East Grand Forks Shuts Out Pirate Boys Soccer

The Crookston Pirates Boys Soccer team conceded five first-half goals in a 6-0 loss to the East Grand Forks Green Wave in a Section 8A match played at the Crookston High School Soccer Field.
East Grand Forks jumped out to a quick lead just 1:58 into the match after Mohammed Barkadleh dribbled through Crookston’s defense before firing a shot into the net giving the Green Wave a 1-0 lead. East Side added a second goal in the eleventh minute after Khalid Omar struck a ball past Crookston goalie Logan Wardner giving EGF a 2-0 lead. The Green Wave added a third goal after AbdiMalik Abdi received a cross from Parker Anderson and put a shot into the net for a 3-0 lead. The visitors added a fourth goal in the 28th minute after Nathaniel Emery blasted a shot into the net giving East Grand Forks a 4-0 lead. In the 30th minute, the Green Wave added a final goal before halftime when AbdiMalik Abdi scored a second goal off an assist from Mohammed Barkadleh giving East Grand Forks a 5-0 lead. “I think a lot of that probably has to do with the win,” explained Crookston head coach Don Cox about East Grand Forks’ first-half dominance. “If you’ve got the wind to your back there, that was a big part of it. They were shooting mostly from inside the 6-yard box, so they were able to get in behind us and take shots at will in that first half.”
Crookston played much better in the second half allowing just one East Grand Forks’ goal in the final 40 minutes. Crookston managed to outshoot the visitors 9-4 in the second half, but the Green Wave were the only team to find the back of the net. With just under six minutes remaining, Mohammed Barkadleh scored off a pass from Khalid Omar to close out the 6-0 win for East Grand Forks. “In the second half we weren’t as fortunate, but we were also a little better able there,” said Cox. “They were going into the wind and we had a little better opportunity to keep them out. It’s late in the season we should be better at it than we are and I’m not sure exactly what the issue is. Tonight, just wasn’t the way it was going to go for us. It’s unfortunate, but sometimes the ball just doesn’t cooperate.” Don Cox also cited the Green Wave’s physical play bordered on illegal while causing problems for Crookston. “They (Crookston) kept going, they kept trying so I give them credit for that,” added Cox. “It’s difficult, unfortunately, this is a team that likes to grab and hold. If you get the ball away from them they will hook their arm around yours and hold or they’ll trip you up, so you lose your balance and possession. I don’t know why that is, but I’ve been here 14 years and East Grand Forks plays that way every year.”
Crookston falls to 3-10-1 on the season and will return to the pitch on Thursday when the Pirates host Walker-Hackensack-Akeley at 3:30 p.m. East Grand Forks improves to 7-5.

Scoring
1:58 – EGF – Mohammed Barkadleh (Khalid Omar)
10:24 – EGF –  Khalid Omar
16:53 – EGF – AbdiMalik Abdi (Parker Anderson)
27:35 – EGF –  Nathanial Emery
29:15 – EGF – AbdiMalik Abdi (Mohammed Barkadleh)
74:16 – EGF – Mohammed Barkadleh (Khalid Omar)