By Sean Duncan

HUNTLEY ? Huntley rallied for three runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to defeat Jacobs 5-4 on Thursday in a Class 4A Huntley Regional semifinal game.

And the Red Raiders managed the comeback against one of the top junior pitchers in the state, 6-foot-3 right-hander Henry Gigeous. Huntley (23-10), which finished fourth in Class 4A last year, advances to Saturday?s regional final.

Trailing 4-2 against Gigeous in the bottom of the sixth, Huntley scrapped together three runs on one hit, three walks, one hit batter and one costly error.

Gigeous, who is verbally committed to the University of Oregon, walked the first two batters of the inning before Nick Corpolongo dropped down a sacrifice bunt. Gigeous threw the ball into right field, allowing both runners to score, and tying the game at 4-4.

That ended the day for Gigeous. Sophomore centerfielder Colin Lyman then proceeded to greet the Jacobs reliever with the game-winning single, putting the touches on a perfect 3-for-3 day, which included a double and a hit-by-pitch.

?We?ve had a lot of situations like that, so we?re pretty comfortable being down,? said Lyman, who also made two stellar plays in the outfield.

Junior right-hander Justin Gundlach pitched a hitless seventh to advance Huntley to the regional final on Saturday. Gundlach (7-3) worked 2 2/3 innings of hitless relief, striking out two, to earn the victory.

?Our guys fight to the end; that?s the type of character they have,? said Huntley coach Andy Jakubowski. ?We?ve come back numerous times. Our guys don?t quit.?

Huntley couldn?t muster much offense against Gigeous, who departed in the sixth inning with no outs. In five innings work, Gigeous (4-4) allowed six hits, walked two, hit two batters and struck out eight - including three in the fifth inning - but committed four errors. All the errors contributed to Huntley?s runs ? two of which came on sacrifice bunts.

Pitching into an often-intense wind, Gigeous? fastball ranged between 85-88 mph, touching 89.

?We had too many mental mistakes,? said Jacobs coach Erik Kehoe. ?It?s tough when you beat yourself.?

Huntley jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the second inning, which Brody Burkart led off with a double. Tyler Mindak delivered a run-scoring single in the inning that included two errors.

Jacobs (14-19) finally got on the board in the fifth with four runs thanks to a two-run single by sophomore shortstop Kenny Finn and a two-run double by sophomore centerfielder Connor Conzelman.

Huntley threatened in the fifth, loading up the bases, but Gigeous struck out two straight to get out of the jam.

Carlos Alvarez went 2-for-3 with a run for Huntley, and sophomore first baseman Kameron Sallee reached base three times.

Scouting Note: Huntley should be a recruiting hotspot for the next few years, as the Red Raiders feature three impressive sophomore prospects in their lineup: 3B Bryce Only, Lyman and Sallee. Only is currently ranked No. 2 in the Class of 2013 and the left-handed hitting Lyman looks to be one of the premier outfield prospects in the class.