SPRINGDALE — August is almost over, and few Naturals are as happy to see it go as Corey Smith.
Smith singled off Tulsa closer Andrew Johnston with one out in the 12th inning Sunday, scoring Jeff Bianchi and giving Northwest Arkansas a 2-1 victory in front of 5,344 fans at Arvest Ballpark.
The win was the fifth in a row for the Naturals (34-28) and moved them two games ahead of the Drillers (32-30) in the Texas League North Division with eight games remaining in the season's second half.
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Bianchi had doubled with one out against Shane Lindsay (2-1), who then gave up a walk and got the second out before Johnston came in to face the slumping Smith. Smith was 0 for 4 when he delivered his game-winning hit, and had been batting a measly .156 since Aug. 9.
Other than a bases-loaded walk by Daniel Mayora in the eighth inning, Tulsa had nothing to show for its myriad of run-scoring opportunities. The Drillers left 15 men on base, and were 0 for 13 with runners in scoring position.
Darin Holcomb doubled off Ben Swaggerty to lead off the top of the 12th, but Swaggerty (4-1) got three consecutive groundouts to get out of the inning. Swaggerty pitched 3 shutout innings, allowing 2 hits and 1 walk.
Naturals' starter Everett Teaford pitched 5 shutout innings, giving up 4 hits and 4 walks.