It’s safe to say Gavin Wiggins has come out of the gates running in his high school career. Only a freshman, Wiggins is already starting for the Panthers at 113 pounds, going 6-3 in his first two weeks as a high school grappler. In the King Invitational, Wiggins opened with a 4-3 decision over Clayton’s Christian Prescott. In the quarterfinals, Wiggins pinned Winston Salem Glenn’s Nick McCormick in 1:29. He advanced to the finals by beating Simon Ruff of Leesville Road 6-0. Wiggins discussed working with Coach Bobby Shriner in his opening weeks as a high school grappler and what lies ahead.

Orange Freshman Gavin Wiggins Finishes 2nd at 113 in initial King Invitational appearance

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After opening the season with ten consecutive victories, Orange senior wrestler Joe Scott finished 2nd at 152 pounds in the 35 Jim King Invitational on Saturday at King Gymnasium. Eastern Alamance’s Mitch Dean, who was named Most Outstanding Wrestler of the tournament, edged Scott 4-2 in the championship.

Scott talked about his performance in the tournament afterwards.

Joe Scott Goes to 10-1 on the Season after 2nd place finish at King Invitational

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Caldwell’s Bailey Hawkins finished third in the 120-pound weight class at the Jim King Invitational, going 4-1 for the weekend. Hawkins scored pins in his opening two matches. In the consoloation bracket, he earned consecutive victories by scores of 4-0 & 7-3. He talked about his weekend and what’s ahead in the Tiger Holiday Classic later this month.

Orange’s Bailey Hawkins Finishes 3rd at King Invitational

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Senior Juan Torres improved to 9-1 on the season after finishing 3-1 in the Jim King Invitational. His only loss came in the championship match at 182. Juan discusses his rigorous training under Coach Bobby Shriner.

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Torres finished 2nd at the Jim King Invitational on Saturday, helping Orange win the team championship for the first time since 2011.

There a scene in the early moments of “Hoosiers” when Norman Dale has just arrived in Hickory, Indiana. With a laced up basketball in his hands, he says to no one in particular “What kind of hand have I been dealt?”

Two games into the 2015-16 season, that’s what Greg Motley is trying to sort out. He’s had two weeks to work with a full hand, but he lost his ace in the hole before the dealer even finished.

On Thursday night, Sanderson rallied to beat the Panthers 61-58 in Raleigh. The Panthers led by as many as 8 early in the third quarter, but lost Conner Crabtree after he was called for a charge with 5:25 remaining in the third quarter. He didn’t return until 4:27 remaining in the game.

Daniel Mulligan led Orange with 18 points. Center Logan Vosburg and Crabtree added 15. Vosburg scored 11 in the second half, seven in the fourth quarter.

Crabtree’s 3-pointer with 3:57 remaining gave the Panthers a 56-5 lead, but Spartans point guard Taj Thompson took over the game in the final stanza. He nailed a trio of 3-pointers and hit five of six free throws down the stretch.

While Orange has its best performances ahead of them, it’s doubtful they’ll play a quirkier game this season.

In the first quarter, Sanderson had a free throw waved off because of a goal tending call.

Later in the third quarter, Spartan forward Antonio Freeman was fouled by Vosburg going strong to the basket. The crowd has already quieted as Freeman went to the line when one of the referees blurted out to the scorer’s table “The basket was good.” That announcement was met with confused looks from both benches and snickers from the Sanderson fan section, who could have sworn Freeman’s shot missed everything. On the next trip down the floor, Vosburg was credited with a field goal courtesy of a goaltending coal that was almost as mysterious.

Late in the fourth quarter, Thompson had a critical free throw waved off because his feet were on the free throw line.

In the end, the Panthers fell to 0-2, which is hardly surprising. Motley has six players in his rotation that just got finished with football season. Plus, there’s the loss of point guard Eryk Brandon-Dean, who is lost for the season after tearing his ACL in September against Southern Durham.

On the positive side, Orange led 39-35 going at the end of the third quarter. The Panthers only scored 35 points in its season-opening loss to East Chapel Hill on Tuesday night.

The Panthers will play its first home game on Tuesday night against Heritage.

Sanderson improves to 2-1 with the win, which has followed an early pattern. They lost to Knightdale 62-58 and defeated Holly Springs 58-56.

Orange Basketball Coach Greg Motley Discusses the Panthers 61-58 loss to Sanderson

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Cedar Ridge’s jump to the brink of the Big 8 Soccer Championship paid off with a dual honor for the team’s coach and second-leading scorer on Monday.

