AUBURN — There are own-goals, and there are heartbreaking own goals.

Two years ago, a North Yarmouth Academy defender inadvertently deflected the ball into the Panthers’ cage, giving St. Dominic Academy an early lead that held up for a Western Class C boys’ soccer championship.

St. Dom’s returned the generosity Wednesday — as a top seed, in the regional quarterfinals, with 5.5 seconds remaining in regulation.

A bouncing ball with ridiculous topspin took three perilous hops into the net off the head of a Saints defender, nudging No. 9 NYA to a wild 3-2 win over No. 1 St. Dom’s.

Senior Ryan Rousseau, the last player in an orange jersey to touch the ball, was credited with his third goal of the game and his 24th of the season.

“I just tried to give it a little tap and see what I could do,“ Rousseau said. “(Assistant) Coach Will Pike has always told us hard work beats talent if talent doesn’t work hard, so we worked hard all game.”

NYA (8-6-2) will travel to Lisbon for the semifinals. Lisbon eliminated Sacopee Valley, a team that handed NYA three of its defeats.

Rousseau twice provided game-tying goals for the Panthers, the second time with 9:33 to play.

Oliver Silverson gained possession near midfield and lofted a long pass over the head of three St. Dom’s defenders toward a streaking Rousseau in the far corner.

St. Dom’s goalie Cam Hainey chased the ball but NYA’s striker arrived first, leaving the cage untended for Rousseau’s one-timer.

“The fact of the matter is we shouldn’t have even let the previous goal in,” St. Dom’s coach Marty Bressler said. “Just breakdowns, mistakes. I give them a lot of credit. They were tenacious and they knew they could play with us until the end.”

The Saints (12-1-2) were the clear No. 1 team in the region for most of the campaign, while NYA needed a Monmouth loss to Dirigo on the final day of the regular-season just to make the playoffs.

But this was not your typical upset.

NYA won last year’s regional title after emerging from the eighth seed. The Panthers opened their defense by pounding one of St. Dom’s MVC rivals, Mt. Abram, 5-0, in a road preliminary game Friday.

Not including its prep school schedule, NYA has faced Class A Greely and Class B tournament teams Yarmouth, Gray-New Gloucester and Freeport.

“We knew in relative terms, compared to the teams above us, we were every bit as competitive,” NYA coach Martyn Keen said. “All I asked them to do was remember that they are the defending regional champions no matter what the seedings say and to defend the title with honor and integrity. To go behind twice and show the resiliency they did, I’m very proud.”

St. Dom’s got an early jump when the NYA defense didn’t immediately react to one of Zak Johnson’s long, somersaulting throw-ins.

Johnson vaulted the ball past everyone from 35 yards, and Calvin Stewart headed it past NYA keeper Ryan Salerno only 43 seconds after the opening kickoff.

“We had plenty of opportunities in the first half. The kids learned the hard way what can happen when you don’t finish,” Bressler said. “We should have put this game away in the first half and we just didn’t. They hung in there and beat us.”

NYA answered Stewart with its first shot on goal. An unmarked Rousseau flagged down a centering pass from Forrest Milburn and deposited a laser into the upper left corner in the ninth minute.

Defense reigned and near-misses were the rule thereafter until Will Desmarais restored St. Dom’s lead with 13:29 left in regulation, punching home a direct kick.

“We stayed positive,” Rousseau said. “The seven seniors, our sophomore year we were down 2-0 to Georges Valley and came back.”

But neither that history nor NYA’s tough loss on this same turf later that October prepared the Panthers or the Saints for the shocking conclusion.

“It’s the playoffs. It was an unlucky bounce,” Bressler said. “That’s playoff soccer. There are going to be a lot of upsets today.”

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