Union hangs on for 3-2 win in 1A soccer quarterfinal

MUSCATINE - Lizzie Zondo just laughed when asked what the second half of her team's Class 1A state soccer tournament quarterfinal felt like Thursday afternoon.

"Sometimes it's hard to watch," the LaPorte City Union head coach said. "You just have to turn awayand whatever happens, happens."

What happened was a 3-2 victory for top-ranked Union over No. 9 Council Bluffs St. Albert. The Knights (17-0) play No. 4 Sioux City Heelan (14-4) in Friday afternoon's semifinals at 2:15  after hanging on ... barely.

St. Albert (14-6) scored twice in the second half and had a tying shot smack off the crossbar.

"In the first half, we came out strong," said Union's Kylie Powell. "We got a lot of crosses and finished there. The second half, we kind of started falling apart. But we came out with the win, and that's all that matters."

Powell scored her state-leading 49th goal as part of a three-goal barrage over seven minutes of the first half. She is the cousin of former Union star Darian Powell, who scored an amazing 131 goals in two years before transferring to Shattuck-St. Mary's prep school in Minnesota this year.

Noel Mahood had Union's first goal at the 18:45 mark. Casey Barney's header concluded the Knight's scoring.

"The first game you're all nervous and stuff, trying to get the feel of state," said Powell, whose team finished runner-up last year to Cedar Rapids Xavier (which is 2A this season). "The second game, hopefully we'll come out stronger and play two solid halves."