Nine against 20 is long odds whatever the game may be and that’s what Bryan County’s girls’ soccer team was facing Friday night when it hosted Metter
Due to a slew of injuries, the Redskins were able to suit up only nine players for their Region 3A-DII game against the Tigers leaving them two short. Metter on the other hand had 20 players available and it showed as it subbed continuously thus assuring it of having fresh players on the field.
Despite the disparity in numbers, it was all Metter could do to pull out a 1-0 win and thus end the Redskins’ state playoff run at three straight seasons. The Tigers are assured of no worse than a fourth-place finish in the region.
The Redskins had dealt with the same issue the night before in losing at Metter, 3-0, but their playoff hopes were still alive going into the rematch. The Tigers, stymied by a strong Bryan County defensive effort, got the lone goal of the game on a penalty kick with 6:20 left in the first half.
Liz Harvey, by far the best player on the field, was called for a questionable tripping penalty and the Tigers’ Nunez Alison scored from point-blank range.
“I was going for the ball,” Harvey said. “She tripped on my heel and they called it.
“There was no way to defend the kick. It was so close.”
Harvey was a major factor in a Bryan County back line of goalkeeper Abigail Robider, Harvey, Addie Longino, Gwen Barnett, Emma Into, Joselyn Marin and Haven Dixon with Asia Bentley and Ra’myah Johnson dropping back from their offensive positions to help out, too.
Coach Kristen Barnhill employed different defenses in order to keep her team in the game and they worked.
“We definitely changed up defensively,” Barnhill said of having to play with only nine players. “We tried to clog the middle so we played a diamond defense, played a triangle to let them have the outside wings so they couldn’t attack anything in the middle then clogged the middle to try to make them earn everything.
“Then when we got the ball, we tried to get it up to our forwards and fill,” Barnhill said. “I think the kids did a good job. You can’t ask for more than what they gave. I’m very proud of them.”
With about 10 minutes to play the Redskins had to become more offensive-minded and it looked like they were going to pull it out. Longino had a shot hit the cross bar and Harvey, who was one with the ball, had three close-range shots missed when the Tigers’ keeper made excellent saves.
“We had a couple of opportunities in the first half and couldn’t capitalize,” Barnhill said. “I asked Liz to play defense so we wouldn’t get killed every game.
“She took that role on. I took some scoring chances off the board but I was a goalkeeper (at Maryland) and it was a “if they don’t score they don’t win” mentality.”
Barnhill knew going into the season making the state playoffs was going to be a challenge but was not beyond achieving. However, she also acknowledged it would require a lot of things to go right.
Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. A harbinger of things to come occurred in the second game of the season when Camryn Parker, last year’s region Defensive Player of the Year, suffered a season-ending knee injury.
Barnhill believed her team was good enough to steal a win here and there and at least finish no worse than fourth thus claiming that final playoff spot. What she wasn’t counting on was the rash of injuries which struck her team.
“It went off the rails,” Barnhill said. “I’ve never been a part of anything like this.
“It’s been one thing after another. Every game, every day really somebody had something happen that they had to sit out.”
To Barnhill’s credit she kept her team focused and designed game plans based on the personnel available. And to the players’ credit they continued to play hard, never backed down and were committed to giving everything they had.
