Down to its last strike and trailing 4-2 at Jackson, Notre Dame wasn't quite ready to give up its perfect record.

Kyle James had other ideas.

After the Bulldogs rallied to tie it in the top half of the seventh, James lined an 0-2 fastball into right-center field to drive in the winning run and send the Indians to a 5-4 victory Tuesday.

"I was expecting a curve," James said. "He threw me a fastball, and I just took it right back up the middle."

The hit capped a wild final inning between the SEMO Conference rivals.

Jackson baserunner Ryan O'Rear slides into second during the Indians' 5-4 win over Notre Dame on Tuesday in Jackson. More photos can be viewed at semoball.com. (ADAM VOGLER)

Notre Dame had a grand total of one hit before it rallied in the seventh.

Pinch hitter Nick Essner drew a walk to lead off the inning and set the table.

Justin Landewee followed with a strikeout, and Jonathan Lynch hit a grounder that Jackson first baseman Trevor Jaco dived to stop and record the out.

Down to his last strike, Cody Heisserer finally got the hit the Bulldogs needed.

The senior hit a double over the third-base bag to make it 4-3, and Jesse Schott hit a first-pitch fastball into left field to tie it at 4-4.

"We started talking about it in the fourth inning," Notre Dame coach Jeff Graviett said. "It's just going to take one guy to step up and get that hit. I really think it was Jon Lynch putting the bat on the ball good, even though he made an out. They made a good play on it. And then Cody followed with the base hit. So we were looking for something earlier in the game. It was a little bit late, but once we got going, we swung the bats well."

The Indians somehow managed to regroup.

Laban Petzoldt led off the bottom half with a single and stole second with one out to put the winning run in scoring position.

Notre Dame went to Lynch on the mound, and the left-hander intentionally walked Alex Bolen to set the stage for James' winning hit.

"Kyle James, 0-2, we just preach put the ball in play," Jackson coach Tatum Kitchen said. "He did a very good job.

"I was very pleased with our ability to stay in the game. Once it got 4-4, we very easily could have folded up and gone to the eighth inning and lost. But we held right in there and fortunately got out of the seventh inning, which was a big thing, too."

It was an impressive rally for the Indians after letting the Bulldogs off the hook.

"Our mentality, we just wanted to get back on top," James said. "It's Notre Dame. It's a big game."

The main reason the Indians were on top was starting pitcher Adam James.

The senior allowed two earned runs on one hit, while walking six and striking out six over six innings.

"He did a tremendous job," Graviett said. "One of the big things is he didn't get in trouble with a lot of walks like Justin [Landewee] did. What he was doing was effective today, and I didn't think we had a real good approach at the plate. But all in all you have to give him a lot of credit today."

Adam James did not know he was starting on the mound until Monday night.

"We planned on throwing Alex Bolen -- he hadn't thrown since Cape -- but he was having trouble with inflammation," Kitchen said. "So we found out last night he can't throw, so Adam James found out late last night that he was going to throw. His mentality is almost like an executioner's -- he doesn't smile a whole lot. He just gets the ball and here we go. But he did an excellent job of throwing strikes."

Adam James was lights out. He worked around four errors by his defense to stifle the Bulldogs.

"I was excited, honestly," Adam James said. "Senior year, I want to play some good teams. I got to do what I got to do. Everything was working today, thankfully. I've been working a lot in the bullpen. It wasn't just me though. I had eight guys behind me working their butts off. I don't strike a lot of guys out, so I need them all the time, and they showed up today."

Notre Dame struck for a run in the first inning on a sacrifice fly, but the Indians countered with two runs in the bottom half. They took advantage of two errors by Notre Dame in the inning.

The Bulldogs tied it in the second, but Jackson added two more in the third before both teams went scoreless until the seventh.

"We're thrilled to get a big win for us," Kitchen said. "But like I told these guys, last year we won this game and last year and I think it was the highlight of the whole year for us. So this was great, but life goes on. But we're happy with the win."

Notre Dame 110 000 2 -- 4 4 2

Jackson 202 000 1 -- 5 5 4

WP -- Steven Eddy. LP -- Justin Landewee. 2B -- Jonathan Lynch (ND), Cody Heisserer (ND), Jesse Schott (ND). Multiple Hits: Jackson -- Alex Bolen 2-3. Records: Notre Dame 8-1, Jackson 4-3.