Second-half offensive outburst enables Hawks to win conference opener

QUINCY — Lauren Crane sought redemption.

She found it in the back of the net.

Seven minutes into the second of Sunday’s Great Lakes Valley Conference opener against Missouri S&T at Legends Stadium, the Quincy University women’s soccer team trailed 2-1 when Morgan Evans was fouled inside the penalty area while attacking from the left wing.

Crane, a senior forward, attempted the resulting penalty kick, but her shot to the low right side of the goal was stopped by S&T’s Kristin Steins.

“I needed to make up for that,” Crane said.

A dozen minutes later, she had her chance.

Tied at 2 thanks to Jessica Felix’s goal in the 59th minute, Crane ran onto a pass from Sophia Bonaldi and beat Steins with a shot to low left side, punching in the third of five second-half goals that propelled the Hawks to a 5-3 victory.

“Immediately when I looked up and saw the goalie coming at me, I figured I better get rid of it right now or else it’s not going to be good,” Crane said.

It was better than good. It was redemption.

“It was the biggest sigh of relief I think I’ve ever felt in my whole life,” Crane said. “It was the best feeling.”

After S&T tied the game in the 76th minute, the Hawks (2-1, 1-0 GLVC) needed another burst. Claire Macy provided it off a throw-in from the left side when she settled the ball into open space and ripped a right-footed shot from nearly 30 yards out that clipped off a defender and into the goal.

“The ball came in to me and I took a touch,” the sophomore midfielder said. “I looked up and I was like, ‘This is going in no matter what.’ I hit it and as soon as I hit it I knew it was going in.”

It is the first game-winning goal of her career.

“I can’t tell you how excited that made me,” Macy said.

Jessica Felix scored less than 30 seconds after Macy scored, putting the exclamation point on a five-goal second half. It is the first time the Hawks have five or more goals in a half since netting six in the first half and nine in the second half of a 15-0 victory over Culver-Stockton College on Sept. 16, 2008 in Canton, Mo.

The five total goals are the most scored by the Hawks since a 6-0 victory over Drury on Oct. 14, 2008.

None of those goals might have happened if the Hawks hadn’t emerged from the locker room after halftime determined to change the tone of the game.

The Hawks trailed 2-0 at halftime after allowing two goals in the game’s first four minutes, but just 22 seconds into the second half, Crane took a pass from Lexi Porchia and drove a ball to the far post where Aliyah Rottger headed it into the net for Quincy’s first goal.

“Huge,” Crane said. “It could not have come at a better time.”

It changed everything in an instant.

“I don’t think all the other goals would have come if we could have had to push longer for the first one,” QU coach Samuel Thomas said. “Once the first domino fell, all the rest were able to. That was wonderful for us. It’s the kind of response (assistant coach Mackenzie Bellows) and I were hoping for with our halftime talk.”

Disappointed with the start and other aspects of play in the first half, Thomas used halftime to make adjustments and encourage the attack.

“Sam kept it very light and very positive,” Crane said. “That’s what we needed.”

It allowed the Hawks to find their own redemption.

“We just didn’t come in completely prepared,” Macy said, “but we were able to bounce back.”