By RUSSELL BENNETT
AS the young Berwick City Cougars continue to evolve from baseballing cubs into beasts, their grip on their competition gets tighter and tighter.
The Baseball Victoria Summer League Division 2 outfit achieved two impressive shut-outs in Rounds 4 and 5 and their self-belief is starting to come on in leaps and bounds.
But young head coach Dan Betreen has made his troops fully aware of the hard work required to continue their winning ways.
Betreen’s support staff took the reins for the Cougars’ midweek Round 4 fixture against Bonbeach, given the early 6pm start at Cyril Molyneux Reserve.
And the side didn’t skip a beat, storming to a 9-0 victory.
The Cougars’ Hawaiian international pitcher Eland Tsubata pitched five impressive innings, as the team’s camaraderie and ability to work as one unified side became increasingly obvious.
Betreen told the News that young Will Day, a left-handed power hitter, was also a real standout.
Then, following on from the midweek clash, the Cougars knocked off Port Melbourne 4-0.
“Port beat Moorabbin 9-1 so we knew it’d be a tough match-up,” Betreen said, again thrilled with the overall performance of his side.
Matt Chilcott pitched the first five innings in his first start of the year, while Mark Surtees stepped up in a relief role and JJ O’Connor pitched the closing ninth inning.
“There were probably 14 fly-balls for the game and our defense and our communication out there were great,” Betreen said.
Chilcott was on a pitch count of 70 before Surtees hit the mound.
Next up for the Cougars will be Fitzroy on Sunday from 3.30pm.
“They’re a really experienced side, and there’s a bit of the unknown about them to us,” Betreen said.
“We’re aiming to keep it close.
“Our keys to the game are not trying to do too much, to stay in the moment, focus on us as a team, and to just play our natural game.”
With each win, that self-belief just continues to grow.
The Cougars are currently on top of the Division 2 ladder with four wins and a loss from their five games so far.
