Although fans were surely hoping for a repeat of Tuesday’s miracle sixth-inning comeback victory, it was not meant to be, as the Natchez Wallace All-Stars lost 3-5 to North Carolina Thursday.

Natchez trailed 1-5 heading into the bottom of the sixth and final inning of the third game of the Dixie-Youth 11-12 World Series.

Wesley Davis led off the inning with a triple, and Drew David drove him in, making the score 2-5. Cole Bradford later hit a single-shot homer, but that was as close at Natchez would come.

&uot;We tried to make a comeback at the end,&uot; coach David New Jr. said. &uot;We just didn’t pull it through this time.&uot;

Getting on base was not a problem for Natchez, but scoring was. Seven runners were left stranded, many in scoring position.

Bradford had a double in addition to his home run, and David Alton New, Chris Seeger and Austin Weeks all had singles.

Pitcher Benji Maher went the distance for Natchez, and threw 13 strike outs.

Natchez must now play through the loser’s bracket in the double-elimination tournament. The Wallace All-Stars will face South Carolina today at 6 p.m.

Natchez defeated South Carolina Wednesday 6-0, in large part due to the pitching of Corey Walker.

&uot;You always worry when you have to face a time twice,&uot; coach New said. &uot;But we won, and the kids are pretty confident. This was our first loss and I think we’ll bounce back.&uot;

If Natchez wins today, the All-Stars will face either North Carolina or Georgia Saturday.

In Natchez’s first game of the series on Tuesday, the Mississippi All-Stars won in dramatic fashion, overcoming a 2-6 deficit in the sixth inning to defeat Georgia.

&uot;I told the boys that there are only four teams left, and we’ve played all of them,&uot; New said. &uot;We beat two and lost to one, but we’re still here.&uot;

Of the teams Natchez has faced in the tournament, New would pick South Carolina to play against next.

&uot;I feel pretty confident,&uot; he said. &uot;We match up pretty well with them.&uot;