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This week’s Orange Panther of the Week is senior wide receiver Kingston Purefoy-Farrington. This season, Purefoy-Farrington has scored six touchdowns, including three against Walter Williams in Burlington last month. He finished with 200 yards receiving against the Bulldogs, his second 200-yard receiving game of the season. In the season opener against Southeast Alamance, Purefoy-Farrington had 220 receiving yards and two touchdowns. Purefoy-Farrington also had 86 yards receiving against Person with a touchdown. In the spring, Purefoy-Farrington runs track and field in the 100 and 200 meter dash. Last year, he qualified for the 3A State Championships at North Carolina A&T State University in the 4×100 meter relay team. He has a goal of qualifying individually for the 100 meters next spring just before he graduates. Hunter Albert scored two touchdowns in Orange’s win over Cedar Ridge for Homecoming. Albert earned his first touchdown of an interception return. Later, he caught a pass from quarterback Kyse Devore as the Panthers retained the victory bell. Albert starts as a wide receiver on offense and as a defensive back. He has 43 solo tackles this season. Albert has three career interceptions. Orange will conclude its season with a trip to Mebane to face Eastern Alamance on Friday night at the John Kirby Sports Complex. You can hear the game on Hillsboroughsports.com starting at 6:50.

Orange Panther of the Week: Kingston Purefoy-Farrington; Defensive Player of the Week: Hunter Albert

This week’s Orange Panther of the Week is senior wide receiver Kingston Purefoy-Farrington. This season, Purefoy-Farrington has scored six touchdowns, including three against Walter Williams in Burlington last month. He finished with 200 yards receiving against the Bulldogs, his second 200-yard receiving game of the season.

The past two years have brought the longest sustained success for the Orange volleyball program. They have won two Central Conference regular season championships, a Central Conference Tournament championship, eight state playoff victories and the 2023 3A Eastern Regional championship. They have a combined record of 45-14. On Tuesday night, the Panthers took J.H. Rose, the #1 ranked team in the 3A East Region, to the limit in the state quarterfinals. It was the final match for senior Abby Silinski, Karleigh Johnson and Peyton Sigmon. This season, Silinski was the starting libero for the Panthers and led the team with 336 digs. Silinski also had 33 aces, which was tied for fourth. Silinski had some crucial aces late in the second set against Rose, which led to the Rampants losing their first set in the state playoffs. Johnson was another important defensive player for the Panthers in 2024. Johnson had 70 digs. Sigmon’s mother attended Orange High School and was in the Class of 1991. Sigmon had several aces in the Panthers senior night win over Walter Williams earlier this month. Together, Silinski, Johnson and Sigmon got to take the most important walk in state volleyball last year. They stood under the spotlight inside Reynolds Coliseum as they were introduced in the 3A State Championship match. It’s a memory now, but some memories last forever.

Orange volleyball seniors Abby Silinski, Karleigh Johnson & Peyton Sigmon discuss their final year

The past two years have brought the longest sustained success for the Orange volleyball program. They have won two Central Conference regular season championships, a Central Conference Tournament championship, eight state playoff victories and the 2023 3A Eastern Regional championship. They have a combined record of 45-14.

Photo by Abigail Pfeiffenberger 

Orange Middle 28, Northern Roxboro 20: It was expected that the showdown between Orange Middle and Northern Roxboro on October 23 in Person County would be the biggest threat to the Chargers unbeaten streak to start the year.

Indeed, the Raiders and the Chargers were tied 20-20 with 1:30 remaining in the fourth quarter. After the Raiders scored the game-tying touchdown, the Chargers got a huge kickoff return from Cam Royster, who was finally downed at the Norther 18-yard line. As dusk set on a field without lights, quarterback Brayden Robbins scored the game-winning touchdown, then added a two-point conversion. The Orange defense held up to secure the victory.

Royster, Wilbert To rain and Jakob Silinski also scored touchdowns for Orange Middle.

Orange Middle 36, Culbreth 6: The Chargers ensured that it would host the Orange-Person Athletic Conference Championship game on November 13 with a home victory over the Cougars in Hillsborough on Wednesday.

Wilbert Torain scored two touchdowns, one on offense and another on defense. Torain made an interception and returned it for a touchdown. Asher Devore, Brayden Robbins and Cam Royster also had touchdowns for the Chargers.

Orange Middle will host Gravelly Hill for 8th grade night next Wednesday for the regular season finale.

