Going into Friday's region matchup against Edisto High School, the Barnwell High varsity girls soccer team had yet to be scored against in its first four region games.
Not wanting to leave anything to chance, Barnwell High head coach Michael Allen reiterated the importance of focusing and playing aggressive defense before his team took the field against the Lady Cougars.

Fired up by their coach's pre-game speech, Barnwell High wreaked havoc on its region counterparts. The end result was one complete game for the team. The game was so complete a performance that the Lady Warhorses kept another region opponent off the scoreboard while on its way to an easy 8-0 win.

With the win, Barnwell High captures the region 5AA title with a 5-0 mark in region play.

"This team is playing awesome right now," Allen said. "This is a big boost for our confidence level going into the playoffs. This is a very smart group of girls. They know the game and they know how to play. They continue to do all the little things right."

In the contest, the Lady Cougars found difficulty staying pace with a Barnwell High team which used its speed to create space and scoring opportunities.

Macy Mathias, who has elevated her level of play in the second half of the season, led the team with two goals.

Others scoring included Lynnsey Jamison, Kaylyn Huggins, Marrianne Moore, Katie McKay, Emily All and Kourtni Owens. Owens, McKay, Jamison and Huggins were also credited with assists.

Offensively, Barnwell High has been at the top of its game in the last four wins.

Behind by the plays of Jamison, Huggins and Katie Rush, the Lady Warhorses have overwhelmed the competition with a 30-0 edge in scoring.

The most impressive of the wins came April 28 in a 11-0 blowout of Silver Bluff High.

In the game, Barnwell High distributed the wealth on offense as a season high 10 players scoring goals. Rush led the way with two goals and an assist. Jamison and Huggins each had a goal and two assists. Joining on the scoring included Mathias, Megan Gibson, Auburn Walters, Emily All, Moore, Owens and Taylor Hooper.

The recent offensive surge has gotten the team surging with confidence as the playoffs approach.

"We're playing really good soccer," junior keeper Autumn Baker said. "Defensively, we stepped it up this season. We've done a good job of keeping teams off the scoreboard."

"We're working hard as a good and right now, I think we getting into a good groove," senior Katie Rush said.

"I guess you can say we're clicking now," senior Katie McKay said. "We're a very close group because we've played so long together. There is no surprises with this team. We know what it takes to win."

" I think we are pretty balanced everywhere," senior Huggins said.

"We're playing really well as a group and we feel we have a great opportunity to got far into in the playoffs."