BISMARCK — A disappointing start to the state tournament plagued by nerves. The Minot High girls soccer team (12-2-1), coming into the NDHSAA State Tournament as the champions of the West, fell to Shanley/Oak Grove 2-0 Thursday at the Bismarck Community Bowl.

“Honestly, the first 15 minutes, I don’t know if nerves got us or what, but nerves got us and (Shanley) scored a couple goals right away,” Majettes head coach Matt Pfau said in defeat after the game.

The Majettes didn’t completely have their heads in the game as Shanley scored their first goal four minutes into the game and their second goal 11 minutes in.

While the two goals were enough to wake the Majettes up, they couldn’t put any numbers on the board.

“We picked a bad day to not be able to finish,” Pfau said.

Coming into the game, Pfau said the girls had a great week of practice, went through a lot of film and prepared well for the game.

“We just needed to execute,” he said. “It’s too bad it happened today where you don’t get a redo.”

After the first 15 minutes, Pfau said the girls calmed down, stepped up their defense and did a good job creating offensive opportunities. Unfortunately, Shanley’s goaltender made some key saves and their defense was on point as well.

Eighth-grader Emmie Miller off the bench gave the Majettes a spark off the top, according to Pfau. Lainey Sandberg had a shot just a few inches wide of the goal off a breakaway.

Both Allison Lepp and Mabel Hopkins were stable forces on the field, creating opportunities throughout the whole game. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough.

“We just can’t do what we did today,” Pfau said about the remainder of the tournament. “We have to be prepared for 80 minutes, not just 65. I hope we learned today that you can’t afford a 15 minute break.”

Pfau said the goal of the team is to finish with two wins and land in fifth place. Their next opponent is the West’s No. 3-seeded Bismarck Century. The Majettes have met Century twice this season, winning both games without allowing any goals.

The loser-out game against Century takes place today at noon at the Bismarck Community Bowl.