HARROGATE, Tenn. – It had been five years since the Lincoln Memorial women's soccer team won its last South Atlantic Conference Championship match, but that drought ended in dramatic fashion on Tuesday afternoon at the LMU Soccer Complex. 
 
After falling behind less than a minute into the match, the second-seeded Lady Railsplitters (12-4) rallied to defeat the seventh-seeded Queens Royals (8-7-1) in a 2-1 overtime thriller to advance to the SAC Championship semifinals for the first time since 2013. 
 
The Lady Railsplitters, who have now won seven of their last eight matches, will face either Lenoir-Rhyne or Tusculum for a spot in the SAC Championship final on Friday at 1:30 p.m. in Rock Hill, S.C. 
 
Lincoln Memorial rolled into Tuesday's quarterfinal match riding a streak of three consecutive shutouts, but Queens needed just 30 seconds to snap that streak on a long blast from Lulu Phan in the first minute.
 
The Royals carried that 1-0 lead into the halftime break, as the Lady Railsplitters mustered just one shot on goal through the first 45 minutes of play. 
 
"It was difficult to play against a team that was just banking up and trying to take away things, and they were working hard," LMU head coach Sean Fraser said. "Even though we conceded in the first 30 seconds, we never panicked. With this team, we always know we have a chance to go and get it. 
 
"We stayed patient with it. We talked over a few things at halftime. And in the second half it was a complete domination when we had the ball. I was pleased with that." 
 
Lincoln Memorial found its footing in the second half and starting to build up better scoring chances. 
 
It was leading scorer Jessica Cravero who finally broke through in the 76th minute, as Itzel Ballesteros won a ball up the left wing and crossed it into the box. Cravero gathered the ball, turned the corner and beat Queens keeper Rachel Quest for her 15th goal of the season, and by far the most important. 
 
"A little bit of relief, to be honest," Fraser said about the feeling on the sideline following the game-tying score. "We hadn't tested the keeper anywhere near enough and they were doing a pretty good job on our front two. Again, I always just knew we had a chance in us so I was feeling pretty good throughout the match." 
 
The score remained deadlocked at 1-1 through 90 minutes, sending the match to overtime. In the 98th minute, Ballesteros collected a long pass down the middle of the field, beat several Queens defenders and won the one-on-one with the keeper to send the Lady Railsplitters into the SAC semifinals. 
 
It was another banner day in a banner year for the Lady Railsplitters, who hit the 12-win mark for the first time since the 2007 team won 15 games. And it was made all that more significant by how unexpected it was for those outside of the program, as LMU was projected to finish ninth in the conference just two seasons removed from a 10-loss 2016 campaign. 
 
"It means a lot," Fraser said. "Obviously we want to keep winning and keep shocking everyone. We are a young team and we're still learning and developing. But we are starting to develop a habit of grinding wins out now, and that's a good habit to get into."
 
Quick Hits 
 
- Cravero moved into the top 10 in the program's single-season history, sitting alone in 10th with her 15th goal. She is also 11th in program history with 34 points. 
 
- Ballesteros is now ranked 22nd in the program's single-season history with 27 points. Her nine assists are the most by a Lady Railsplitter since 2007. 
 
- The Lady Railsplitters improved to 5-8-1 all-time in SAC tournament play with the victory. 
 
Up Next
 
Lincoln Memorial seeks to earn its first SAC tournament championship appearance since 2013 on Friday with a matchup against the winner of Lenoir-Rhyne and Tusculum at 1:30 in Rock Hill, S.C.