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There’s no football at Roxboro Community School. Their Friday night lights are inside a gymnasium.

When the Orange volleyball team’s bus rolled down Highway 157 on Friday night, they were greeted by a group of students who packed the opposite end zone bleachers facing them. It makes for an intimidating sight to hit towards, but Orange once again proved they were up for the task.

Sophomore Ava Wilkerson finished with 13 kills and seven digs while Aubrey Jordan added 15 kills as Orange swept Roxboro Community School on scores of 25-22, 25-20 and 25-19. Senior Ella Wimsatt added eleven kills and seven digs, while sophomore setter Katie Silcott had 35 assists, three aces and five kills as Orange won its ninth straight match.

The victory completed a span of two wins over Person County teams in two nights for Orange (10-3). On Thursday, the Lady Panthers swept Person in Hillsborough.

RCS opened with leads in the first and second sets. RCS (7-4) jumped ahead 7-3 lead following a kill from Peyton Hogan and an ace from Vivi Carcamo. Orange evened the set after a kill from Wimsatt set up by Josie Crawford. There were eleven ties in the opening set, the final one coming when Wilkerson smashed a point off an assist from Silcott. Orange finished the fame with the final four points, ending with a kill by Jordan, an ace by Silcott and a return by the Bulldogs that went wide on set point.

After conceding the opening two points in the second set, Orange reeled off six in a row, ending with a Wimsatt ace. Jordan and Wilkerson each had two kills in the run. Wilkerson had seven kills overall in the second as the Lady Panthers opened up a 14-10 lead following another Wimsatt ace. The Bulldogs’ Baylee Long scored a point to reduce Orange’s lead to 15-13. An ace by Abby Silinski concluded an 7-3 Orange run to put the Lady Panthers ahead 21-16, but the Bulldogs responded with four in a row, capped by a kill from sophomore Peyton Hogan. Wilkerson ended the run with a kill, then followed with an ace to make it 24-20. RCS sent a return out on set point to put Orange ahead 2-sets-to-nothing.

The third set was the only one that Orange led wire-to-wire. Blessiny Deronette had a block for Orange, followed by an ace from Silcott to make it 5-1. RCS’ Hogan, Long and Jenna Hogan each had kills in succession to reduce the Orange lead to 10-9. Five Orange players had kills in the final set for Orange, led by Jordan with five. Orange had a 7-1 run to take a 24-17 lead, which included two kills each from Jordan and Silcott. Jordan ended the night with a kill on match point assisted by Silcott.

Orange has had ten of its last eleven matches on the road. They will play away from Hillsborough again on Tuesday night (tonight) when they face Southern Alamance in Graham. Orange returns home to face Roxboro Community School in a rematch Wednesday night.

Women’s Tennis: Orange 9, Person 0: Ten different players saw action for Orange in a sweep of Person on Thursday at Panther Tennis Courts.

Sophomores Molly Kruse and Kyla Mehl each won two matches on the night, where singles matches consisted of one set to ten games. Kruse defeated Amaya Hargrove 10-0. Mehl shutout Hailey Martin 10-0. Kruse and Mehl teamed at #1 doubles to defeat Annie Adcock and Danni Brown 8-1.

Erinn Sollars won at #1 singles over Adcock 10-0. Shannon Sollars defeated Brown 10-0 at #2 singles. Makayla Davis rolled past Maria Scott-Dubbusco 10-0. At #6 singles, sophomore Casey Robinson won over Jordan O’Grady 10-1.

At #2 doubles, Adelyn Alvis and Evelyn Over defeated Dubbusco and Hargrove 8-0. In the most competitive match of the day, at #3 doubles, Madeline Dutton and Isabella Panek teamed to defeat Martin & O’Grady 7-6, winning a seven-point tiebreaker 7-0.

Orange is 5-3, 2-2 in the Central Carolina Conference. They will step out of CCC action to host Roxboro Community School in Hillsborough on Tuesday night.

Photo Courtesy of Salisbury University

Julie Altieri: The Division III Salisbury Seagulls went 2-1 during the Garnet Invitational in Swarthmore, PA over the weekend. On Friday, the Salisbury defeated Arcadia inside Tarble Pavilion (25-16, 25-19 and 25-18). Altieri had 16 assists, two digs and one ace. On Saturday, Salisbury went the distance in a 3-2 win over Bowdoin (25-18, 25-10, 24-26, 18-25 and 15-11). Altieri finished with four kills, 17 assists, one ace and ten digs. Later, Swarthmore defeated Salisbury 3-1 (14-25, 27-25, 25-15 and 25-23). Altieri finished with eleven assists, one kill, two aces and four digs. It was the Seagulls first loss of the season. Salisbury is 5-1.

