WASHINGTON (Interstat) — David Peterson pitched six innings of one-run ball and the New York Mets used a two-run third inning to defeat the Washington Nationals 2-1 on Thursday evening at Nationals Park.

The attendance was 17,291, and the game lasted 2 hours, 34 minutes.

The Mets improved to 22-28, while the Nationals fell to 25-26. New York avoided a series sweep after dropping the first two games of the four-game set before winning the final two, including a 16-7 blowout Wednesday.

Peterson allowed four hits, walked three and struck out four to earn his third victory against four losses. Cade Cavalli took the loss for Washington, falling to 2-3 after giving up two runs on five hits over six innings. He walked one and struck out seven. Devin Williams pitched a scoreless ninth for his seventh save, stranding a runner at third base.

The Mets struck first in the third inning. With one out, MJ Melendez was hit by a pitch from Cavalli. Luis Torrens followed with a single to right field, moving Melendez to second. Carson Benge then singled to left, loading the bases. Bo Bichette lined a single to center field, scoring Melendez and Torrens to give the Mets a 2-0 lead. The rally came after Cavalli had retired the first two batters of the inning. Cavalli limited the damage by striking out Juan Soto and getting Mark Vientos to ground into a forceout.

Washington answered in the fifth inning. Keibert Ruiz led off with a sharp single to left. James Wood doubled to center, sending Ruiz to third. After Curtis Mead struck out, Andrés Chaparro grounded out to third base, scoring Ruiz and moving Wood to third. Wood was left stranded as CJ Abrams grounded out to first.

The Nationals had opportunities earlier but could not capitalize. In the first inning, Washington loaded the bases with two outs after walks to Chaparro, Abrams and Dylan Crews. But Daylen Lile struck out swinging to end the threat. In the second, Ruiz singled and Jacob Young reached on a fielding error by shortstop Bichette, but Ruiz was caught stealing second to end the inning.

New York’s bullpen held the one-run lead. Peterson departed after the sixth, and the Mets turned to a series of relievers. The Nationals threatened in the ninth against Williams. Lile led off with a double to center field. Luis García Jr. grounded out to shortstop, sending Lile to third. José Tena struck out swinging, and Ruiz grounded out to second base to end the game.

Bichette led the Mets offense with two RBIs, going 1 for 4. Benge and Torrens each had a hit. Brett Baty and Marcus Semien added singles in the ninth but were stranded. For the Nationals, Lile and Ruiz each had two hits. Lile doubled in his final at-bat and finished 2 for 4. Ruiz went 2 for 4 with a run scored. Chaparro drove in the only Nationals run.

Defensively, the Mets committed one error by Bichette in the second inning. The Nationals had two errors — one by right fielder Crews in the fourth and one by second baseman Nasim Nuñez in the ninth.

The game featured six total hits for the Mets and five for the Nationals. The Mets scored all their runs in the third inning; the Nationals scored their lone run in the fifth.

The series split gave the Mets a lift after they lost the first two matchups in Washington. The teams had split a earlier six-game season series, with each winning three. The Mets took two of three at home in late April, while the Nationals took two of three in Washington earlier in the week.

Peterson’s outing was his third quality start of the season. He worked out of the first-inning jam by striking out Lile with the bases loaded. He retired eight of the next nine batters before the Nationals’ fifth-inning rally. Cavalli, meanwhile, allowed only two runs despite surrendering six hits. He struck out seven but was hurt by the hit batter and the two-out single by Bichette.

The Mets will travel to Miami for a three-game series starting Friday. The Nationals head to Atlanta for a three-game series.

Interstat’s game simulator projected a final score of Washington 6, New York 5, but the Mets defied that projection in a low-scoring affair. Interstat’s ELO system gave the Mets a 53.3 percent probability to win before the game. New York had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of minus-1.5. The total score of 3 went over the over-under line of 8.