MILWAUKEE (Interstat) — A first-inning offensive explosion gave way to a dominant bullpen performance as the Milwaukee Brewers defeated the Chicago Cubs 7-3 on Monday to take a commanding lead in their National League playoff series.

A crowd of 42,787 at American Family Field saw the Brewers even the score after a dramatic three-run homer by the Cubs in the top of the first, then methodically pull away to secure a victory in Game 2. Milwaukee now leads the best-of-five series 1-0, with the series shifting to Chicago for the next two games.

The game began at a breakneck pace. The Cubs struck immediately against Brewers starter Jacob Misiorowski. After a flyout, Nico Hoerner singled and Kyle Tucker walked, setting the stage for Seiya Suzuki. The Cubs’ right fielder launched a three-run homer to left-center field, silencing the home crowd and giving Chicago an early 3-0 advantage.

The lead was short-lived. In the bottom half of the inning, Cubs starter Shota Imanaga retired the first two batters before William Contreras and Christian Yelich hit back-to-back singles. Andrew Vaughn then stepped up and crushed a three-run homer of his own to left field, erasing the deficit and knotting the game at 3-3.

“The game definitely had a different feel after that first inning,“ a Brewers team official said, noting the shift in momentum.

Milwaukee took the lead for good in the third inning when Contreras led off with a solo home run to left field, making it 4-3. They broke the game open an inning later. After Caleb Durbin was hit by a pitch and Joey Ortiz singled, Jackson Chourio blasted a three-run homer to center field, extending the Brewers’ lead to 7-3.

From that point on, the game belonged to the Milwaukee bullpen. After Misiorowski settled in to pitch three innings, allowing just one hit and no earned runs while striking out four to earn the win, a parade of relievers shut down the Cubs’ offense entirely.

Jared Koenig, Chad Patrick, Abner Uribe, Nick Mears and Trevor Megill combined for 5 2/3 innings of perfect relief, allowing no hits and no walks while striking out six. The Cubs managed only four hits total, with three of them coming in the first two innings. After Hoerner’s single in the fifth, Milwaukee’s bullpen retired the final 14 Cubs batters in order.

Imanaga took the loss for Chicago, lasting just 3 1/3 innings and surrendering seven runs on eight hits. Colin Rea provided 3 1/3 innings of scoreless relief for the Cubs, but the offense could not mount a comeback against Milwaukee’s stifling pitchers.

The Brewers improved their season record to 99-65 with the win, while the Cubs fell to 94-73. The teams will have a day off Tuesday before resuming the series with Game 3 on Wednesday at Wrigley Field, where the Cubs will face elimination.