Justin Martinez/MDN Minot High School sophomore Lainey Sandberg (7) delivers the cross during the Majettes’ 9-0 win over Bismarck Legacy on Thursday at the Optimist Soccer Complex.

The Sabers could only contain the fire for so long.

Only one half of the field was needed in the opening moments of Thursday’s match between the Minot High School girls soccer team and the visiting Bismarck Legacy Sabers at the Optimist Soccer Complex.

For the first 11 minutes, Minot unleashed a seemingly-endless hail storm of soccer balls in the direction of Legacy goalie Brooke Binegar. But the Sabers’ last line of defense didn’t fold, as she kept the ruthless Majettes off the scoreboard.

That’s when Allison Lepp finally broke through Legacy’s armor.

Sophomore Lainey Sandberg gathered for a corner kick in the 29th minute and sent the ball into a cluster of maroon and white jerseys just a few feet from the goalpost. Like a magnet, the ball found Lepp’s foot, and the senior did the rest.

Lepp collected the pass and sent a slow-rolling shot past Binegar that rested in the bottom-left pocket of the net to give her team a 1-0 lead. Little did the Sabers know, this was only the beginning for Lepp and the Majettes.

With an electrified home crowd enjoying every second, Minot (4-1) lit up the scoreboard en route to a 9-0 victory over Legacy (1-3). Lepp led the charge and finished with a hat trick on a night where the net might as well have been the size of the ocean.

After scoring a mere two goals for a tie and a win in the past two games, Thursday’s scoring spree serves as a much-needed boost for the Majettes.

“We were excellent all the way around tonight,” MHS head coach Matt Pfau said. “I thought that, from the start, we just possessed the ball and created chance after chance. We needed a game like this to believe in ourselves again.”

It took just eight minutes for Minot to follow up Lepp’s first goal. MaLiah Burke, fresh off a pair of first-place finishes in a track meet earlier that day, turned on the burners and chased down a ball that appeared to be going out of bounds.

Instead, the freshman collected it and sent a cross to Brooklyn Casey. The junior got creative as she jumped into the air, let the ball smack her stomach and watched as it breezed past the goalie to double the lead.

With the Sabers reeling, Lepp struck again 30 seconds later. Sticking to the theme of unconventional, Casey delivered a perfect pass in the form of a header to Lepp. Just like before, the veteran snuck the ball past Binegar for her second goal of both the game and the season.

“It’s good to get my first goals of the season under my belt,” Lepp said. “It’s all a mental things, so it helps to get (goals) early and keep going from there.”

The Sabers managed to hold off the Majettes for the final 21 minutes of the first half, but Minot came out of the break with even more intensity.

After a pair of goals from Mia and Olivia Lewis in the first eight minutes made it a 5-0 affair, Lepp earned the hat trick in style by launching a deep shot from well outside the box.

The ball soared over the head of Legacy goalie Jenna McCauley and dropped into the net to give the Majettes a 6-0 advantage with 30 minutes to play.

“(Lepp) has had some assists this year, but most of the teams have been doubling her in the middle,” Pfau said. “It was nice for her to get three (goals) on the board and get herself confident again. She’s been the leader for us the last couple of years, and she was outstanding tonight.”

Now leading 7-0 with 12:43 left on the clock, Minot unleashed its secret weapon. Seventh-grader Emerson Perrin took to the field and immediately made her presence known by eluding her defender and sending a shot past McCauleyfor her first varsity goal.

The student section went ballistic, chanting “seventh-grader” the whole time, as her teammates swarmed her to celebrate.

“It felt really good to be out on the field, be with the fans and just have a great time,” Perrin said. “It was really fun (to score). I think I’m going to remember this moment for the rest of my life. It’s a big deal for me.”

Freshman Arin Oster added another goal in the final two minutes for good measure, and the Majettes cruised to the 9-0 victory.

Minot finished with 25 shots on goal compared to Legacy’s two. Majettes goalies Emma Miller and Madison Elliott each recorded a save in the win.

Minot will look to keep torching the net when it hosts Bismarck Century on April 26 at the Optimist Soccer Complex. The game is scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m.

“This win is really important even though it’s worth the same amount of points,” Lepp said. “Hopefully this will get our heads in the right spot. We just have to keep practicing, not get too cocky with the win and know that we have the skill and the talent to do great things.”

Justin Martinez covers Minot High School sports and Class B high school sports. Follow him on Twitter @JTheSportsDude.