EIGHT-RUN SEVENTH PROPELS NATURALS TO 13-4 WIN OVER DRILLERS

TULSA, OK – The Northwest Arkansas Naturals played back-and-forth with the Tulsa Drillers Friday night and after taking a lead in the sixth inning, scored eight runs in the seventh for a 13-4 win.

Making his first career start, left-hander Zack Phillips tied a career-high with 4.0 innings, set a season-high with five strikeouts and set a career-high with 73 pitches.

After allowing four runs on six hits, the Naturals’ bullpen locked the down for the remainder of the night, retiring 15 of the next 16 Drillers batters. Walter Pennington pitched 2.0 perfect innings and earned his fourth win of the year, then Stephen Woods Jr. pitched 2.0 scoreless and Yefri Del Rosario threw a 1-2-3 ninth on just six innings to close the door.

Early in the game, the teams traded runs, as Tulsa opened the night’s scoring in the second inning with a home run, but the Naturals responded by taking the lead in the third, on an RBI single from Nick Loftin and two-run homer from Michael Massey, his ninth of the year.

The Drillers inched a run closer in the third, Jake Means drove home a run on a fielder’s choice to extend the lead in the fourth and Tulsa tied the game up in the bottom half, a 4-4 score that remained tied until the sixth.

Seuly Matias led off the sixth inning with a solo home run to left-center field, a 427-foot shot for a 5-4 lead, his team-leading 10th long ball this year.

Up by just a run and hungry for more, the Naturals exploded for eight runs in the top of the seventh, on three hits, six walks and a hit batter to zoom ahead of the Drillers. Robbie Glendinning singled in a pair for his second hit of the night, then Maikel Garcia blasted his first home run of the season to cap off the eight-run frame, a three-run shot to left field.

Garcia, Loftin, Massey and Glendinning each had two-hit games, while Loftin drew two walks and Massey walked three times, the club tied a season-high with nine walks in the contest overall.

Between Woods Jr. and Del Rosario, Tulsa was set down seven in a row from the seventh inning through the end of the game, as the Naturals hung out for a third straight win, to bring the team’s record back to .500, at 27-27.

The Naturals will try and secure a series win, Saturday at 7:05 p.m. from ONEOK Field in Tulsa as right-hander Alec Marsh makes his 11th start of the year.