Lottie Scully: In her first match of the year, Scully returned for the Binghamton Bearcats volleyball team for the Lehigh Invite in Bethlehem, PA. On Friday, Binghamton defeated Fairleigh Dickinson 3-2 on scores of 19-25, 25-17, 25-27, 25-21 and 15-8. Scully had 20 assists, four digs, and two aces. On Saturday, Binghamton defeated Lehigh 3-0 (25-23, 25-19 and 25-17). Scully finished with a team-high 20 assists, nine digs and two aces. Delaware State defeated Binghamton 3-1 in the final match of the event (25-21, 28-26, 21-25 and 25-18). Scully finished with 23 assists, four digs and two aces. Binghamton is 6-4.

Cameron Lloyd: The Bucknell volleyball team finished non conference play with a win over Cleveland State. In the Cleveland State Tournament, the Bison opened with a wild 3-2 win over Akron where they rallied from two sets downs win (13-25, 24-26, 26-24, 25-22 and 15-13). Lloyd had seven kills, nine digs, and two aces. On Saturday, Harvard defeated Bucknell 3-0 (25-16, 28-26 and 25-23). Lloyd had three kills, six digs and one ace. Bucknell defeated Cleveland State 3-2 (25-21, 23-25, 25-27, 25-23 and 15-13). Lloyd had ten kills, 18 digs and an ace. Bucknell is 4-5 and will start its Patriot League schedule against Army on Friday.

Cameron Lanier: For the second time this year, a former Cedar Ridge volleyball player when against her former head coach when Elon defeated North Carolina Central at the Schar Center on Sunday. Lanier, who was a middle blocker on the Red Wolves 2021 3A State Championship team, faces Central assistant Fiona Cunningham. Lanier had ten kills and five digs. The Phoenix swept the Eagles (25-22, 25-22 and 25-22) in the finale of Phoenix Volley for Unity. On Friday, Elon swept Western Carolina (25-19, 25-20 and 25-23). Lanier had seven kills, two digs and an ace. Elon will start play in the Coastal Athletic Association (formerly the Colonial Athletic Association) on Saturday against Hofstra.

Grace Young: The UNC Asheville volleyball team finished 2-1 in the Queens Fall Classic at the Levine Center in Charlotte. On Sunday, the Bulldogs defeated South Carolina State 3-0 (25-15, 25-9, 25-19) Young had three digs and an ace. Last Tuesday, Western Carolina swept UNC Asheville (25-13, 25-21 and 25-18). Young played one set and had two digs. UNC Asheville is 5-5 and travels to Georgia Southern on Tuesday.

Anaya Carter: The Division II UNC Pembroke team went 1-3 in the UC Invitational in Charleston, West Virginia over the weekend: On Friday, the Braves defeated Fayetteville State 3-2 at Wehrle Athletic Arena (25-23, 22-25, 25-11, 21-15 and 15-9). Carter played two sets and had one kill and four digs. Millersville defeated UNC Pembroke 3-1 (22-25, 25-20, 25-15, 25-14). In four sets, Carter had four kills, one ace, one assist and 21 digs. On Saturday, Gannon swept UNC Pembroke (25-17, 25-18 and 25-8). Carter finished with six digs. Charleston (West Virginia) swept the Braves (25-14, 25-18 and 25-8). Carter had one kill, two aces and six digs. UNC Pembroke is 4-4 and will face Lenoir-Rhyne on Thursday night.

Allie Wilkerson: Over the weekend, Division III Averett University participated in the Case Western Reserve University Tournament in Cleveland. Case Western Reserve University swept Averett (25-20, 25-20 and 26-24). Wilkerson had five kills. On Saturday, Mount Union swept Averett (25-21, 25-19 and 25-12). In three sets, Wilkerson had three kills and one dig. Allegheny College swept Averett 3-0 (25-9, 25-20, 25-20). Wilkerson finished with four kills, one ace, one block and two digs. Averett is 3-4.

Melissa Benkowitz: Division III Franklin & Marshall went 2-2 last week. On Wednesday, the Diplomats swept DeSales (25-19, 25-18, 25-13). Benkowitz played three sets and had four kills and four digs. #11 New York University defeated Franklin & Marshall 3-1 on Friday in New York City (25-21, 27-29, 25-23 and 25-21). Benkowitz played two sets. On Saturday, Springfield swept the Diplomats in Montclair, NJ (25-23, 26-24, 25-18). In two sets, Benkowitz had two kills and two digs. Later that day, Franklin & Marshall swept Montclair State (25-21, 25-18 and 25-8).

