Hot start lifts Huntley over Jacobs
Three good innings were just enough to make up for four lackluster innings Tuesday for the Huntley baseball team.
The Red Raiders scored 9 runs in the first three innings and then had to hold on for a 9-7 Fox Valley Conference Valley Division victory over Jacobs in Algonquin.
“We played our best baseball of the year the first three innings,” Red Raiders coach Andy Jakubowski said. “We lost a little of our passion and intensity (in the final four innings).”
Huntley (9-1, 5-0) hit five consecutive singles in the first inning, scoring 3 runs. Brody Burkart drove in a pair of runs and Justin Gundlach had an RBI. Bryce Only had a run-scoring single and Burkart added an RBI on a fielder’s choice in the second as the Red Raiders took a 5-0 lead.
The Golden Eagles (2-7, 1-4) cut the deficit to 5-1 in the bottom of the second, scoring on a Huntley error.
The Red Raiders capitalized on two Jacobs errors in the third inning to score 4 unearned runs. Tyler Davila executed a squeeze bunt to bring in Jake Perkins. Nick Corpolongo, who went 2-for-2 with two walks, hit a run-scoring double. Colin Lyman followed with a 2-run home run down the right-field line on a 3-2 pitch to give Huntley a 9-1 lead.
“Our approach in the first three innings was definitely better,” said Lyman, who went 3-for-4. “We were deeper in the count. The last four innings seemed harder for us. We were more antsy on the ball.”
Jacobs’ Brett Kale came in to pitch in the fourth and shut down the Red Raiders the rest of the way, allowing only a seventh-inning triple.
That allowed the Golden Eagles to get back into the game. Henry Giegeous led off the bottom of the fourth with a home run. Connor Conzelman had a run-scoring fielder’s choice and Kevin Hubner added an RBI single to cut Huntley’s lead to 9-4. Jacobs scored 3 more runs in the fifth. Two runs scored on a groundball from Conzelman that Huntley was unable to turn a double play on. Kale added a run-scoring single.
Jacobs got a one-out hit from Kenny Finn, who went 3-for-4, in the bottom of the seventh, but two fly outs ended the game.
“We just ran out of time in terms of being able to tie the game up or take the lead,” Jacobs coach Erik Kehoe said. “But obviously against a quality opponent you can’t start out the game like we did in the first three innings.”
Jake Staab (3-0) picked up the win, going four innings. The right-hander allowed 7 hits and 4 runs (2 earned), walked three and struck out four.
Nate Anderson (1-1) gave up 9 runs, 5 earned, in 3 innings, suffering the defeat.