Mundle scored his fifth goal of the season to rescue a point for Sunderland
Romaine Mundle's late wonder strike rescued a point for an otherwise toothless Sunderland against Preston North End at the Stadium of Light.
Emil Riis' second-half goal looked to have condemned the Black Cats to a second home Championship defeat of the season.
But Mundle's curled effort from the edge of the area four minutes from time saved their blushes on a difficult night.
The hosts' automatic promotion hopes remain slim as they stay fourth, with Preston sitting in 15th.
Preston made a lively start and carved out their first chance inside five minutes. Brad Potts burst through and forced a save from Sunderland keeper Anthony Patterson, before Sam Greenwood fired the rebound over.
The visitors found joy with their counter press, but Sunderland almost took the lead when Tommy Watson headed wide after quick interplay between Trai Hume and Eliezer Mayenda.
The tempo of the half stayed high, and 10 minutes before the break, Sunderland failed to convert guilt-edged chances. Dennis Cirkin and Wilson Isidor both fired across goal with nobody able to apply the finish.
But the best chance of all fell to Isidor, and tension grew as he headed wide. Hume had timed the cross perfectly, but he missed the target from point blank range.
Just as in the first half, Preston squandered a huge opportunity in the opening moments after the restart.
Bearing down on goal, Danish striker Riis blasted over under little duress. It summed up an evening of poor quality in both boxes, with 35 shots in total and just four on target.
Mayenda and Isidor combined again only for the former to fire over, and Riis repeated the trick moments later.
Five minutes past the hour, it was third time lucky for Riis. He twisted and turned, creating space outside the area and fired in off Patterson's left hand post.
Sunderland's lack of quality when it mattered looked like costing them, and the goal impacted the enthusiasm from the stands.
As angst grew, substitute Mundle stepped up to level in the most spectacular fashion with a curling shot. The relief was palpable, but even a point wouldn't do.
With nine minutes of stoppage time on the board, Regis Le Bris' side laid siege. But Preston had defended well throughout and held on for a deserved share of the spoils.
'Another point in the race' - post-match reaction
Sunderland manager Regis Le Bris told BBC Radio Newcastle:
"I think we started OK. It was 4-4-2, a little bit different. We needed some adjustments to find the right dynamic.
"It worked well, we created chances and should have scored before. We struggled a bit against their direct play, it is not easy to press.
"Our block was open and they kept the ball close to our box and were able to create chances from nothing from direct play.
"It was a good reaction, another point in the race. The league is long and we'll keep going."
Preston North End manager Paul Heckingbottom told BBC Radio Lancashire:
"I'm delighted with the team. They were excellent.
"I've said how consistent we've been but the other consistent thing has been not picking up three points when we've been really good.
"That is the story of our season, really. We've got to be better in key positions. We've not been clinical enough, shown enough quality and our decision making [has not always been right]. I can't criticise anything tonight.
"We were good throughout. Not many teams come here and dominate the ball. I thought we were the coolest heads out there."
