SPRINGDALE -- Northwest Arkansas' mastery of its in-state rival continued Wednesday afternoon, and it's recently been done with little margin to spare.
Balbino Fuenmayor belted a two-out, two-run double in the bottom of the eighth inning and gave the Naturals a 4-3 victory over Arkansas at Arvest Ballpark. It was Northwest Arkansas' third consecutive one-run decision over the Travelers and their seventh win as many games over them this season.
Northwest Arkansas 4, Arkansas 3
Arkansas^001^110 000^—^3^7^1
NW Arkansas^000^100^12X^—^4^6^1
Arkansas^AB^R^H^RBI^BB^SO^LOB^AVG
Johnson, S, 3B^3^2^2^2^1^0^0^.211
Maggi, SS^4^0^1^0^0^0^1^.307
Towey, RF^4^0^0^0^0^3^3^.241
Hernandez, B, DH^4^0^1^0^0^1^3^.294
Hinkle, 1B^4^1^0^0^0^0^3^.261
Davis, Ke, LF^4^0^1^0^0^1^1^.220
Bond, 2B^2^0^1^1^2^0^0^.214
Bemboom, C^4^0^1^0^0^1^2^.215
Mitchell, J, CF^3^0^0^0^0^2^0^.143
Totals^32^3^7^3^3^8^13^
HR: Johnson, S 2 (3). TB: Hernandez, B; Johnson, S 8; Bemboom; Maggi; Bond; Davis, Ke. RBI: Johnson, S 2 (18), Bond (1). SB: Hinkle (2), Maggi (7). FIELDING — E: Hinkle (5). DP: (Johnson, S-Hinkle). Pickoffs: DeLoach.
NW Arkansas^AB^R^H^RBI^BB^SO^LOB^AVG
Franco, SS^3^1^1^0^1^0^0^.343
Liddi, 2B^3^1^1^0^1^0^0^.270
Bonifacio, J, RF^3^1^0^0^0^0^4^.226
Fuenmayor, 1B^4^0^2^3^0^1^1^.370
Dozier, 3B^4^0^0^0^0^2^2^.225
Bianucci, DH^3^1^1^1^0^0^0^.314
Gibbs, C^3^0^0^0^0^3^0^.316
Gore, LF^2^0^1^0^0^0^0^.294
Chapman, CF^3^0^0^0^0^2^1^.192
Totals^28^4^6^4^2^8^8^
2B: Fuenmayor 2 (11). HR: Bianucci (9). RBI: Fuenmayor 3 (32), Bianucci (23). CS: Gore (2). PO: Gore (1st base by DeLoach). FIELDING E: Franco (5). DP: (Dozier-Fuenmayor).
Arkansas^IP^H^R^ER^BB^SO^HR^ERA
DeLoach^7.0^5^2^2^0^6^1^2.37
Reynolds, D (BS, 1)(L, 0-1)^1.0^1^2^2^2^2^0^3.60
NW Arkansas^IP^H^R^ER^BB^SO^HR^ERA
Sulbaran^6.0^6^3^3^1^6^2^4.03
Williams, A (W, 1-0)^2.0^0^0^0^1^1^0^6.94
Culver (S, 3)^1.0^1^0^0^1^1^0^3.06
HBP: Gore (by DeLoach), Bonifacio, J (by DeLoach).
Umpires: HP: Scott Costello. 1B: Mike Cascioppo. 3B: Jake Wilburn.
T: 2:31. Att: 7,096.
"We're lucky because last year our big-league team built a winning culture," manager Vance Wilson said. "What a lot of people don't understand is the big-league team, no doubt, filters down through the organization. Just the way the Royals turned things around, you can feel it at every level."
Angel Franco and Alex Liddi drew back-to-back walks against Danny Reynolds (0-1), who had entered the game in the eighth in relief of Arkansas starter Kyle DeLoach. Fuenmayor, who is among the top three in the Texas League in five different offensive categories, then laced a double past third base one out later and drove in both runners to give Northwest Arkansas (27-12) its first and only lead.
It was the second two-base hit for Fuenmayor and the 11th this season to go with his league-leading nine home runs, and his 2-for-4 outing raised his batting average to a team-high .370. His fourth-inning double was the Naturals' first hit of the game and drove in their first run after Jorge Bonifacio was hit by a pitch.
"The guy can hit," Wilson said. "The guy's unbelievable. People say 'where's he come from' and it's not where he come from. It just takes some guys some time to get it. It's taken until he is 25 years old, and he can flat-out hit."
Short Hops:
• Ali Williams (1-0) pitched two innings and picked up the win in relief of J.C. Sulbaran, who allowed three runs on six hits through six innings. Malcom Culver pitched the ninth and picked up his third save.
• Mike Bianucci moved into a tie with Fuenmayor for the league home-run lead when he belted his ninth of the year, a solo shot over the center-field fence in the seventh and cut Arkansas' lead to 3-2.
• Travelers leadoff batter Sherman Johnson, who entered the game with one home run, belted a pair against Sulbaran and came the first Arkansas player to hit two home runs in a game this season. Both were solo shots, with one coming in the third and the other in the fifth.
Extra Bases: Bianucci's home run was the Naturals' 46th of the season -- the most in the Texas League -- and 31 of them have been solo shots. ... The announced attendance of 7,096 was the highest at Arvest Ballpark this season. ... Sulbaran made his 39th career start for the Naturals, putting him third on the all-time list. Next in line is Sugar Ray Marimon, who started 42 games between 2012-14.
On Deck: The Naturals conclude their four-game series with the Travelers with a 7:05 p.m. game at Arvest Ballpark. Northwest Arkansas will send right-hander Miguel Almonte (4-1, 2.73 ERA), the Texas League's pitcher of the week, to the mound while Arkansas will counter with right-hander Alan Busenitz (1-3, 5.91).
Today's Promotion: The first 1,000 fans to today's game will receive special "glow in the dark" sunglasses, courtesy of Foghorn's. It's also Thirsty Thursday, where fans can purchase small drinks for $1.
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On The Web: www.nwanaturals.com
Sports on 05/21/2015