The Chargers will face Northern Roxboro for the OPAC Championship at Auman Stadium at Orange High School on November 13 at 5PM.

Volleyball: The Stanback Bulldogs have won the Northern Division championship in the OPAC. Stanback, coached by Izzy Sheppard, a member of Cedar Ridge volleyball’s 2021 3A State Championship team, went 10-2 during the regular season. They will face Smith Middle School for the OPAC Championship on November 7. Earlier this month, the Bulldogs defeated Orange Middle to win the division title.

Orange Middle fell to 9-2 after the loss.

Stanback’s junior varsity team won their division title, also finishing with a 10-2 record.

Under the definition of unlikely champions, the Cedar Ridge women’s cross country team would likely fit the description.

Not because of talent, but due to circumstances.

Yet that didn’t stop the Red Wolves from winning the 3A Mideast Regional championship at Owens Recreation Park in Louisburg on Saturday. Senior Naomi Dyreng, the individual Central Conference champions, finished second overall as the Red Wolves came in with 74 points, holding off runner-up Carrboro, who registered 84.

Freshman Isabella Taylor-Hall finished eleventh while another freshman, Illa Diaz, came in 15th. Cedar Ridge, which won the Central Conference championship in Burlington earlier this month, went from finishing fourth in the Mideast Regionals last year to a championship in 2024.

When head coach Jared Buddington started workouts in August, he wasn’t expecting a high level of success so quickly. Abigail Klaitman, the Red Wolves’ second-most experienced runner who finished 7th in the Mideast Regionals last year, has missed most of this season because of injuries.

“I really didn’t expect to be as good as we are,” Buddington said. “We’re really young. We have a lot of underclassmen. Gracie Whitaker has been a huge factor in our success. So has Isabella and Illa. It’s been a pleasant surprise.”

Taylor-Hall showed up on the first day of practice after being absent during summer workouts. Buddington thought Taylor-Hall would be a nice addition to increase participation numbers. Then in the first Central Conference race of the year, Taylor-Hall finished 5th overall to help Cedar Ridge win a tri-meet at Orange. Since then, she’s shaved off nearly three-and-a-half minutes from her personal best.

“She’s sort of become our #2 runner,” Buddington said. “Without Abigail, Isabella has really stepped up to fill that role of the second runner.”

Whitaker, who finished 21st in regionals, has made the eighth biggest improvement in the state from freshman to sophomore year. Last year, her personal best was 25:15.90 . This year, it’s 21:44.09.

“At the very beginning of this year, she said I want us to be a good team,” Buddington said of Whitaker. “She started putting in a lot of miles as soon as soccer season ended. She’s been really consistent.”

Another multi-sport athlete, sophomore Kate Finnegan, finished in 25th place at regionals.

“Without Kate making a big jump, I don’t think the girls would have won the region,” Buddington said. “She was one of our best runners.”

The championship came after a year of turmoil within the program. In 2023, a former head coach was fired in midseason, which attracted an outcry from parents and some students. Buddington, a former Cedar Ridge runner who was an assistant at Pinecrest, was thrust into the position of interim coach. Not only was he in charge of two cross country teams, he was also left trying to unite a divided household. Results didn’t come immediately.

Buddington called a team meeting in the J-wing Auditorium after the head coach’s departure. He vowed to the runners that they would be a good team and would move forward together. Conner Buddington, Jared’s sister-in-law, joined the staff last October.

“I really didn’t know what to do because I had never been a head coach before,” Buddington said. “I wasn’t sure if I was capable of taking over this program. But I had to sit down with the kids. At first, they were upset because they lost a head coach that they had grown to know. I think throughout the last year and three months, they’ve grown to appreciate what we offer the team.”

After winning the conference and regional championships, the Red Wolves will move on to the 3A State Championships at the Ivey Redmond Sports Complex this Saturday afternoon.

“I think there’s a huge value in giving kids in high school a structured running plan,” Buddington said. “I think that giving them all the tools to succeed and telling them exactly what to do each day and letting them see what they need to do really guides them to where they want to be. But I also think we also foster a strong community where we value developing runners and believing in our kids.”

Conner Buddington believes practices have become part of a fun day for the runners.

