Berwick breaks the drought

By Gavin Staindl
BERWICK recorded its first win of the season in a tight, 5 to 4 encounter against Port Melbourne at Cyril Molyneux Reserve.
Berwick import pitcher Matt Rossman continued to dominate his Division Two opponents on Saturday, sending down 89 strikes from his 115 pitches.
Rossman threw eight innings and gave up four runs extending his ERA to 2.7 from three games.
Sixteen-year-old reliever Matt Chillcot backed up Rossman by closing out the ninth inning and handing Rossman and the club its first win of the season.
Cougars coach Mick Poole said Chillcott’s hot form and cool persona on the mound earned him the chance to close out the game.
“He is only 16 but he is full of confidence,” Poole said.
“He is probably our next best, in-form pitcher and doesn’t let any situation get to him.
“I think he played a game in the firsts last year when they were trying out heaps of kids, but apart from that this would be his first game in the seniors,” he said.
Originally down a run through the opening four innings, Berwick came storming back to score three runs in the fifth and hold on to the slim, one-run lead through the dying stages.
The win came four days after the Cougars suffered a midweek loss to Sunshine at the Melbourne Ball Park.
The then 13-1 loss was Berwick’s third in a row but Poole said the difference between the Thursday night game against Sunshine and the Sunday afternoon win was evidence of the players improvement.
“We got touched up score wise (on Thursday night) and afterwards we had a talk about not accepting losses.
“We talked about advancing runners and executing in key situations and in the Sunday game we did that.
“We were laying down bunts and moving well around the bases.
“Our pitch selection was also better. Instead of striking out over three pitches the boys would be striking out on seven or eight pitches,” Poole said.
Berwick is looking to go back-to-back on Sunday for the first time in over a year when it plays Footscray, which remains on a 28-game losing streak.