Ashlyn Davis: Davis made her debut for the Division III University of Lynchburg last week. Davis played one set in the Hornets 3-1 win over Dickinson (25-21, 25-19, 9-25, 25-19) in Harrisonburg, VA.

The joyous crowd had all gone home and the Montgomery Central visitor’s bus had just faded away into the darkness when DeVante Pettiford walked up the empty bleachers.

In his heart, the young Orange football head coach is still defensive oriented. Shutouts don’t come as often inside Auman Stadium as they used to, so he wanted to savor this one as long as he could.

With a rare moment of solitude, he pulled out his phone and took a shot of the scoreboard that read “Orange 22, Visitors 0” before athletic director Jason Knapp shut down the lights.

During a week where his team could barely hold practices outside because of the oppressive heat, Pettiford was concerned that Montgomery’s split back offensive system would give his team fits.

Instead, Pettiford’s Panthers put together its most complete performance in its final non-conference game, holding the Timberwolves to a season-low 95 yards total offense in a 22-0 win at Auman Stadium.

In the midst of the stifling defense, promising Orange freshman Kayden Bradsher had his coming out party, scoring three touchdowns. His opening rushing touchdown from 12 yards out with 4:17 remaining in the first quarter put Orange ahead for good.

“He is a pure athlete no matter what he does,” Pettiford said of Bradsher. “Football, basketball and baseball, he’s just a pure talent. In our first jamboree (in Siler City), he had a great catch for a touchdown. I saw it then. Let’s look past all the talent. Kayden is a leader. I have seniors that won’t speak up. Kayden speaks up.”

Bradsher was Orange’s leading receiver with a career-high six catches for 58 yards and two touchdowns.

The Panther defense forced five turnovers, the first of which came on a fumble recovery by senior linebacker Jayden Medley, who pounced on the ball coughed up by quarterback Aidan Goodman. Orange had several opportunities to add on to its 6-0 lead throughout the first quarter, starting drives in Timberwolf real estate twice to no avail.

Orange won a battle of field position thanks to punter Tyler Narold, who enjoyed a big all-around night. Late in the second quarter, Narold blasted a 47-yard punt to pin the Timberwolves back to its 6-yard line. After a sack by DeAndre Brown for a six-yard loss, Orange quarterback Hank Nunnery found running back Nate Sorrells for a 40-yard gain off a swing pass, tackled at the doorstep of the goal line. On 3rd-and-goal from the Timberwolf 3-yard line, Nunnery extended the play long enough to find Bradsher in the left corner of the end zone. Harold’s extra point gave Orange a 13-0 halftime lead.

Montgomery Central (3-1), who scored a combined 151 points in wins over J.F. Webb, Carrboro and East Chapel Hill, was held to ten yard total offense at halftime.

“I actually was a bit worried because we weren’t able to practice outside all week,” Pettiford said. “We practiced in the gym every day this week and I was worried because this is a different style of offense. They have some option, they have some veer-type tendencies. You never know how it’s going to be until its full speed. I think taking that time back grew the hunger within us and got us more locked in.”

Montgomery Central got into its only offensive rhythm at the outset of the second half when they morphed into a wishbone offense, leading to consecutive first down runs by running back Brandon Powell. They advanced to the Orange 31-yard line before Narold nearly picked off a pass in the end zone. After Powell was tackled by Daylin Ford and Brown for three yards on 3rd-and-15, Goodman lost the ball as he attempted to throw on the run. Jaylin Starks recovered the fumble.

With Orange leading 13-0, it appeared the Panthers had squandered another chance to extend its lead after Brown was wrestled down for no gain on 3rd-and-10. In a bizarre sequence, Narold punted the ball out of bounds at the Montgomery 3-yard line, but the Timberwolves were called for a personal foul while the ball was rolling dead, extending the Orange drive. On 4th-and-4, Nunnery found Bradsher along the near sideline at the 20-yard line. Bradsher split between two linebackers up the field and raced into the end zone for his third touchdown.

Orange forced three turnovers in the fourth quarter. Garrett Sawyer picked off an Andrews pass with 11:42 remaining in the fourth quarter. After the Timberwolves Jayshawn Stewart recorded a fumble, a Montgomery snap slipped through punter James Andrews hands for a safety, extending the Orange lead to 22-0.

