The Northwest Arkansas Naturals held on for the 4-1 win against the 1st-Half North Division Champion Springfield Cardinals before 4,915 fans at Arvest Ballpark on Friday night.
The Naturals (16-12, 45-53) claimed the early advantage with the game's first run in the bottom of the first inning against RHP Johnny Walter (L, 0-3). CF Terrance Gore led off with a walk, before swiping second base. He then raced home on an RBI double from 2B Corey Toups, cracking the scoreless tie. Walter, though, dug in with back-to-back strikeouts before an inning-ending fly out, navigating through the rest of the frame with the Naturals only ahead, 1-0.
Walter kept the Naturals at just the one run with scoreless work through the fourth inning, striking out seven along the way. However, with Walter back out for the fifth, the Naturals added to their advantage. Gore again sparked the rally, this time with a single. Toups was hit by a pitch to put two men on, before both runners advanced to second and third on a groundout to first base. DH Frank Schwindel and C Cam Gallagher then went back-to-back with RBI singles, scoring Gore and Toups for the 3-0 advantage. After Walter hit the next batter, RF Alfredo Escalera, the Cardinals brought in RHP Chris Perry with the bases loaded and one away. Perry lost his first batter, LF Carlos Garcia, to a bases-loaded walk, forcing in Schwindel for the three-run lead. Perry, though, battled back with consecutive strikeouts to close the inning with Springfield only trailing, 4-0.
Naturals RHP Josh Staumont (W, 1-0) was stifling through his first five frames, striking out 10 Cardinals while allowing just two hits and one walk.
The Cardinals (10-18, 51-47), though, broke through in the top of the sixth inning. With one down, CF Nick Martini battled out his second walk of the game. One out later, 2B Bruce Caldwell extended the inning with a walk of his own, putting two on with two down and chasing Staumont from the hill. RHP Mark Peterson took over on the mound, but 1B Luke Voit promptly pulled an RBI single to left field, bringing in Martini to slice the deficit to 4-1.
Peterson, however, worked out of the sixth with no further damage, before dealing scoreless work in the seventh and eighth. LHP Tim Hill (S, 1) followed with a scoreless ninth, and the Naturals staved off the Cardinals for the 4-1 win on Friday.
