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A second-half penalty from Sekou Camara, who also served up the winner in Santos' 1-0 triumph over Chiefs, looked like the potential match winner until one minute into injury time when Rudolph Bester scored from the spot to round off the fare on a dramatic note.
At the outset, neither midfield seemed to offer much by way of defence and attacking sorties met with little resistance as early build-up movements proved penetrative.
The result was that both goalkeepers, Shu-Aib Walters (Maritzburg United) and Tshepo Motsoeneng (Santos), were kept busy without really being tested.
Santos, who made four changes to the side which beat Chiefs, lost the services of Kenyan-born Musa Otieno in the 15th minute with a back injury.
Otieno, 37, returned briefly but was soon replaced by Zairon van Beulen, who signalled his entry into the fray with a yellow-card offence three minutes later.
Both coaches, Boebie Solomons (Santos) and Ernst Middendorp (Maritzburg), suffered several bouts of exasperation as one goalscoring chance after the other went astray in the first half.
Santos looked more likely to score after their front-runners were sent clear on a few occasions but woeful finishing, rather than stout defence, saw the teams retire scoreless to the change rooms.
The hosts gave their supporters some anxious moments after the break as they allowed Maritzburg to take play into the penalty area several times.
The visitors, however, lacked a direct approach in front goal and failed to make an impact.
Once Santos had absorbed the pressure, they reversed the flow of the match but they too could not exploit their good fortunes.
They came within a whisker of scoring, though, after a free-kick by substitute Gregory Roelf was kept out by the cross-bar in the 63rd minute.
The match was turned on its head five minutes later when referee Thabo Nkosi awarded Santos a penalty and Mali-born Camara stepped up to rock the back of the nets from the spot to give his side a 1-0 lead.
The response from Maritzburg was almost immediate but Santos keeper Motsoeneng, the Man of the Match, averted danger with a great reflex save.
Motsoeneng, however, could not deny Bester who slotted home a 91st minute penalty to secure the visitors a share of the spoils at the death.
Both teams will play in the Telkom Knockout Cup semifinals next weekend. Maritzburg will host Orlando Pirates in KwaZulu-Natal, while Santos will be away to Kaizer Chiefs in Polokwane.