Narold picked off a pass on the Timberwolves final offensive play.

“This was assignment football tonight,” Pettiford said. “Last week (against Vance County), we made dumb mistakes. Our defensive line wasn’t attacking. We had the wrong shoulder pulls. We didn’t flow. We made day one mistakes. This week, we honed in on those things that we fixed and we locked in. When everybody does their job, tonight is the outcome.”

ORANGE 22, MONTGOMERY CENTRAL 0

MC–0   0    0   0-0

OR–6    7     7    2-22

ORA–Kayden Bradsher 12 run (kick failed)

ORA–Bradsher 3 pass from Hank Nunnery (Tyler Narold kick)

ORA–Bradsher 29 pass from Nunnery (Narold kick)

ORA-safety, ball snapped out of end zone.

RUSHING: MONTGOMERY CENTRAL 32-35 (Brandon Powell 10-62, Nytavis Powell 12-23, Jayshawn Stewart 1-2, Aidan Goodman 5-(-26). team 4-(-22).

ORANGE: 22-46 TD (Nate Sorrells 12-25, Jaylan Starks 5-6, Bradsher 1-12 TD, DeAndre Brown 4-3)

PASSING: MONTGOMERY CENTRAL (ANDERSON 4-12 56 Yards INT, Noah Rodriguez 0-1)

ORANGE (Nunnery 14-25 166 2 TD, INT)

RECEIVING: MONTGOMERY CENTRAL (Brandon Weiss 2-5, RaRa Jemison 1-50, N. Powell 1-1)

ORANGE: (Bradsher 6-58 2 TD, Sorrells 3-57, Daylin Ford 3-24, Brandon Cummings 2-27)

The Orange volleyball team has won seven consecutive matches after sweeping Person on Thursday night in Hillsborough. The Lady Panthers prevailed on scored 25-8, 27-25 and 25-21. Sophomore outside hitter Aubrey Jordan finished with 17 kills while Ella Wimsatt added 12 kills and 15 digs. It was only the second home match for Orange this season. Since August 16, Orange played nine consecutive matches on the road, ranging from Chapel Hill to Creedmoor. Despite that, Orange is the only undefeated team in the Central Carolina Conference at 3-0. Sophomore setter Katie Silcott finished with 31 assists, ten digs and one kill. Senior libero Sadye Porter had 23 digs and five assists. It has been a triumphant week for Orange, who defeated crosstown rival Cedar Ridge 3-0 on Tuesday to end the Red Wolves 42-game conference winning streak, as well as their 31-game homeport winning streak. Silcott was a regular performer as a freshman last season for Orange. With a year under her belt, Silcott has been a steady presence at the net for Orange. So what’s next for Orange after returning home? Naturally, two more road games. Orange will travel to Roxboro tonight (Friday) to face Roxboro Community School. On Tuesday, the Lady Panthers travel to Graham to face Southern Alamance.

Orange volleyball’s Katie Silcott & Sadye Porter discuss win over Person

The Orange volleyball team has won seven consecutive matches after sweeping Person on Thursday night in Hillsborough. The Lady Panthers prevailed on scored 25-8, 27-25 and 25-21. Sophomore outside hitter Aubrey Jordan finished with 17 kills while Ella Wimsatt added 12 kills and 15 digs.

Over the summer, the 21-year-old scoreboard at Cedar Ridge Stadium got an overhaul, courtesy of one of its most famous alumni.

As Trenton Gill prepares for his second NFL season with the Chicago Bears this weekend against the Green Bay Packers, he can rest assured that the soccer team he once played on put enough goals on the very board he helped fund to remain undefeated.

Not that everyone in a Red Wolves uniform was happy.

Junior Alejandro Macero-Ramos scored two goals, the first of his varsity career, to propel the Red Wolves past Person 5-0 in Hillsborugh on Wednesday night. Cedar Ridge (5-1-1, 1-0 in the Central Carolina Conference) won its league opener.

Sophomore Edber Lopez added a goal and an assist for the Red Wolves. Abazar Babiker and Salomon Hernandez each added a goal for the Red Wolves, who are off to its best start since at least 2010. Gael Antunez-Nunez added two assists for Cedar Ridge.

Senior co-Captain Iliah Babcenko had two assists.

Cedar Ridge sophomore goalkeeper Erik Galunas made six saves to earn the win. He made six saves. Midway through the second half, junior Ben Miller replaced Galunas in net and made two saves to keep the clean sheet intact.

