The Barbe girls soccer team has a knack for dramatics. For the second consecutive season, the 16th-ranked Bucs opened the Division I playoffs with a thrilling penalty kick win on Saturday in Lake Charles. They beat No. 17 Southside 7-6 in penalty kicks after a scoreless regulation and overtime periods.

Barbe beat West Monroe on the road in penalty kicks in the first-round last season, then won two 1-0 games to reach the semifinals.

“They are not my favorite,” head coach Kassidy Guillory said. “They’re stressful, but whatever it takes, they’ll do it for us.”

Sophomore goalkeeper Jordan Woods made several huge saves, including one that helped send the game into overtime. In the 72nd minute, Southside was awarded a penalty kick after the Bucs (13-7-4) were called for a handball. Woods dove to her right to stop Emma Arceneaux’s shot and was able to kick the ball clear of the goal.

After stopping seven shots in regulation, Woods made two more in penalty kicks. It was tied 3-3 after three rounds and the Bucs missed their fourth shot, but Woods kept it going by blocking Marley Barnill’s shot. In the eighth round, Kensley Rowse gave the Bucs a 7-6 lead, and Woods stopped Addison Bownan to seal the win.

“We have a lot of faith in Jordan,” Guillory said. “She had a rocky beginning of the season, and then something just clicked.

“We know when it comes to (penalty kicks), she’s always going to have our back. She did it for us last season in a PK shootout in the first round as well. I guess we just enjoy going to these.”

Edi Stickell, Drew Johnson, Annalise Funk, Madi Doumite, Maggie Barrow, and Madison Stutes also scored for the Bucs during the penalty kick phase.

The teams played to a 1-1 tie in district in the regular season.

Southside (8-13-4) outshot the Bucs 7-3 but the defense posted their 11th shutout.

“Southside had some great opportunities on us,” Guillory said. “We knew coming in that they were going to do everything.

“We know each other really well, from the coaching staff to the players. But our back line has been our strength this entire season, and they’ve held it down for us, letting in probably the least amount of goals we’ve ever given up in a season. We knew no matter what, this season, when it came down to it, our back line is always going to have our back.”