Softball: Ginczycki gives Huntley offense a jolt in FVC win over Crystal Lake Central

Huntley‘s Lyla Ginczycki wasn’t waiting around against hard-throwing Oli Victorine of Crystal Lake Central.

With a chance to provide a big blow early on in the teams’ Fox Valley Conference opener Tuesday, Ginczycki didn’t hold back. Already with one run on the board and a runner standing on third base, Ginczycki sent the first pitch she saw from Victorine far past the center-field fence.

“I knew her approach was going to be middle out, and I’m usually better at attacking early in the count,” the Red Raiders senior first baseman said of her first-inning at-bat. “I knew I wanted that first one, and I just went after it. I knew it right off the bat. All of my teammates came out of the dugout, and I knew it was going to set the tone for the game.”

Ginczycki later added a two-run double in support of junior pitcher Layla Olson, who struck out 11 and allowed no earned runs as the Raiders won 8-2 over the Tigers in an early matchup of FVC favorites in Crystal Lake.

Huntley (5-3, 1-0) saw its streak of four straight FVC titles end last spring, tying for second place with Central (2-1, 0-1), three games behind champ Prairie Ridge.

The Raiders, with a lineup Tuesday featuring six seniors, have the look of a team eager to win back the top spot.

“It’s going to be a grind,” said Huntley coach Mark Petryniec, who over the weekend earned his 500th career win at the school. “This season they took a week away and kind of condensed our schedule a little bit. It’s going to be a war of attrition. You have two D-I pitchers in this conference. We had a game plan going in today, and the girls executed it pretty well. Oli is an amazing pitcher.

“Just to get the start we had and not trailing, that helps your defense. It helps everyone’s confidence. Really huge for Lyla to do that. We have 10 seniors on the roster. We’ve never been this old before. Just seeing some of that leadership and experience coming through, we’re not battling nerves.”

Olson, too, has been battle tested early. The Raiders right-hander, who scattered five hits Tuesday, walked two and allowed two unearned runs, had already faced state-ranked teams in Antioch (No. 4 in 3A) and Lockport (No. 8 in 4A). Crystal Lake Central, ranked 13th in 3A, was the third.

Huntley entered the week ranked No. 19 in 4A.

Olson pitched behind Huntley ace Gretchen Huber (now at McHenry County College) last year. She’s being counted on this year to lead the Raiders in the circle. So far, Olson is 5-2 with a 2.65 ERA, 1.26 WHIP, 48 strikeouts and seven walks over 39⅔ innings.

“A lot of my spins were working today, just hitting my spots,” Olson said. “My catcher (senior CeCe Romano) backed me up with where my spots should go and what pitches I should throw when we got to the dugout. Just keeping my mental game (strong) and everything.

“Last year I got to watch and examine how games go, and this year I get to play more and finally see what the teams can bring.”

“She’s got all the skill in the world,” Petryniec said of Olson. “It’s just getting that confidence early in the season. This was a big game. Knowing who the pitcher was on the other side brought the best out of her today.”

Huntley collected nine hits against Victorine, an Illinois commit, adding single runs in the fourth and seventh and three in the fifth inning.

Freshman Piper Heimbrodt (1 for 3, two stolen bases) scored on a wild pitch in the fourth and added an RBI single in the fifth. Senior Morgan Bzdusek had a sac fly in the seventh. Senior Aubrina Adamik (3 for 4, three steals) and senior Katelyn Bayness (2 for 4) had two runs each, and junior Lana Hobday had an RBI and steal.

Central got both of its runs in the third inning following a two-out error. Cassidy Murphy had an RBI double off the right-field fence, and Victorine had a solid hit back up the middle to score Murphy.

Central was playing just its third game of the season, and first since last Wednesday. The team’s first two games were shutout wins over Wauconda (2-0) and Johnsburg (11-0).

“I think we were just unprepared for the stress that Huntley can put on a team,” Tigers coach Brian Strombom said. “It was evident. They forced us into making plays that clearly we weren’t ready to make. They had one that was hit way hard. The others, they just manufactured their runs very well, and we didn’t stop that flow.”