FARGO - Scoring was at a premium.
Fargo South's Alexis Maucort scored in the fourth minute to account for all of the scoring as the Bruins edged Minot High 1-0 in a quarterfinal game at the 2009 State Girls Soccer Tournament Thursday at the Pepsi Soccer Complex.
"It was a little frustrating to not be able to get a goal, but it was more frustrating to give one up in the first five minutes like that," MHS head coach Matt Pfau said.
Article Photos
Michael Linnell/MDN
Minot High School's Nicole Love (6) heads the ball away from her net and Fargo South players during first-half action in the quarterfinals of the 2009 State Girls Soccer Tournament Thursday at the Pepsi Soccer Complex in Fargo. The Bruins scored an early goal and held on for a 1-0 win.
Maucort's goal came off a seemingly innocent ball sent into the Minot goal area by Shannon Lee, but MHS misplayed the pass. Maucort beat Majettes goalie McKayla Sandvold to the far corner.
"It was a couple of mental mistakes. Twice we had the ball on our feet and could have had it out," Pfau said. "They have a girl run free and all of a sudden it was 1-0."
The Majettes struggled a bit early as the Bruins were solid controlling the ball. The South possession was aided by a sluggish MHS group and a strong wind at their backs.
"It was a nightmare start," Pfau said. "They had more intensity than we did, they passed the ball well and had a good first touch. I would say it must have been nerves (for the Majettes' slow start). It took us 10-15 minutes to realize it was a state tournament and nothing was going to come easy."
Minot didn't put a lot of pressure on South's goaltender Allison Fisher, who made four saves in the shutout win. The Majettes did have four corner kicks and a couple of solid runs, but the Bruins defense turned away all Minot High threw at it.
"They carried the play a little more than us, but in the second half we had four corners and Alex (Bachman-Williams) made a play to cut through," Pfau said. "But they made some good defensive plays. We certainly had our chances."
The Majettes goaltender Sandvold, on the other hand, was busy throughout. She finished with 16 saves in the game.
"She played great," Pfau said of Sandvold. "She had a couple of great diving saves and kept us in it."
MHS moves into consolation play today against Bismarck St. Mary's beginning at 6 p.m.
"I told the girls after that the only thing I was disappointed in was the 1-0 score not in our favor," Pfau said. "They played hard. We got back to the state tournament, now the next thing is to win here."
Fargo Shanley 2,
Bismarck St. Mary's 1 (SO)
FARGO - After Fargo Shanley took a 1-0 lead late in the second half, Bismarck St. Mary's tied the game up with a goal just a minute later to force overtime, which turned into two after the two teams went scoreless in the first.
The scoreless second overtime forced a shootout, which Shanley won 3-1 to advance to the semifinals of the 2009 State Girls Soccer Tournament.
Jamestown 2, Fargo North 1
The Jamestown Blue Jays overcame a 1-0 deficit to earn a spot in today's semifinals.
Jamestown scored goals late in the first half and added another in the second, while holding North scoreless en route to a 2-1 win. The Blue Jays will play Bismarck Century in today's first semifinal at 4 p.m.
Bismarck Century 4,
Grand Forks Red River 2
The Bismarck Century Patriots broke loose in the second half on their way to a 4-2 first round win over Grand Forks Red River.
Century scored three of its four goals in the second half, where Red River also scored a pair of goals.