OTTUMWA — Caesar Saucedo picked a very good night to come up with hat trick. In fact, it was an absolute necessity for the Ottumwa boys soccer team on Thursday night.

Saucedo rallied the Bulldogs from a 2-0 halftime deficit with two game-tying goals in the first nine minutes of the second half. Saucedo then completed his hat trick, and the Bulldogs’ comeback, with a goal 2:30 into overtime as Ottumwa scored a 3-2 CIML Metro win over Des Moines North.

The Bulldog defense also stepped up, allowing just one shot by North after halftime. It was a stellar rally for an Ottumwa squad that didn’t bring their best game to the pitch to start things off.

“We really came out flat to start this game. It felt a little bit like we were just going through the motions,” Ottumwa head boys soccer coach Jeff Ebling said. “At halftime, the guys had an attitude adjustment. The boys didn’t hang their heads.”

Ottumwa (4-5, 2-0) is back in action on Saturday at “Tulip” Tournament.

Ottumwa 3, Des Moines North 2, OT

DMN         2    0    0    —    2

Ott.         0    2    1    —    3

Scoring Summary

North — Goal, 27:30.

North — Goal, 28:00.

Ottumwa — Caesar Saucedo goal (Denny Guido assist), 40:31.

Ottumwa — Saucedo goal (Guido assist), 48:31.

Ottumwa — Saucedo goal, 82:30.

Ottumwa: Total Shots — 22 (Angelo Kelly 6, Saucedo 6). Total Saves — 4 (Kevin Gonzalez 3, Casper Jensen).

D.M. North: Total Shots — 6. Total Saves — 19.