“They really enjoy being around each other,” Conner said. “They have a lot of fun as individuals, but they have a lot of fun together. So they’re not dreading going to practice. They get to come see their friends and run with their friends. The way they support each other before and after the race. The girls supporting the guys. The guys supporting the girls. It’s a lot of fun to see.”

This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is junior volleyball outside hitter Kayla Stoll. This season, Stoll was second on the team in kills with 230 kills as the Red Wolves won a share of the Central Conference regular season championship. Stoll also played middle blocker and led the team with 46 blocks to help a Cedar Ridge team win three matches over Person, who reached the state quarterfinals. In the opening round of the state playoffs against Franklinton, Stoll had a career-high 15 kills as the Red Wolves won a match in the state playoffs for a fifth straight year. In the second round, Cedar Ridge swept Southern Nash in Bailey. Stoll finished with eleven kills. Kayla has been a member of the varsity for three years. This season, she was instrumental in replacing Addie Reid, who graduated last June and is now playing at North Carolina Central. Stoll had 13 kills in Cedar Ridge’s win at Person on August 27, the conference opener. She also had 12 kills against Orange in the Central Conference Tournament championship game. The Red Wolves wrapped up the season with a 18-7 record. For five straight years, Cedar Ridge has won either a conference regular season championship or a tournament championship.

Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week: Kayla Stoll

This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is junior volleyball outside hitter Kayla Stoll. This season, Stoll was second on the team in kills with 230 kills as the Red Wolves won a share of the Central Conference regular season championship.

The Orange football team will end not only its season, but its stint in the Central Conference this Friday night against Eastern Alamance in Mebane. In the four years since the league was created from realignment, Orange has never defeated a team from Alamance County. Unlike previous years, the Panthers have been competitive against Central Conference teams in 2024. Orange led Southern Alamance 14-0 in the first quarter for Senior Night two weeks ago. It’s been a spectacular season for senior wide receiver Kingston Purefoy-Farrington, who has six touchdown catches. Against Walter Williams last month, Purefoy-Farrington had three touchdown catches. Junior quarterback Kyse Devore came on for an injured Hank Nunnery and threw four touchdown passes in a Homecoming win over Cedar Ridge. Devore also rushed for a touchdown. Junior defensive back Hunter Albert had an interception return for a touchdown and a reception for a touchdown. Against Person, Bradsher returned a kickoff to open the second half for a touchdown. He became the first Orange player to return a kickoff for a touchdown since Wynston Brown did it against Eastern Alamance in 2021. Orange will face Eastern Alamance at the John Kirby Sports Complex in Mebane on Friday night. You can hear the game on Hillsboroughsports.com.

Orange football’s Devore, Bradsher, Purefoy-Farrington and Albert discuss Homecoming win

The Orange football team will end not only its season, but its stint in the Central Conference this Friday night against Eastern Alamance in Mebane. In the four years since the league was created from realignment, Orange has never defeated a team from Alamance County.

Photo courtesy of 252Buzz

GREENVILLE–The crowd had long filtered out of Rose High School’s gymnasium as Rampants athletic director Clay Medlin talked with an observer about the volleyball match that had just finished an hour earlier.

“That was one of the greatest matches I’ve ever seen,” said Medlin.

The stories that will be told about Orange vs. J.H. Rose in the state quarterfinals from the observers who watched it will go on for years to come.

Unfortunately for Orange, a lot of the sentences in those stories will include the two most painful words in the English language: what if?

Rose fended off five Orange match points to defeat the Panthers 3-2 in the 3A State Quarterfinals inside a sweltering Rose Gymnasium on Tuesday night. The Rampants (22-4) prevailed on scores of 25-27, 29-27, 23-25, 25-19, 18-16.

It was the embodiment of a match with state playoff pressure where the level of play eclipsed the high stakes. Rose outside hitter Clara Evans, who has committed to play at TCU, finished with 41 kills and 27 digs.

Both teams lost vital players as the match, spanning over two-and-a-half hours, continued with a feverish intensity. One Orange player threw up during a timeout. Another Panther missed most of the fourth set after feeling lightheaded, but eventually returned. Rose sophomore Kate Wallen, who came into the match 2nd on the team with 225 kills, injured her left hand early in the third set and was immediately taken to the locker room. She didn’t return until the fourth set and only played sparingly the rest of the way.

In the fifth set, Orange put up five straight points to take a 13-10 lead. Katie Silcott delivered a kill, followed by another from Aubrey Jordan. When Jordan slammed down a kill, Orange had three match points leading 14-11.

