The Springfield Cardinals snapped a two-game losing streak by beating the Arkansas Travelers 7-5 at Hammons Field Thursday night. Travis Hanson hit his seventh home run of the season with a solo shot in the bottom of the second inning. That blast got the Cardinals on the board and cut the Travelers lead to 4-1.
In the fifth inning, Springfield took over with a five-run rally. Tyler Minges walked on four pitches with the bases loaded to score Reid Gorecki to start the scoring. That ended sent Arkansas starter Casey Olenberger to the showers. Hanson struck again with a two-run single to tie the game. Robinson Cancel and Papo Bolivar followed with RBI sacrifice flies to end the rally and give Springfield a 6-4 lead.
Both teams scored in the seventh inning to make it 7-5, but Springfield was able to hold on for the win. Despite giving up four runs in the second inning, starting pitcher Randy Leek was able to end improve to 3-2 on the season.
