KINSTON, N.C. (WNCT) — The Down East Wood Ducks had hoped to win Thursday’s Game 2 of its best-of-3 series with the Carolina Mudcats.

It almost happened.

Down East rallied from a 5-0 deficit to force extra innings. However, Carolina scored a run in the 10th inning and a double play wiped out the Wood Ducks’ tying run to end the game. The result was a wild 6-5 win for the Mudcats at Historic Grainger Stadium.

The two teams will play a deciding Game 3 of their Carolina League Northern Division series Friday at 7 at Grainger Stadium. The winner will face the Southern Division champion, a series being played between the Charleston RiverDogs and Myrtle Beach Pelicans. Myrtle Beach won 3-0 Thursday to force a deciding Game 3 there, too.

The Mudcats scored two in the fifth, one in the seventh and two more in the eighth for a commanding 5-0 lead. Then the Wood Ducks started scoring, pushing across four runs in the bottom of the eighth to make it 5-4.

Miguel Villarroel grounded out to first but Quincy Scott scored to make it 5-1. Ian Moller then singled in JoJo Blackmon to make it 5-2. Gielder Figuereo then singled in Konner Piotto and Moller to make it 5-4.

The Wood Ducks tied it in the bottom of the ninth when Villarroel reached on a fielding error at shortstop, Wady Mendez scored on the miscue.

In the 10th, Carolina’s Jadher Areinamo started out at second base and scored on a groundout by Jesus Chirinos. In the bottom of the 10th, Konner Piotto started at second and went to third on a groundout by Moller. Figuereo flied out and Piotto was thrown out at home to preserve the win for Carolina.