The Crookston Pirate girl’s soccer team opened their regular season with a 2-0 loss on the road at Fergus Falls in a Section 8A matchup.
FIRST HALF –
Fergus Falls came out strong and put pressure on Crookston right away. Only four minutes into the season, Fergus Falls’ Nadia Carlson scored to give the Otters a 1-0 lead. The teams played even the rest of the half, and Fergus Falls took a 1-0 lead into halftime. “The team played hard,” said Coach Sarah Reese. “It is a lot to have a game after only eight practices with so many new players to varsity.”
SECOND HALF –
Fergus Falls started to take control of the game until Crookston had a free kick halfway through the second half. In the 63rd minute, Crookston’s Jojo Wallace had a free kick from about 30 yards out on the left side and scored on a beautiful kick to the far upper-right corner of the net for a goal. The goal was called off. “The official called it off because he didn’t signal for an indirect free kick, which resulted in a redo,” said Coach Reese. The redo attempt saw Wallace find Maddie Harbott in the middle, but she could not convert, and Fergus Falls held onto a 1-0 lead halfway through the second half. Crookston struggled to get any shots on goal in the second half while Fergus Falls had eight, including a kick by Ella Sem that found the net to give the Otters a 2-0 lead with two minutes left in the game. Fergus Falls won the game by the same score, 2-0.
Despite the loss, Coach Reese was pleased with her defense. “The formations looked good, and the girls were able to work out the kinks,” said Reese. ”On the offensive end, the team needs to work on the transition from the defense as well as making quality passes and shots.” Another positive was the goalkeeping of Freshman Shyuh Burnette, who made ten total saves on 12 shots in her first appearance in the net. “Shyuh played great in her first varsity game,” said Coach Reese. “It was awesome to see Reese and Kristy Swanson come cheer us on too.”
The Pirates start the year 0-1, and host Saint John’s Prep Friday at 4:30. You can hear the game on KROX Radio with a pre-game show at 4:00 p.m. from the Crookston High School soccer field.
| 1st | 2nd | Final | |
| Crookston | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Fergus Falls | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Scoring –
4:00 – Nadia Carlson (Fergus Falls)
78:00 – Ella Sem (Fergus Falls)
| SAVES | 1 | 2 | Final |
| Shyuh Burnette (Crox) | 3 | 7 | 10 |
| Grace Neuleib (FF) | 2 | 0 | 2 |
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