Australia headed over to the Cal Ripken World Series in Aberdeen, Maryland in 2016 with a couple of experienced heads, with WA boys Tyson Noel and Maddux Stivey representing the team at the 2015 edition.
Australia began their tournament with a tough 7-1 loss at the hands of New Zealand. This game was postponed due to rain, and completed a few days later than expected. Josh Beezley threw well for Australia, while Parker Robinson claimed Australia’s only RBI.
The second game saw Australia match up with Canada, and it was one of the most tightly fought games in the tournament. South Australia’s Robbie Brennan had a fantastic outing on the mound for Australia, giving up only one hit and striking out five Canadian hitters in his four innings on the mound. Brennan also claimed one of Australia’s five hits on the day. Despite out-hitting Canada 5-1, Australia couldn’t make the most of their opportunities, with Maddux Stivey nailing a double.
A slow start against Korea in the third game of the tournament proved costly for Australia, who eventually fell 8-4. Parker Robinson was instrumental in slowing down the South Korean offence, throwing three shutout innings, and striking out three hitters in a strong performance. Even though the Australia was down 8-0 heading into the final inning, they didn’t give up. Bradlee Marsh doubled to get the inning underway, and when Maddux Stivey singled to left field to drive in Josh Beezley for Australia’s fourth run of the inning, the confidence of the Australians was sky-high. Unfortunately the rally was left too late, and South Korea held on for a victory.
As the tournament continued, Australia continued to fight, but fell twice against two strong sides, one from Mexico, and the other from Ohio Valley.
Experience counts for everything at these tournaments, and from all reports, the experience for the Cal Ripken 2016 team was incredible.
A special congratulations must go to Maddux Stivey, who was named in the All-Defensive All Star Team at the tournament as the third baseman, a massive effort from a young man with a big future.
A massive thankyou to everybody providing coverage of the team’s efforts at the tournament, especially Steve Yeatman, the admin of the Facebook page ‘Cal Ripken Team Australia 2016’, who provided extensive coverage and went above and beyond to ensure the team’s experiences were documented.
The countdown is already on for the 2017 edition, where the world will come to play once again!