LocalSportsJournal.com

The West Michigan Whitecaps defeated Midwest League Eastern Division leading Lake County 5-0 on Sunday afternoon.

Both offenses were held scoreless until Wenceel Perez singled home Nick Ames in the sixth inning to give the Whitecaps a 1-0 lead.

In the seventh inning, Reece Hampton scored on an error before Jordan Pearce singled home John Valente to make the score 3-0 in favor of West Michigan.

In the eighth inning, Avery Tuck singled home Perez and Hampton singled home Tuck, making the score 5-0 which ultimately was the final.

Hampton, Ames and Perez all had two hits on the day to lead the Whitecaps offense while starting pitcher Garrett Hill picked up the win, allowing only three hits and striking out seven over six innings of work.

Sandel De La Cruz picked up his first save of the season, sprinkling two hits over three innings while also striking out three.

With the victory, West Michigan improves to 10-12 on the season and are now three and a half games behind Lake County for first place in the Midwest League Eastern Division.

The Whitecaps are off on Monday and will return to action on Tuesday at Clinton with first pitch scheduled for 7:30 p.m.