The Crookston Pirate Girls Soccer team played well but two late goals proved costly in a 2-0 loss to Fergus Falls Hillcrest in a Section 8A matchup played in Fergus Falls.
FIRST HALF –
The first half was a good battle as the two teams were evenly matched and controlled the ball about 50/50 throughout the first 40 minutes. Neither team was able to score on a combined five shots in the half and the teams went into halftime with a scoreless tie. “There was a strong wind element to the game. We had eight perfectly placed corner kicks in the first half and we didn’t make runs, get a body, or a foot on the ball to finish and put the ball in the net,” said Coach Reese. “They were running a zone defense, but we just couldn’t find the net.”
SECOND HALF –
The second half was similar to the first half as the two teams continued to play even. That all changed with seven minutes left in the game when Fergus Falls Hillcrest’s Cece Wachlarowicz scored. She took a corner kick from Maggie Mark and Wachlarowicz kicked the ball in from six yards out to give her team a 1-0 lead. One minute later Hillcrest took advantage of a Crookston mistake and scored for a 2-0 lead with six minutes left in the game and would win by the same score. “We played beautifully and controlled and possessed the ball for 70 minutes,” said Pirate Coach Sarah Reese. “When we got scored on at the 73-minute mark it mentally took the wind out of our sails and they took advantage of the wind and scored another goal right away. We play them again and have a great opportunity to win the next time around and we will keep working and improving.”
Crookston drops to 0-3 on the year and will host Walker-Hackensack-Akeley on Saturday, September 7.
| 1st | 2nd | Final | |
| Crookston | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| F.F. Hillcrest | 0 | 2 | 2 |
Scoring –
73:00 – FFHC – Cece Wachlarowicz (Maggie Mark)
74:00 – FFHC – Dakota Campbell
| SAVES | 1 | 2 | Final |
| Naomi Johnson – Crox | 2 | 3 | 5 |
| McKinlee Ballweg -FFHC | 3 | 4 | 7 |
