homer to left field, increasing Orange’s lead to 10-4.

Sophomore Rachel Tilley started another offensive wave with a single to center. Senior Alyssa Heilman walked, leading to Hurdle’s three-run homer.

The Lady Panthers ensured a slaughter rule win with a run in the fifth. Ruff hit a two-out double to right field,  and Tilley singled her in to end the game.

Orange is now tied with Northern Durham for 3rd place in the conference. The two teams will meet again on Thursday night at 6 to conclude the regular season.

The state playoffs begin on Tuesday.

In a battle for 3rd place in the Big 8 on Tuesday night, the Cedar Ridge Women’s soccer team tied Northern Durham 1-1 at Red Wolves Stadium. Cedar Ridge nearly got the game-winner with 5:42 remaining in the 2nd overtime after Emerson Talley’s diagonal pass on a counter found freshman Ivy Garner, who was ruled offside on a borderline call. Junior Grace Davies was in net for the Red Wolves. It was her eighth game of the season. Davies has four shutouts this season for a Cedar Ridge team that has clinched a spot in the state playoffs for the third straight season. After the game, she discussed sharing time in net with senior Taylin Jean, and producing music that you can find on Spotify. 

Cedar Ridge GK Grace Davies Discusses 1-1 Tie with Northern Durham and Making Music

No Description