Tulsa Drillers Lose a Third Straight Heartbreaker To Northwest Arkansas

Northwest Arkansas erupted for four runs in the bottom of the seventh, and then held on to take their third straight one-run game over the Tulsa Drillers, 7-6.

Joey Williamson took the loss for the Drillers, while Ryan Dennick got his third win of the year for the Naturals. Patrick Keating got the final out to earn his eighth save of the season.

The Drillers struck first in the top of the first inning, when Corey Dickerson singled to bring in Nolan Arenado to give Tulsa a 1-0 lead.

The Drillers put up two more runs in the third thanks to a pair of solo homers, one from Jonathan Herrera and the other from Arenado.

NW Arkansas countered with a run in the bottom of the third, but Tulsa responded with another run to boost the lead to 4-1. Kent Matthes tripled to lead off the inning, and Jose Gonzalez brought him home on a sacrifice fly.

The Drillers tacked on two more runs in the sixth inning on four straight singles. The Naturals countered with two runs in the bottom half of the frame to keep the margin at three runs.

In the bottom of the seventh, the Naturals struck for four runs to take a 7-6 lead. The Travelers were helped by a passed ball and a wild pitch in addition to the three hits they collected.

The Drillers had their chances to tie or take the lead late in the game, putting runners on second and third with one out in the eighth, and first and second with one out in the ninth, but were unable to capitalize on either opportunity.

Tulsa will try to avoid a sweep tomorrow night when they take on the Naturals in the series finale at 7 p.m.