Amick’s inside-the-park homer, Culpepper’s no-hit outing not enough in 9-3 loss

April 4, 2026

Amick’s inside-the-park homer, Culpepper’s no-hit outing not enough in 9-3 loss
*Wind Surge hurt by defensive miscues in series finale against Naturals*

WICHITA, Kan. — The Wichita Wind Surge (1-2) dropped the final game of a three-game homestand, falling 9-3 to the Northwest Arkansas Naturals (2-1) on Saturday night at Equity Bank Park despite four hitless innings from right-hander C.J. Culpepper and an inside-the-park home run from Billy Amick.

Wichita’s defense struggled throughout the night, allowing seven unearned runs to cross the plate on six hits. Culpepper delivered a strong outing on the mound, while Ben Ross recorded a multi-hit game and Amick notched his first Double-A home run — an inside-the-park homer, just the fourth in Wind Surge history.

THE RUNDOWN

Culpepper set the tone early, inducing soft contact and not allowing a hit through the first two innings. Wichita took a 1-0 lead in the second when Amick lined a ball past the left fielder that rolled to the wall, resulting in an inside-the-park home run.

Culpepper continued to dominate over his next two innings, finishing with no runs, no hits and one strikeout across four innings of work.

The Naturals responded in the fifth, opening the inning with an infield single that came around to score on a double down the third-base line to tie the game at 1-1.

Northwest Arkansas took the lead in the sixth after a fielding error put a runner in scoring position. A sacrifice fly plated one run before Brett Squires followed with a two-run home run to give the Naturals a 4-1 advantage.

Wichita answered in the bottom of the sixth, drawing back-to-back walks and executing a double steal to move both runners into scoring position. Amick drove in a run with a sacrifice fly, and Ross added an RBI double to cut the deficit to 4-3.

The Naturals responded again in the seventh, loading the bases with two walks and an infield single. Two runs scored on a fielding error, followed by a sacrifice fly to extend the lead to 7-3.

Northwest Arkansas added two more runs in the final two innings on a passed ball and an RBI double. Wichita was unable to rally late, sealing the 9-3 final.

HIGHLIGHTS

• DeBarge extended his hitting streak to three games.

• Ross extended his hitting streak to three games and recorded his second multi-hit game of the season.

• Amick hit the fourth inside-the-park home run in Wind Surge history (first since June 13, 2025 vs. Corpus Christi).

• Culpepper did not allow a hit over four innings.

STAT OF THE DAY

4 — Culpepper threw four hitless innings, and Amick hit the fourth inside-the-park home run in franchise history.

WHAT’S NEXT

The Wind Surge begin a six-game road series against the Arkansas Travelers on Tuesday at 6:05 p.m. at Dickey-Stephens Park. Games can be heard on windsurge.com and viewed on MiLB.TV and Bally Sports Live. For tickets, visit windsurge.com/tickets.

For more information contact: Tim Grubbs, [email protected] or [email protected]