Sports
Lucky Win 13 for Huntley Baseball
Red Raiders get solid hitting and pitching in 6-4 win at St. Viator to improve to 13-1.
One key to winning baseball is scoring your next time up after your opponent scores in their previous at-bat.
Saturday, Huntley’s baseball team used that philosophy quite a bit in getting their 13th win of the season with a 6-4 win over St. Viator in Arlington Heights. The Red Raiders got on the board quickly with a run in the first inning as Carlos Alvarez led off the game with a double and scored on a RBI single by Brody Burkart.
After St. Viator tied the game in the bottom of the inning, Huntley (13-1) took the lead for good on a two-run single by Justin Gundlach in the third inning to score Colin Lyman and Bryce Only. Huntley tacked on another run in the fifth inning as Burkart scored after doubling earlier in the inning. St. Viator began to come back in the bottom of the inning, scoring twice to pull within 4-3.
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The Red Raiders would respond in the top of the sixth with a bases-loaded walk by Only to score Alvarez to give the two-run lead back to Huntley. After St. Viator once pulled within one in the bottom of the sixth inning, Huntley would add another run as pinch-hitter Mark Merevick had a RBI single to make it a 6-4 game and while the Lions got the tying runs on during the bottom of the seventh, they could not score.
Huntley coach Andy Jakubowski said that timely hitting was a big key.
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“I was very happy, we had a great two-strike approach and our two-out hitting with Brody (Burkart) and Merevick,” Jakubowski said. “Situational-wise, we need to do a better job getting bunts down and we didn’t play a great game but we put ourselves in position to win.”
Bryan Doherty pitched into the sixth inning, striking out four before turning the game over to Craig Klein. Klein retired the first five hitters he faced before giving up a single and a walk to bring the winning run to the plate where Klein induced a groundball to end the game.
“He has taken the ball in every big situation we have been in every year and has come out on top,” Jakubowski said. “I thought Doherty did a real nice job, setting down after that first inning and getting ahead of hitters.”
Huntley continues Fox Valley Conference crossover play on today (April 25) with a home game against Prairie Ridge at 4:30 p.m.