After Jordan sent a serve long, Evans ended a long rally with a spike that hit the end line. The subsequent point will be the subject of discussion for years to come around Orange circles. Rose’rs Breanna Joyner and Maya Swaggerty both came up with digs as played bogged down around the net. Silcott sent a return to Caroline Bayes, who fed Evans for an overhead stroke. The ball was ruled to have hit the line and was called in, though several Orange spectators standing in the end zone vehemently disagreed.

Regardless, the score was tied 14-14, the third set of the night to advance to overtime. Orange earned another match point following a kill from Ava Wilkerson. Evans came back with another kill. Sawyer White responded with a block at the net to provide Orange with a fifth match point, but a return from the Panthers went into the net.

That was the first of three straight Rose points to end the match. Evans got her 37th kill down the line for the Rampants to set up a match point. Orange set up Wilkerson, who faded back for an attack off her back foot that went across the court and over the far sideline. Rose’s players spilled out in a victory pileup after their season in joyous relief after it appeared to be fading into the abyss.

Instead, the Rampants will host West Carteret for the Eastern Regional championship on Thursday night.

“It’s never easy to not come out on top,” said Orange coach Hope Heverly, who guided Orange to the 3A State Championship match in 2023. “We asked the girls one thing. We asked to leave it all out on the floor. And they can all walk away saying they definitely left it all out on the court. They faced a few different adversities throughout the match with a couple of players going out for a few minutes. But they came right back out and took care of what they needed to do.”

Orange ends the year 18-9, champions of the Central Conference regular season and conference tournament.

Orange became the first team in the state playoffs to take a set from the Rampants when they won the second 29-27. There were nine lead changes and 20 ties in the set. Freshman Aubry Hodges forced the first set point off a block, but the Rampants scored consecutive points. After a kill by Evans, Rose got a set point, which was canceled out when Evans sent an attack into the net. Silcott and Jordan each scored kills to earn Orange the set to even the match at one-set apiece.

Orange scored the opening six points of the second set, but the Rampants roared back and took a 16-13 lead. The Lady Panthers responded with four straight points, including two straight kills from Wilkerson and another block by Hodges. Silcott forced set point with a kill to make it 24-22. After a kill by Taylor Loesner of Rose, Silcott sent an overhead spike that rolled along the tape of the net, then fell down on the sideline to put Orange ahead two-sets-to-one.

Rose took the closest thing resembling a decisive set in the fourth, winning 25-19. Wallen returned and the Rampants took a 18-13 lead after back-to-back kills from Maya Swaggerty. Mariah Poole delivered an ace to cut the lead to 21-19, but Rose forced a fifth set by scoring the final four points of the frame, three of which were kills by Evans.

While anyone who attends Cedar Ridge and Orange will tell you the schools aren’t one and the same, the classic match on Thursday night likely ends a remarkable chapter of Hillsborough volleyball vs. Rose in the state playoffs. It dates back to 2021, when Cedar Ridge defeated Rose to win the 3A Eastern Regional championship. The following year, Rose got revenge and ended the storied careers of the Magnificent Six, Cedar Ridge’s senior class of Cameron Lloyd, Cameron Lanier, Julie Altieri, Grace Young, Melissa Benkowitz and Anaya Carter, who delivered a state championship.

Last year, Orange defeated Rose in the state quarterfinals in Hillsborough. Like Cedar Ridge before them in 2021, the Lady Panthers would find their way playing in Reynolds Coliseum for the state championship.

The final chapter in Greenville on Tuesday night was a story in itself. While the careers of Orange seniors Abby Silinski, Karleigh Johnson and Peyton Sigmon are over, the epilogue hasn’t been written for the core of this Lady Panther team. That will be in 2025, when Wilkerson, Silcott, Jordan, Poole, White and Addison Guetensberger, among others, will seek to complete the business that went unfinished, by one painful point, on Tuesday night.

“I’m very proud of the girls,” Heverly said. “Even though we didn’t come out with the win, they definitely turned the season around. I don’t know anybody who thought we were going to be in the Elite Eight. And they proved everybody wrong. This group will hold a special place in my heart.”

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Hillsborough Sports | Hillsborough Sports’s live audio

Hillsborough Sports is on Mixlr. Mixlr is a simple way to share live audio online. Broadcast using any source and invite others to listen and chat in real-time.