Peoria Secures 5-3 Win in Home Opener

April 9, 2024

PEORIA, IL – Inohan Paniagua fired five shutout innings on Tuesday to guide the Chiefs to a 5-3 win over the Beloit Sky Carp. With the win, the Chiefs moved back to .500 on the young season and recorded a victory in their home opener for the first time since

PEORIA, IL – Inohan Paniagua fired five shutout innings on Tuesday to guide the Chiefs to a 5-3 win over the Beloit Sky Carp. With the win, the Chiefs moved back to .500 on the young season and recorded a victory in their home opener for the first time since 2017.

The Chiefs took an early lead in the second inning after Zach Levenson was hit by a pitch and advanced on a wild pitch. William Sullivan brought Levenson home via a two-out single.

In the fourth inning, the Chiefs extended their lead to 3-0. Alex Iadisernia doubled to lead off the frame, his fourth double of the season. Levenson brought him across with a single and Dakota Harris scored Levenson with an RBI single, his first hit of 2024.

An inning later, the Chiefs ambushed the Sky Carp for a quick add-on tally. Brody Moore led off the fifth with a single, swiped second and scored on a Leonardo Bernal single, cushioning the Chiefs lead to 4-0.

Paniagua made the early lead stand up. The right-hander scattered just one hit over five scoreless innings, earning his first win since August 26, 2022, also against Beloit.

The Sky Carp responded in the seventh inning with two runs off reliever Dionys Rodriguez. The right-hander yielded a two-run home run to Osiris Johnson to cut the lead in half, 4-2. Peoria responded in the bottom half of the inning. Won-Bin Cho singled, advanced to second and later stole third. Iadisernia hit a ball into center field to drive him in and make the score 5-2.

Joseph King worked around an eighth-inning tally to record a six out save. The right-hander recorded a save in his last appearance at Dozer Park on September 12, 2023 in game one of the Midwest League West Division Finals.

The Chiefs pitching staff struck out 11 batters to hand the Sky Carp their first defeat in 2024. Moore paced the offense with a pair of hits.

Game two of the series is set for 11:05 a.m. as part of Education Day. Left-hander Brycen Mautz, the Cardinals No. 20 prospect, will make his Peoria debut on Wednesday morning.