South Bend, IN. — It was a pitcher’s duel that turned into a late-inning offensive explosion for the Chiefs en route to a 6-1 win over the South Bend Cubs on Thursday.
Peoria’s defense kept South Bend off the scoreboard as they turned a double play in five consecutive innings to hold the Cubs scoreless through seven. Wilfredo Pereira performed well on the hill, as he gave up only three hits and struck out seven batters in five innings. Peoria’s bullpen helped pick up the slack in place of Pereira as they held the Cubs to only one run in four innings of relief.
The Chiefs were no-hit through the first seven innings of the contest and managed to put only five runners on base. Matt Chamberlain put himself into scoring position in the third inning, advancing to third base on a South Bend throwing error but did not score. Peoria recorded their first hit in the eighth inning after a Francisco Hernandez infield single.
In the ensuing at-bat, Hernandez swiped second base and advanced to third base thanks to a wild pitch. He scored the first run of the game two batters later on a throwing error by South Bend shortstop Josue Huma. After Masyn Winn stole second base, Jhon Torres’ RBI double extended Peoria’s lead to 2-0. Pedro Pages capped off the eighth inning explosion with a two-run shot, his seventh homer of the year, and increased the Chiefs advantage to 4-0. South Bend added one run in the bottom half of the eight to cut the lead to three runs.
The Chiefs added two ninth-inning insurance runs on a two-run single off the bat of Jhon Torres to extend their lead to 6-1. Jack Ralston recorded the last five outs and notched his first save of the season.
Peoria and South Bend will continue the series tomorrow night at 6:05 PM. Michael YaSenka is the scheduled starter for the Chiefs.
