VENEZIANO MAKES QUALITY START BUT NATURALS DROP SECOND STRAIGHT TO SPRINGFIELD

SPRINGDALE, AR – Despite Anthony Veneziano's team-leading fifth quality start of the year, the Northwest Arkansas Naturals fell behind the Springfield Cardinals early and dropped the second game of the weekend series, 7-4.

Veneziano allowed one earned run over 6.0 innings, tying a career-high with 10 strikeouts, while throwing a career-high 97 pitches. He surrendered just three runs and walked three, but four unearned runs in the third inning produced a tough-luck loss.

Third baseman CJ Alexander contributed to the Naturals' first two runs of the night, as he drove home Tyler Gentry with an RBI single in the fourth to put the Naturals on the board, then scored on a Maikel Garcia single in the seventh.

Springfield scored twice more in the eighth, then the Naturals responded in the bottom half with an RBI double from Logan Porter that plated Nick Loftin.

Northwest Arkansas briefly rallied in the ninth, as Garcia connected for his fourth home run of the season, a solo shot with two outs in the inning. Tucker Bradley followed Garcia with a single to stretch his hitting streak to a season-best seven games and put the tying run on deck. However, the Naturals could not bring that run across, falling to the Cardinals for a second straight. night.

After Zach Haake threw 1.2 innings of two-run ball, Andres Sotillet took over in the eighth, stranding an inherited runner and throwing a scoreless ninth inning. Sotillet has now thrown eight straight scoreless innings and 12.1 innings over nine appearances. Across his last 13 outings, Sotillet has allowed one run, while he's surrendered four runs in 19 appearances this season.

The Naturals will try and avoid a second straight sweep by the Cardinals on Sunday at 2:05 p.m. from Arvest Ballpark, with right-hander Alec Marsh on the mound.