Orange Tops Cedar Ridge In Battle For Orange County

Hillsborough - In the first 2017 Battle for Orange County Schools Lacrosse Supremacy, give the nod to the Orange Panthers who literally took the tying score off the clock to maintain a 13-12 thrilling win. Down 13-12 with less than a minute remaining, Orange was unable to keep the ball in the box, leading to the quick thinking of Defender Cole Bullard, who went the length of the field to score with 17 seconds. As the Cedar Ridge fans erupted in excitement, a hush fell on the Orange sideline that soon became a deep gulp, as a stick check was called revealing a deep pocket. Instead of a thrilling goal, Orange was awarded the ball at the faceoff X and held on for the win.

The game went back and forth, with early goals on the Orange side from Jeremy Carter, Wyatt Jones, Tanner Boyer, and Koren Mangal. Cedar Ridge was able to build a four point cushion going into the halftime break. The Cedar Ridge settled offense and ability to win faceoffs led to this margin.

Cedar Ridge was paced by Captain Jack Widman who tallied an early hat trick and led the offensive scoring, followed by Carter Danku, Demetrius Lyles, Sean Tobin, and Nick Batchelder.

Early in the game, Senior Kelcy Aacome controlled the faceoff x, winning over 75% of his drawls. In the second half, the top linebacker in North Carolina (and a young man deciding between UNC, Alabama, and Clemson), Payton Wilson took over the midfield and the game. He presented a matchup nightmare, scoring in transition and opening up the offense for Boyer and his teammates.

With less than three minutes remaining, after several Cedar Ridge shots that were repelled by Junior Goalie Tyson Wolter, Orange was able to attack in settled play. Freshman Wyatt Jones ran by his defender, employed a toe drag, and stuck the ball past Senior Goalie Ryan Wallace. Both Goalies played well between the pipes tonight making many huge saves point blank.

Mark April 7 on your calendar so you can dine at Jay's Chicken Shack for a quick pre-game meal then head over for the rematch. Make sure you are on time, you don't want to miss a minute of the action. Who knows? You might even get to sit next to Larry Fedora, Nick Saban, or Dabo himself.

Box Score

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