The Poplar Bluff soccer team had a state-ranked opponent on its heels for 55 minutes Tuesday night.
Daniel Lozano had a hat trick for the Mules before Notre Dame rallied for a stunning 4-3 win at Mules Stadium.
The Bulldogs scored four times in the final 25 1/2 minutes, tying the game with 98 seconds left before Griffin Stewart's winner with five seconds remaining.
"I think the fatigue got us, I really think it did," Mules coach Rusty Crafton said of playing for a fifth time in six days.
Notre Dame (10-5-2), ranked No. 2 in Class 2 of the latest state coaches poll, trailed 3-0 after a penalty-kick goal by Lozano in the 47th minute.
Stewart netted the first of his three goals in the 56th minute while Garrett Hesselrode made it a one-goal game with 19 1/2 minutes remaining.
"First half we were trying to get it but we had difficulty because they were getting good numbers in the box, they were denying passes there (and) we couldn't get that last pass," Notre Dame coach Matt Vollink said. "As the game wore on we were able to find it."
Stewart tied it with 1:38 to play then won it in the closing seconds when the sophomore forward ripped a shot from the 18-yard line that was just out of the Poplar Bluff keeper's reach.
Justin Moses made 23 saves for the Mules.
"I think when we got to a 3-0 lead we sat back on our heels and got too comfortable," Crafton said. "We weren't aggressive to the ball like we were the first half. We were outplaying them the first half."
Lozano scored Poplar Bluff's first goal in 431 minutes with a long run through Notre Dame's defense just six minutes after kickoff.
The Mules (3-12) still led 1-0 at halftime and Lozano scored 1:17 into the second half. The senior changed direction, cut inside a defender and ripped a shot to the left post for a 2-0 lead.
Lozano completed the hat trick on a penalty in the 47th minute when he was pulled down trying to work for a shot inside the penalty box.
"We needed some goals very badly to get some confidence," Crafton said of five straight shutout losses.
Notre Dame had given up 20 goals in 16 games, including five shutouts.
"They did a very good job of countering on us," Vollink said. "(Lozano) was looking to get in and was hard for us to try to contain him. He made good runs, did a great job with the ball. They had three good goals."
Poplar Bluff, which won the junior varsity game 1-0, travels Thursday to Springfield Parkview.
CROSS COUNTRY
Katie Sliger placed second, Katelyn Moeller was fifth while Wesley Moore finished sixth for Poplar Bluff at the Hillsboro Invitational on Tuesday.
Sliger finished in 21 minutes, 46 seconds, crossing the finish line 47 seconds after Amie Martin of Fox. Moeller ran a 22:31 while Brooke Slayton finished in 24:41 for 11th.
Moore finished in 19:02 while Victor Olivain ran 19:42 for 15th. Seth Ingle was 24th for Poplar Bluff in 21:38.
The Mules freshmen boys and girls won with Jaden Deaton winning the 1.75-mile race in 9:52. Park Nagy was third followed by Brendan Yarbro and Brent Worley. Ava Smith placed third followed by Kenya Jones while Natalie Clark was eighth.