Sunbury’s Curtis Cox was in the thick of the action when a Victorian Kookaburras under-16 team surprised everyone – including the players themselves – at a baseball tournament in the US.
Cox pitched for the whole game when the Kookaburras won their first-ever match in the ‘Ripken Experience’ at Myrtle Beach, South Carolina – which has junior players competing, watching major league games and seeing the sights.
The Kookaburras played six games in the US, including the win and a tie.
“We didn’t think we would win a game while we were over there,” the 15-year-old Salesian College student said,
“It’s amazing; we didn’t think we would beat the Americans at their own game.”
In the winning game, Cox threw seven innings and 74 pitches.
He also pitched and hit in another game.
Cox’s rise to playing for Victoria has been a quick one, having taken up the sport two years ago.
“I was hoping to get selected [for the Kookaburras] but wasn’t sure that I would be,” he said. “I was really happy and excited.”
He’s hoping to go to college in the US after finishing school to further his baseball career.
In the meantime, he will continue to play with Greensborough in the winter season and Preston in the summer.
“I just want to keep getting better,” he said. “Hopefully, someone saw me when I was playing in America. I’m going to keep trying out for more [state and national] teams and hopefully get selected.”
Cox had a try-out for the Melbourne Institute of Baseball at the weekend.
