CCC-Liv executed the plan perfectly, keeping Vos and Asleigh Moolman fresh nearly all 131km into Cittiglio until Moolman let rip on the penultimate lap causing damage to the main bunch and then backing up to get Vos into a good position for the final sprint to the line.
And Vos did the rest.
"I felt really good," Vos said. "Of course it's a little bit you're not sure if you're going to stay like that until the end sometimes in the last lap the feelings, the sensations can change.
"But I felt very good and Ashleigh had great attacks on the climbs but I was pretty, not comfortable of course, because it's hard but I felt good and when we came over the last climb with a small advantage with a good group, I knew there was a chance of winning the sprint. Ashleigh did a great job to get the place and to keep me in front."
The queen of Dutch cycling also had no idea the more fancied sprinter Sunweb's Coryn Rivera was also in the group with her going to the line.
"No, I was probably fully in the zone, I was totally focused on my own and positioning for the last corner I didn't know how far the rest was back, if it was a big group or whatever. We just tried to do what we could in front."
Spratt's Mitchelton-Scott team mates too helped animate the race for their leader with Grace Brown softening up the peloton with an attack on the second pass of the Orino, seeing her quickly gain a 45 second advantage.
The ever dwindling main bunch behind was having none of it, soon catching WorldTour debutant who tagged in Lucy Kennedy to force the pace with an attack of her own. Kennedy too was caught and the race further animated by several more attacks from within the main bunch until Spratt broke clear over the final climb with eight others including Vos and Moolman.
The plucky Sydneysider launched an attack with five kilometres to go, not quite getting the daylight she needed, the race ending in a bunch sprint. But Spratt was happy with her return to European racing after she was forced to abandon Strade Bianche, the first race on the UCI Women's WorldTour calendar, two weeks ago.
“I’m really happy with the second place today," the Tour Down Under champion said. "The European season didn’t start well with the crash at Strade Bianche, so it’s nice to step back into racing with this result and it gives me a lot of confidence for my goals coming up."
"The team were so great today. On this course the race can go two ways: a bunch sprint or a more select group so I’m very grateful all the girls backed and believed in me to give me this opportunity. Of course the win would have been ideal but we can be proud of second place, especially to a rider like Marianne Vos."
"I felt great all day and kept telling the girls this so they knew. We had a plan to make the race hard and we just went for it, I’m proud of the way we raced."
