Huntley's offense too much for Hononegah

The Huntley baseball team's offensive philosophy is pretty simple, according to senior Phil Pupillo.

"We get one guy on, we're going to get him over and we're going to get him in," the catcher said. "That's the recipe for success right there."

The Red Raiders never deviated from their philosophy in Wednesday's 11-3 victory over Hononegah in a semifinal of the Class 4A Larkin sectional despite facing an uphill battle early on.

Hononegah (28-7), the two-time champion of the NIC-10 Conference, jumped to a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning on 5 hits against Huntley starting pitcher Chris Klein. With Valparaiso-bound senior Ryan Scarpetta pitching for the Indians, such an early deficit might have caused a lesser team to fold.

But Huntley (27-9), co-champion of the Valley Division of the Fox Valley Conference, responded with an offense that has been virtually unstoppable in three playoff outings. The Red Raiders scored 11 unanswered runs, including 7 runs (5 earned) on 8 hits and 3 walks against Scarpetta (8-3), to advance to the sectional final.

Huntley will play for the first sectional title in the program's history on Saturday at 10 a.m. against the winner of today's semifinal between Cary-Grove (25-12) and South Elgin (20-14). The Red Raiders were ousted in the sectional semifinals last season by Cary-Grove.

"I'm very proud of the kids," Huntley coach Andy Jakubowski said. "They set their goals out Day 1 to reload and get further than last year's group. We're going to be greedy now. We want more."

Huntley has reason to be greedy considering the way the lineup has been swinging the bats. The Red Raiders averaged 7.1 runs in 33 regular-season contests. They have averaged 14.3 runs per game in postseason wins over Larkin, Crystal Lake South and Hononegah.

"They've got a ton of speed; They've got a ton of power," Hononegah coach Matt Simpson said. "Their lineup - one through nine - there's not an easy out and that makes it tough, even when you've got a guy like Scarpetta on the hill."

Huntley scored 3 runs in the third inning to tie the game. Matt Szytz, who drew a leadoff walk, scored the first run on a passed ball, and Tom Crohan laced a two-out, 2-run single to knot the score.

"I got a good chunk of the bat on it," Crohan said. "I was just trying not to strike out, to get the job done and tie the game."

Huntley scored 3 more runs against Scarpetta in the fifth inning to take the lead. Pupillo's 2-run single scored Andre Sopena and Carlos Alvarez. Crohan (3-for-4, 3 RBI) drove in Pupillo with a single to left-center field.

Scarpetta was lifted after 106 pitches when Zach Staab led off the sixth inning with a single. The Red Raiders tacked on 4 runs in the sixth against reliever Jake Lanning, who was undermined by a defense that committed 3 errors in the inning.

Alvarez capitalized on those mistakes with a 2-run double and Pupillo (2-for-3, 4 RBI) drove in a pair with a single to make it 10-3.

Pinch hitter Nick Bralich gave the Raiders an 11-3 lead with a solo home run in the seventh.

Huntley's pitching held Hononegah in check after the first inning and stranded 11 baserunners. Klein issued 3 walks in the second but escaped with a groundball out. He pitched a 1-2-3 third inning but was then moved to center field due to what Jakubowski called "a twinge in his elbow."

Winning pitcher Jake Staab (5-1) entered the game to start the fourth inning and pitched 11/3 scoreless. He was lifted in the fifth after allowing a pair of one-out basehits, but lefty Jeremy Ahillen notched a strikeout and induced a flyball to end the threat.

Ahillen pitched a scoreless sixth and senior Matt Morin closed the game out by retiring the Indians in order in the bottom of the seventh.