On Thursday night, Cedar Ridge’s undefeated string came to an end. East Chapel Hill narrowly defeated the Red Wolves 1-0 at Dave Thaden Stadium.

Cedar Ridge will resume play in the CCC with its first conference road trip to Southern Alamance on Monday night in Graham.

Western Alamance 5, Orange 1: Konner Johnson notched a hat trick for Western Alamance to beat Orange in the Panthers’ conference opener at David Morton Field in Elon.

The Panthers fall to 1-4-1. Emanuel Mil Cruz scored Orange’s only goal on an assist from Yore Tapia Mendez. Orange will host Williams in Hillsborough on Monday night.

Another week goes by and the Orange volleyball team remains in first place in the Central Carolina Conference.

Not only that, but the three top contenders to stop Orange from its first conference championship in over 15 years have been turned back by the Lady Panthers in the opening three matches of league play.

On Thursday night, Orange made its long-awaited return home with a 3-0 sweep of Person. The Lady Panthers, who had played its past nine matches on the road, remain the only undefeated teaming the CCC at 3-0.

It was the Lady Panthers first home match since August 15.

Sophomore Aubrey Jordan finished with a career-high 17 kills while sophomore setter Katie Silcott had 31 assists. Senior Ella Wimsatt registered 12 kills and 15 digs as Orange won its seventh straight match. Sophomore Ava Wilkerson added nine kills, two aces and two blocks.

Person (4-5, 1-2) dropped its third straight match to Orange.

Orange dominated the opening set 25-8, reeling off an 8-2 run behind three kills from Wimsatt. Jordan had a block and a kill for the final points of the set.

It appeared the second stanza would follow a similar path. Orange jumped out to an 11-3 lead behind an ace from Wilkerson and consecutive kills from Wimsatt. Person roared back with a 9-1 run to seven the match at 12-12, the tying point coming from sophomore Abby Sharlow off a pass from Miriam Clayton. The Rockets increased its lead to 21-18 following a block from Clayton, but Orange rallied to even the set 23-23 after the Rockets were called for a net violation. Person had a set point after a return from Orange went wide, but the subsequent serve went into the net. Even 25-25, Jordan notched a kill. On set point, Jordan’s attack was returned wide by the Rockets, giving Orange a 2-sets-to-nothing lead.

Orange got off to another strong start in the third set, leading 7-3 following a point by Wilkerson. Once again, Person rallied off strong plays by Kaylie Parker and Clayton, narrowing Orange’s lead to 13-12 until Wilkerson scored off a block. That spawned a 5-1 Panther run which included an ace by Abby Silinski and two kills by Wimsatt. Jordan racked up kills on the final two points of the match, which sent the Orange student section into jubilation, many of them adorned in neon yellow safety vets who traded taunts with Person students at the other end of the gym throughout the night.

On Friday night (tonight), Orange will travel up Highway 57 to face Roxboro Community School. Last week, Person defeated their crosstown rival in five sets.

Men’s cross country: Orange 19, Williams 43, Person 62, Eastern Alamance n/a: Two months from the 3A State Cross Country state championships and Orange’s Gabriel Schmid appears in midseason form.

Schmid, the 2022 3A State Cross County Champion, earned his second victory of the season during Orange’s meet at Walter Williams high School in Burlington on Wednesday. Schmid finished at 18:34.0, beating Williams Easton Freeman by five seconds.

Orange had five of the top six runners. Alden Cathey finished third (18:50.1), while Myles Jermyn came in fourth (19:02.0), followed by Lucas Van Mater (19:17.6), and Peter Musser in sixth place (19:28.6).

Cyrus Neal (8th), Nolan Hufner (9th) and Aidan Viola (10th) had top ten finishes for Orange. It was Orange’s second win in a conference meet in as many weeks. Last week, the Orange men finished first at Person.

Women’s cross country: Williams 18, Orange 31, Person 70, Eastern Alamance n/a: Caroline Cathey was the top finisher for the Orange women’s cross country meet at the Williams meet. Cathey finished fifth at 28:00.2, a split second behind Williams Sofia Anaya, who came in a 28:00.0. Grace Pell came in sixth for the Lady Panthers (28:43.2), while Kassi Scarantino came in seventh, one-tenth of a second behind Pell. Orange’s Channing Mahaney finished in ninth place. Orange’s Mia Blake finished 11th, while Harper Trust finished 14th (32.56.9).

Williams won the meet with the top four finishers. Lucy Lowe was at the head of the pack at 26:50.9, while Avery LaPlante was runner-up at 26:58.8.