Michael Young - Sports Editor

Porter Smith traps the ball with his knee to retain possession.

Michael Young - Sports Editor

Dargan Antley, #5 for Barnwell High, grimaces as he holds off a Dillon High defender.

Michael Young - Sports Editor

Barnwell High's Brian Hutto, left, uses his head - literally - to keep possession of the ball.

Michael Young - Sports Editor

Barnwell's Grady Burdette, left, jockeys for a good position against a Dillon player.

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Barnwell High boys varsity soccer coach David Anastasia didn't need to gaze into a crystal ball to know what kind of task was at hand for his team taking on Dillon High School Thursday at home in the second round of the class 2A playoffs.

For Anastasia and his squad, the mission was clear- stop a Dillon High team that averages seven goals a game.

BHS defenders executed the game play to perfection against an aggressive Dillon High offense.

Instead of the Wildcats scoring, it was the Warhorse defense which made the big plays in a 4-0 victory.

The Wildcats were unable to connect for a goal against a Warhorse wall of defenders led by Lee Edens, Jacob Oswald, Joe Oswald, Russ Cook, Jacob Beasley and keeper Quame Dunbar.

In the first half alone, Dillon High misfired on 15 shots at the goal.

"This is a win of huge proportions for our team tonight," Anastasia said. "We knew going in how explosive Dillon High came be offensively. We didn't want to get into a shootout. We wanted to manage the game and keep its close."

The loss was only the second of the season for Dillon High team, which finished at 19-2 overall.

The contest was intense from the opening whistle and characterized by its physical nature.

Players on both sides were involved in pushing and shoving and on a couple of occasions a player from each team had to leave the game due to injuries.

For Barnwell High, Brian Hutto had to leave the game minutes into the second half. On a break away shot attempt, Hutto collided with the keeper before cartwheeling to the turf.

Hutto, who suffered an injury to his shin on the play was listed in fair condition after the game.

"Dillon High is a physical team so we knew going in we had to step up our game to play with them," Barnwell High coach David Anastasia said. "Overall I thought it was a well-played game. Nobody really got out of line. Anytime you have two very good teams like these playing, you're going to have some jockeying for position which creates a lot of contact."

Dillon High's inability to contain Barnwell High's sophomore forward Zach Zissette proved to be the difference in the game. Zissette scored a hat trick, scoring three goals in succession to start the game.

Dillon High coach Mark Chickering said his team didn't do a good job against Zissette in the first half.

"He gave us some matchup problems at the start. I tried to put different players on him, but nothing seemed to work. In the second half, we gave up only one goal, so thought did a much better job against defending," Chickering said.

Offensively, a Dillon High team which averaged seven goal a contest, never got into rhythm against Barnwell High.

Despite numerous shots on goal, including three attempts when the keeper came out and left the goal unprotected, the Wildcats were unable to land a scoring shot.

"We had many opportunities to score and we squandered all," Chickering said. "Barnwell High is a good soccer team, so we can't just dribble back and forth against them. We have to do a better job of passing and setting up our shots. We didn't do that today and that's pretty much why we came up short."

Barnwell top offensive performers included Dargan Antley, Hutto, Porter Smith and Russ Cook. Antley scored the only goal of the second half. Hutto and Smith were credited with assists.