Down four key contributors, Fulton Hornets head soccer coach Brad Oestreich knew his team would need to combat almost certain fatigue with heady play.
It was there at times and not at others, and when the mental hiccups affected the Hornets, the Kirksville Tigers hurt them.
"When you get tired in soccer, you have to play smarter," Oestreich said. "When those mental lapses happened in the back, Kirksville capitalized."
Fulton allowed three second-half goals - a pair coming less than 2 minutes apart - in a 4-1 North Central Missouri Conference loss to the Tigers on Tuesday night at the high school athletic complex.