Huntley strives to end 3-year drought

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When the goal to win a sectional game has eluded the Huntley softball team for three years, there is no looking too far into the future.

There is only today for the Red Raiders.

Huntley has yet to win a sectional game, but after picking up the program’s third consecutive regional title Friday to advance and face Hononegah at 4 p.m. today in the IHSA Class 4A Woodstock Sectional semifinal, there is no reason that trend can’t end today.

“Hopefully, we’ll get that big sectional win,” junior catcher Jenna Mychko said. “This is the third time in a row we’ll try for it, so we’ve got the experience, we’ve been there before. We just have to get it done.”

Hononegah and Huntley squared off early in the season in a non-conference game that Huntley won, 13-4.

But teams typically improve as the season progresses, so it’s important that Mychko and her teammates not overlook the Indians to focus on the sectional championship game.

If the Raiders win today, they will face Fox Valley Conference Fox Division rival Prairie Ridge, a team that defeated Huntley three times this year, for the sectional crown at 10 a.m. Saturday.

“We haven’t even thought about that,” Mychko said. “We’re focusing on playing just one game at a time.”

Prairie Ridge won the FVC Fox Division title this year – a feat Huntley both wanted and expected to accomplish when it entered the season with most of its returners from last year’s successful team.

Losing the FVC Fox stung. Having another sectional game slip through its grasp would hurt the Raiders even more.

“[Losing the conference] definitely made us more focused,” Mychko said. “We’ve always had postseason goals, but it’s even more important now.”