The Crookston Pirate Girl’s Soccer team couldn’t generate any offense and were shutout 4-0 by the East Grand Forks Green Wave in a game played in East Grand Forks. “I have so much confidence and excitement for our girls,” said Pirates Head Coach Sarah Reese. “We never gave up which is a testament to our team spirit.”
The first half was a competitive 40 minutes between the two sides with both defenses holding strong. East Grand Forks had the advantage for most of the half, with the majority of play occurring in Crookston’s defensive third of the field. Despite that, the Pirates continued to play solid team defense while only allowing one Green Wave goal. “Dillynn Wallace and JoJo Wallace played exceptional defense with high pressure,” explained Coach Reese. “Our defensive unit as a whole is strong.” The Goal came in the 25th minute off the foot of Brooklyn Sayler. Crookston did not generate much offense in the first half, coming up with just one shot on goal. “They only got the one goal even though they were in our defensive area most of the half. We just need to keep working hard as a team and believe in ourselves,” added Coach Reese.
In the second half, injuries and limited substitutes on the Pirates side made it tough to keep close with a solid East Grand Forks team. Coming into the game, Crookston was missing three players due to injury and three more had to leave in the is game, including goalie Reese Swanson. “We played well in the half but they have a deep bench and we didn’t have many subs to go to,” explained Coach Reese. “But, despite the injuries and the girls worried about the health of their teammates they dug deep mentally and played strong together.” Cassie Solheim replaced Swanson during the second half. The Green Wave took advantage on the offensive side on their way to three more goals. Camryn Adams scored in the 48th minute, Kara Ellis scored on a direct free kick in the 53rd minute, and Adams finished off the scoring with her second goal in the 72nd minute. “We have to work on the spacing between our midfielders and defenders,” added Coach Reese. Crookston only got one shot on goal in the second half. “We only got two shots on goal, but Kailee Magsam was playmaking opportunities through the very last minute of the game,” said Coach Reese.
Crookston falls to 3-4 on the year and will travel to Melrose on Saturday at 1:00 p.m.
East Grand Forks continues their undefeated record at 5-0.
| 1st | 2nd | Final | |
| CROOKSTON | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| East Grand Forks | 1 | 3 | 4 |
Scoring
25:00 – EGF – Brooklyn Sayler
48:00 – EGF – Camryn Adams
53:00 – EGF- Kara Ellis
72:00 – EGF- Camryn Adams
| SAVES | 1st | 2nd | Final |
| Reese Swanson- CROX | 8 | 3 | 11 |
| Cassie Solheim- CROX | – | 5 | 5 |
| Skyla Rustad- EGF | 1 | 1 | 2 |
