Final: West Michigan Whitecaps 10, South Bend Cubs 9 (10 innings)

The South Bend Cubs and West Michigan Whitecaps went head-to-head in a thrilling back-and-forth battle today in Midwest League High-A action.

South Bend came out swinging, plating one run in the first inning before tacking on two more in the top of the second to jump out to a 3-0 lead. But the Whitecaps didn’t waste time answering back—West Michigan rallied for three runs of their own in the bottom of the second to tie things up at 3-3.

In the top of the fourth, Andy Garriola launched his third home run of the season, a solo shot that briefly put the Cubs back on top, 4-3. But the Whitecaps responded once again, evening the score at 4-4 in the bottom half of the inning, keeping the tug-of-war alive

The fireworks continued in the seventh when Ariel Armas crushed his first professional home run—a three-run blast that brought Reivaj Garcia and Reginald Preciado home and gave South Bend a 7-4 lead. But true to the game’s back-and-forth nature, Cubs relievers struggled to lock it down. West Michigan mounted a late comeback, plating four runs in the bottom of the eighth to surge ahead, 8-7.

Refusing to go quietly, Carter Trice led off the top of the ninth with a double. A few batters later, Andy Garriola came through again, ripping a clutch RBI double to bring Trice home and tie the game at 8-8, setting up a dramatic finish.

Cubs reliever Vince Reilly stopped the Whitecaps in the ninth and returned for the 10th, where South Bend reclaimed the lead on a sacrifice fly from Rafael Morel that scored Reginald Preciado, putting the Cubs ahead 9-8

But the lead didn’t hold. West Michigan tied the game once more in the bottom of the 10th and loaded the bases. Brett Callahan then delivered the final blow—a walk-off single off Reilly that brought Abel Bastidas home and sealed a dramatic 10-9 victory for the Whitecaps.

With the loss, the South Bend Cubs have now dropped six straight games, while West Michigan continues to ride momentum through the series.