Drillers Top Naturals in the Tenth Inning for Their Third Straight Win
May 16, 2025 - Texas League (TL)
Tulsa Drillers News Release
Tulsa Drillers celebrate win
(Tulsa Drillers, Credit: Paige Grider)
Tulsa, OK - The Tulsa Drillers won their third straight game on Friday night at ONEOK Field, but they did not take the easy route. Leading for much of the evening after a four-run first inning, the Drillers lost the lead in the eighth when Northwest Arkansas scored four runs of its own to tie the game. It stayed tied until the bottom of the tenth when Griffin Lockwood-Powell led off with a base hit to right field that scored placed runner Damon Keith to give the Drillers a 6-5 walk-off victory over the Naturals.
It was the 12th home win of the season for the Drillers and six of them have come in their final at-bat of the game.
It appeared for most of the game that no late-inning heroics would be needed to run the winning streak to three straight after Tulsa's four-run first inning. The inning began as many big innings do, with a leadoff walk. After Taylor Young drew the free pass, Yeiner Fernandez singled. Following a strikeout, Lockwood-Powell singled home Young, and a base hit from John Rhodes scored Fernandez.
Both Lockwood-Powell and Rhodes scored on a pair of wild pitches from Northwest Arkansas starter Hunter Owen, the first two of the season for the lefthander.
Tulsa starting pitcher Peter Heubeck took full advantage of the early support. He did not allow a hit while holding the Naturals without a run through the game's first five innings.
Northwest Arkansas got its first hit and first run in the top of the sixth. Rudy Martin led off with a double and eventually scored to cut Tulsa's lead to 4-1.
Nick Biddison promptly got the run back for the Drillers in the bottom of the sixth. Playing in his first game with Tulsa since his promotion from the High-A Great Lakes Loons, Biddison belted a solo home run to restore the four-run cushion.
Ronan Kopp took over for Heubeck to open the seventh and worked a 1-2-3 inning and then retired the first two batters in the eighth before things deteriorated. Kopp issued consecutive walks and was replaced by Lucas Wepf. Wepf surrendered three straight run-scoring hits that tied the game at 5-5.
Wepf worked a scoreless ninth and struck out the Naturals' leadoff batter in the top of the tenth before he was replaced by Brandon Neeck. Neeck got an out before allowing a walk that brought the dangerous Jac Caglianone to the plate. On a full-count pitch, Neek enticed Caglianone to foul out to the catcher to keep the game tied.
Naturals' closer Brandon Johnson had not allowed a base runner since coming into the game with one out in the bottom of the eighth and he returned to the mound for the bottom of the tenth.
With placed runner Keith at second, Lockwood-Powell worked a 2-1 count before grounding a base hit through the right side of the infield. Naturals' right fielder Gavin Cross charged in and bobbled the grounder, allowing Keith to race home with the game-winning run.
It was the first hit that Johnson had allowed in 8.2 innings against Tulsa this season.
INSIDE THE GAME
*Heubeck, was in line for the win after allowing just two hits and the one run in six complete innings, but he received a no-decision after the late rally from the Naturals. The right-hander walked just one batter and struck out eight.
*Young extended a pair of streaks in the game. After walking in the first, he singled in his second at-bat. Young now owns a 7-game hitting streak and an 18-game on-base streak. He has a .500 batting average during the hitting streak, going 13-26.
*Kole Myers added two hits for the Drillers and has now hit safely in all three games he has played for the Drillers since his promotion from Great Lakes. Myers is 6-12 with Tulsa.
*The Drillers again wore special Chicken Dancers uniforms in recognition of Tulsa's Oktoberfest festival. The popular chicken dance was unveiled in America for the first time at Tulsa's 1981 Oktoberfest.
UP NEXT
The Drillers and Naturals will play the fifth game of their six-game series on Saturday night at ONEOK Field. The game will begin at 7:00 p.m. and the starting pitchers are expected to be:
NWA - TBA
Tulsa - LHP Jackson Ferris (1-3, 6.12 ERA)
Images from this story
 Tulsa Drillers celebrate win (Paige Grider) |
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