Quad Cities Holds Off Peoria Thursday

Davenport, IA - After being held in check through seven innings, the Chiefs ultimately brought the tying run to the plate in the ninth but their rally was stymied late in a 6-2 defeat Thursday at Modern Woodmen Park. With three games left to play, the Peoria record sits at 54-75.

Quad Cities did much of their damage in the opening inning Thursday against Chiefs starter Wilfredo Pereira. A night after Todd Lott led off the game with a homer, Quad Cities Peyton Wilson returned the favor with a lead-off blast of his own to give the River Bandits a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first. Following a Peoria error and a walk, Quad Cities cashed in their second homer of the frame. Dillan Shrum lifted a three-run blast onto the berm in left to complete a four-run first inning for the River Bandits.

From there, both starters settled in. Quad Cities hurler William Fleming posted a quality start and allowed just two hits over six shutout innings. Over the course of his six frames, Fleming did not allow a Peoria runner past second.

For Pereira’s part, he found a rhythm in the middle innings. The right-hander rolled a double play to venture through the second and third innings before sitting down the Bandits in order in the fourth.

After a clean fifth, Pereira went back out for the sixth inning before encountering some trouble. With Shrum aboard at first, a Jack Alexander single placed runners on the corners for Saul Garza, who followed with a single of his own to bolster the Quad Cities lead, 5-0. A wild pitch later allowed Alexander to score and extend the lead to 6-0. Pereira ultimately exited after 5.2 innings of work in his final start in 2022.

In the eighth inning, the Chiefs manufactured their first run of the night. After a Lott single, he swiped second and later advanced to third on a throwing error on a pick-off attempt. Noah Mendlinger then brought him in on a groundout.

Peoria reliever Levi Prater recorded 2.1 scoreless innings to give the Chiefs a puncher’s chance in the ninth. With two on and one out in the frame, Patrick Romeri delivered a ringing double off the wall in right center to score Mack Chambers and make it a 6-2 game. After a Wade Stauss walk, the Chiefs loaded the bases and sent the tying run to the plate. Peoria would get no closer, however, as Anderson Paulino closed out the game and stranded the bases full.

The series continues Friday from Davenport.