In soccer, there’s arguably few things more exciting than seeing a player completely take over a match by scoring goal after goal.

And on a frigid St. Patrick’s Day night freshman Ra’myah Johnson did just that Tuesday night as she scored in soccer what is known as a “glut” of goals to lead Bryan County to a stunning 5-4 win over Claxton at Redskins Stadium.

Johnson, who got a late start to the soccer season because of the basketball team advancing to the second round of the state playoffs, scored all five of her team’s goals. Basketball teammate Liz Harvey had two assists.

The Region 3A-DII win over the Tigers came only six days after Claxton had hammered the Redskins, 8-0, and looked as if it was going to coast to another easy win as it held a 4-2 lead at halftime.

Talk about salvaging a season. And not to mention pride.

The stunning win kept Bryan County’s playoff hopes alive as it enabled it to slip into fourth-place ahead of Metter (1-8, 1-3) who they play at Metter on March 26. It also kept them within striking distance of third-place Portal (5-3, 4-2).  

Bryan County, which squared off against Screven County (10-1, 6-0) at 5 p.m. Thursday at home, plays at Portal next Tuesday. The Panthers won an earlier match, 4-3 as Harvey, in her first game following basketball, scored three goals.

“To say I’m proud of these girls is an understatement,” Coach Kristen Barnhill said. “We’re down to 11 “healthy” players which meant we had no subs. To pull this off after losing 8-0 to the same team last week is a testament to the grit and determination they have.

“Even the IR (injured reserve) girls were giving their all from the sidelines cheering on their teammates. These kids don’t give up. I can’t wait to see what they accomplish for the rest of this season.”

Claxton jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead before Johnson and Harvey went to work. Johnson got two goals before the Tigers scored again to carry a 4-2 lead into the break.

The second half belonged to the Redskins as Johnson scored two more goals and the defense, anchored by freshman goalkeeper Abigail Robider, did the rest.

The Redskins have been plagued by injuries and suffered a major blow two weeks ago when senior Camryn Parker, who was the region defensive Player of the Year, was lost for the season due to a knee injury.