Toledo Mud Hens vs Iowa Cubs

Top 1st — Iowa 1, Toledo 0: James Triantos led off the game with a solo home run to left-centre field, his eighth of the season.

Bottom 5th — Toledo 2, Iowa 1: The Mud Hens jumped ahead with a pair of runs. Iowa starter Jordan Wicks worked five innings (4 H, 2 ER, 6 K, 1 BB) but Toledo strung together hits to take the lead.

Top 9th — Iowa 3, Toledo 2: Ethan Hearn singled home a run, and Jordan Nwogu scored on a Toledo error, putting Iowa back in front.

Bottom 9th — Toledo 3, Iowa 3: With Antoine Kelly on the mound, the Mud Hens tied the game on a wild pitch with two outs, forcing extras.

Top 10th — Iowa 7, Toledo 3: Iowa's automatic runner moved to third on a sacrifice bunt. Greg Jones walked to force in the go-ahead run. Justin Dean then cleared the bases with a double to right field, scoring three and putting the game out of reach.

Bottom 10th: Eduarniel Nunez closed the door for Iowa, earning his first career Triple-A save.

The wild pitch that let Toledo tie the game in the bottom of the 9th could have sunk Iowa. Instead, the I-Cubs answered immediately. Antoine Kelly, who allowed that tying run, was credited with the win after Iowa's four-run 10th — a swing of four runs in the span of half an inning.

James Triantos (Iowa) — Player of the Match 2-for-5 with a leadoff home run, a double, two runs scored and an RBI. It was his eighth homer of the season and set the tone from the first at-bat.

Justin Dean (Iowa) One at-bat, three RBIs. His bases-clearing double in the 10th turned a one-run game into a four-run margin and sealed the result.

Jordan Wicks (Iowa) Continued his strong August form: 5.0 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 6 K, 1 BB. He held Toledo scoreless through four before the Mud Hens broke through in the fifth.

Antoine Kelly (Iowa) — Winning Pitcher Allowed the tying run on a wild pitch in the 9th but rebounded as Iowa erupted for four in the 10th. Kelly has not allowed an earned run with Iowa since 28 July.

Iowa out-hit Toledo 8-7 and committed no errors to Toledo's one. The I-Cubs improved to 6-5 in extra-inning games this season and have won three straight extra-inning contests dating back to July. Both teams left the bases loaded once. The four-run 10th inning matched Iowa's biggest single-inning output of the series.

The win keeps Iowa (51-71) above 50 wins on the season. Toledo (58-66) saw its record slip further below .500. The two sides conclude their six-game series on Sunday 23 August at Fifth Third Field, with first pitch scheduled for 1:05 p.m. CT (2:05 p.m. ET).

A back-and-forth game settled by one swing from a pinch-hitter who made it count. Iowa's extra-inning resilience — three straight wins beyond nine innings — is the kind of trait that matters in a development system. Toledo will rue the bottom of the 9th when a wild pitch that tied the game preceded a 10th inning they couldn't answer.

Scoring Summary

WP: Antoine Kelly (1-1) LP: Not available at time of writing SV: Eduarniel Nunez (1) HR: James Triantos (8, solo, 1st inning)

Player of the Match: James Triantos (Iowa Cubs)