Junior keeper Rayne Pilgrim made 25 saves to lead a shorthanded Griffin High squad in a 10-0 loss Friday night at Memorial Stadium against undefeated Locust Grove in Region 4-AAAA girls soccer.

Locust Grove went up 10-0 with 81⁄2 minutes left to play in the first half. The match lasted only a half before ending on the mercy rule.

“We could have packed it in, but we stuck it out and kind of rallied at the end,” said first-year Lady Bears head coach Bill Stikes.

It was the second loss in a row for Griffin (2-6 overall, 2-3 region), while Locust Grove (4-0-1, 0-0-1) won its third in a row and fourth in the last five matches to remain unbeaten.

“We got beat, but they didn’t let it beat them,” Stikes added. “They’re not happy — which is a good thing — but they didn’t roll over and die which they could have easily done.”

Pilgrim made an amazing amount of saves in a short period.

“Half of them were at point-blank range,” Griffin assistant David Rice added.

However, on a night where three Griffin starters were out of the lineup attending church obligations or state leadership conventions and another five were on the bench nursing injuries, little else made a difference.

Griffin continues its season with a match March 19 at Jonesboro.