Julien's 3-run double propels Kernels to win over Peoria

Julien's 3-run double propels Kernels to win over Peoria

PEORIA, Illinois -- The Cedar Rapids Kernels ended their three-game losing streak after coming from behind to defeat Peoria on Thursday evening, 5-3.

Peoria got on the board first in the bottom of the second inning with an RBI sacrifice fly from Tyler Reichenborn, scoring Aaron Antonini to make it 1-0.

The Kernels found the equalizer in the top of the fourth on an RBI single from Matt Wallner, his first RBI of the series.

It stayed 1-1 until Peoria broke the tie in the bottom of the sixth. After Matt Chamberlain struck out to start the inning, the Chiefs put together four straight hits. Thomas Francisco and Todd Lott collected RBI singles to give Peoria a 3-1 lead.

The Kernels responded in the top of the seventh. They loaded the bases for Edouard Julien. Before the at-bat, he was hitless in the series (0-10), but crushed a double to left-center, clearing the bases and giving the Kernels a 4-3 lead. Julien later scored on a sacrifice fly by Aaron Sabato, making it a 5-3 lead.

The Kernels' bullpen took care of the rest led by Osiris German and Zach Featherstone. They only gave up one hit combined and struck out six batters in the final 3 2/3 innings. German collected the win and Featherstone recorded his ninth save.

With Thursday's win, the Kernels remain tied with Lake County for the second playoff spot in the HACL championship series. Both teams sit at 64-53 overall records. The Kernels will have to win the playoff spot outright because Lake County and Great Lakes own the tiebreaker.

Peoria and Cedar Rapids will face off again on Friday at 6:35 p.m. Remember we will not be broadcasting the final three games of the 2021 season. Fans interested in following the Kernels can watch on MiLB TV for FREE.