Grap fills the gap

Huntley's consecutive run-scoring doubles were necessary after all.

The Red Raiders' baseball squad appeared invulnerable after Nate Prokuski and Phil Pupillo capped a 5-run fourth inning, especially with the way southpaw starter Tanner Funke was mowing down Kaneland.

But the Knights' Jay Levita changed the complexion of the game with one swing of the bat Saturday afternoon in Huntley with a 3-run home run, and Jeremy Grap was summoned for the Red Raiders.

The junior right-hander pitched the final 2½ innings to earn his second save of the season, closing out Huntley's 6-4 nonconference victory.

"I came in and had to throw strikes," Grap said. "It's hard to stay (in rhythm) in the cold."

Kaneland had the tying run at the plate in the top of the seventh, but Grap induced a routine grounder to shortstop to end the game.

Huntley (3-1) opened the scoring in it its half of the first when, taking advantage of back-to-back Kaneland errors, Chris Klein singled up the middle to score Raymond Foote.

Kaneland starter Austin Park avoided further damage with consecutive strikeouts, but his fellow left-hander, Funke, was even stingier on the Knights.

The game appeared to assume a classic pitchers' duel, especially when the Knights' center fielder, senior Jody Henningson, robbed the Raiders' Zach Liebman to end the third on what would have been a sure run-scoring single.

Funke retired the Knights in order in the fourth, and the dreaded leadoff walk ignited the Raiders' offense in their half of the inning.

"Huntley's a good team, and we can't give them opportunities like that," Kaneland coach Brian Aversa said of the walk to Eliot Swiatly.

The Huntley senior doubled the lead to 2-0 on a wild pitch, and Nathan Sopena and Foote later scored on a single from the latter and the Knights' inability to turn a potential double play.

With two outs and Klein on first base, the Raiders' only extra-base hits of the game extended the cushion to 6-0.

"The back-to-back doubles were huge," Huntley coach Andy Jakubowski said. "We gutted out a performance today. We still need to work on our execution."

Huntley was seemingly in command, only to see Kaneland stage an uprising in the top of the fifth.

The Raiders' cushion was sliced in half when Levita drove a fastball over the fence in right-center field with two out and Dan Breen and Henningson aboard.

"(The pitch) was pretty much right down the middle," Levita said of his first career varsity home run. "I'm pretty much a straight down-the-middle kind of (hitter)."

"We were right back in the game with Jody's big hit," Aversa said. "That gave us a lot of energy."

Troy Pritchard shut down the Raiders' offense in relief for Kaneland, but Grap ended up being an even more effective closer, stranding the tying runs in scoring position to end the sixth.