DANIEL ISLAND, S.C. — Crew SC used two very different lineups and two formations in two halves against the USL’s Charleston Battery, but it didn’t result in the team’s second win of the Carolina Challenge Cup.

An own goal by Charleston was the only score of the second half, and the Crew thwarted a couple late chances by Charleston to preserve a 1-1 draw.

“I thought the second half we had more energy,” coach and sporting director Gregg Berhalter said.

Utilizing an almost entirely new lineup and a new formation to begin the second half — a 3-4-3 featuring Nicolai Naess, Lalas Abubakar and Josh Williams at the back — Crew SC quickly produced its best chance of the match.

Around the 54th minute, Justin Meram found Niko Hansen on the run, but Hansen missed a goal by inches, ringing the left post.

“I thought it was going in. I was already starting to celebrate a little bit and just off the post, it was a heartbreaker,” said Hansen, the No. 9 overall pick in the 2017 MLS SuperDraft. “We kept grinding and we kept going.”

The Crew’s equalizer came less than 10 minutes later.

In the 63rd minute, a well-struck free kick by Naess deflected off the leg of a Charleston defender, producing an own goal.

“It was a smart play,” Berhalter said of Naess’ free kick. “In those conditions you want to put it as hard as you can in front of goal, and good things happen.”

The Crew fell behind 1-0 in the 26th minute on a Charleston corner kick. Midfielder Justin Portillo got decent height on his kick and one of Charleston’s tallest players, 6-foot-5 defender Forrest Lasso, rose up in the middle of the box and headed a ball past a diving Brad Stuver.

Charleston nearly netted a second goal in the 40th minute when Ataulla Guerra of Charleston slipped behind the Crew defense, but the Battery lost possession on an offside call.

The Crew’s pressure improved significantly late in the first half and the MLS club maintained possession for much of the final 15 minutes.

Berhalter didn’t take issue with his team’s play — he credited Charleston for being able to penetrate the Crew’s back line — but he did with the condition of the field at MUSC Health Stadium early in the match, which he said impacted the pace of the game.

“When the field is bone dry and when it’s sunny, you can’t move the ball fast enough,” Berhalter said. “I think that was an issue, especially in the first half.”

In the second half, he said, the moisture improved. The result was a more fluid Crew attack.

Kamara held out

Crew forward Ola Kamara watched from the stands, sitting out a second straight match.

Berhalter said Kamara suffered a slight concussion during the team’s short training camp at SuperKick in Lewis Center last week.

“He’s on the protocol and he’s doing really well,” Berhalter said.