Ekow Annan scored so quickly in the second half of Minot High School's West Region game against Bismarck Saint Mary's that his coach didn't make it back to the sidelines in time to see it.
"I was in the bathroom so I don't even know what happened," Cody Saunders said. "You can ask Ekow on that one."
What happened was junior midfielder Jacob Schmidt picked the ball up about 30 yards from the goalkeeper. As he drove to the goal, he motioned for the sophomore Annan to go forward and receive a pass. Annan did, and placed the ball past St. Mary's keeper Tom Gilchrist into the left side of the net for Minot's first and only goal in a 1-1 tie.
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Daniel Allar/MDN
Minot High School junior Jacob Schmidt chases the ball down in front of Bismarck St. Mary’s defender Adam Vetter during a game Tuesday at Optimist Soccer Complex.
By the time Annan scored, just 24 seconds had run off the second-half clock.
"Right off halftime, we knew what we had to do," Annan said. "We knew we had to pass it more and make more runs."
The Magicians (10-4-2 overall, 6-3-1 region) had possession for most of the game but often tried passing long, playing to St. Mary's strength.
The Saints scored their goal with 15:35 remaining when junior forward Ben Weisbeck fed junior midfielder Ryan Martire, who found the back of the net.
"We got the ball mispossessed in the midfield and then they kicked it in the air and they're better in the air than us," Saunders said. "It just kinda bounced around and then it went in."
It was the first goal junior goalkeeper Garrett Weishaar has allowed in three games.
"I was shooting for a shutout for the rest of the year," Weishaar said, "but I guess that starts tonight."
The Magicians start West Region tournament play on Friday at Mandan. If third-seeded MHS beats the No. 6 Braves - Minot swept the season series by scores of 7-0 and 3-0 - the Magicians earn a berth in the state tournament.
"You can't underestimate any team," Annan said. "When it comes down to it, that's one game where you can beat them four or five times this season. If you lose that game, you're not going to state. You just have to go in knowing what you have to accomplish even if you know you can beat them."