Red Wolves midfielder Chris Walker was named Big 8 Player of the Year on Monday. Walker led the team with nine assists, and added ten goals this season for a Cedar Ridge team that finished 13-6-2 this season. They went 9-12 in 2013.

Because of that improvement, Walker’s father, Chris Walker Sr. was voted Big 8 Coach of the Year. It was Walker’s third season as the head coach at CRHS. The Red Wolves made the 3-A state playoffs, defeating Northwood in the opening round. They fell to Cleveland 2-0 in the 2nd round.

Joining Walker on the All-Big 8 team was goalkeeper Brandon Boss, striker Ivan Carbajal, midfielder Lachlan McGrath and striker Noah Leesnitzer.

Carbajal led Cedar Ridge in scoring with with 20 goals and 45 points. Leesnitzer played 19 games and added five goals. McGrath added seven goals, which was third on the squad.

Orange, which defeated Chapel Hill for the first time in school history this season, placed centerback Chandler Compton, striker Alfredo Rodriguez and midfielder Lionel Reid-Shaw on the All-Big 8 squad.

Rodriguez finished with ten goals this season. Reid-Shaw led the squad with 15 goals and 14 assists. Compton was the 2nd Hillsboroughsports.com Orange Panther of the Week.

After earning the Big 8 individual championship at the conference championship meet in Pittsboro, there was only one natural choice for boys’ runner of the year.

Cedar Ridge’s Ian Elliot was named to the top honor on Tuesday. He captured the Big 8 Conference Championship on October 21, crossing the finish line at 16:53.54, his best time of the season.

“I hadn’t wanted to take the lead too early,” Elliot said to the Raleigh News and Observer. “I didn’t think I had the energy for that.”

On the same course in Pittsboro, Elliot finished 8th in the 3-A Mideast Regional meet at 16:51.72.

Orange’s Hunter Spitzer joined Elliot on the All-Big 8 team. Spitzer finished 2nd in the conference and 14th in the regionals.

Spencer Husen and Danny Archibald also made all-conference for the Panthers.

In Girls Cross Country, Cedar Ridge’s Jennifer Pepin was named Big 8 Coach of the Year. She guided the Red Wolves to a third place finish in the league.

Cedar Ridge’s Liz Zarzar earned All-Big 8 Conference Honors after finishing 5th in the conference meet. Orange’s Adalyn Fleming (8th) and Juliana Lester also made the All-Big 8 squad.

After a season where Cedar Ridge captured the Big 8 Championship and advanced to the Final Four of the 3-A State Tournament, Coach Charlie Oakley was named the Big 8 Coach of the Year on Tuesday.

Oakley guided Cedar Ridge to a 24-4 record, the most successful in team history. The Red Wolves finished 12-0 in the Big 8.

Led by seniors Asha Barnes, Meg Anderson and Courtney Eckmann, the Red Wolves captured the district and sectional championships before falling in the Eastern Regional Championship match to Asheboro 3-1.

That wasn’t the only volleyball honor for the Orange County area. Orange’s Andie McKinnon was named the Big 8 Player of the Year. McKinnon led the Panthers with 291 kills and a 49,7% kill percentage. She also led the team with 72 aces and 367 digs.

Orange finished 15-10 this season, including two victories over Chapel Hill. The Panthers went to the third round of the state playoffs.

Also making All-Big 8 Conference for Cedar Ridge was Barnes, Lily Henry and Karsen Lee. Joining McKinnon on the All Confernece team for Orange was Kayla Durham and Macy Hughes.

Eckmann was named Honorable Mention for CRHS. Jordan Lloyd and M’Lynn Dease were Honorable Mention for the Panthers.

Going into Thanksgiving break, the Cedar Ridge boys basketball team suffered its first loss of the young season to Person in Roxboro.

The first game after Thanksgiving turned out much better.

The Red Wolves cruised past South Granville 71-52 on Tuesday night at Red Wolves Gymnasium. As usual, seniors Peyton Pappas and Jacob Thomas led CRHS in scoring. They each scored 17.

It was freshman Terrence Crawford who provided the surprise scoring punch. In just his fourth varsity game, Crawford registered 11 points.

Cedar Ridge jumped out to a 26-8 lead at the end of the first quarter and never looked back.

The Red Wolves will be right back in action tonight. They face Southern Alamance in Mebane. Before the week is over, CRHS will play three games in four days. They travel to Burlington to take on the Cummings Cavaliers on Friday night.