Two days before the NSW Little League Championship Final, Nic Tyrpenou’s life was turned upside down.
Nic is a promising young baseball player for Manly Little League, and only days before his team took on the best Little Leaguers in his state, an unfortunate incident took place at his school.
Nic was stabbed in the eye with a pen.
After Nic’s mother Joanne Harper overcame the initial shock, her thoughts immediately turned to Little League.
“Nic was really looking forward to playing in Lismore,” Harper said.
“Initially the doctors were scared Nic was going to lose his eye altogether, however after the first operation, he gained a little bit of sight back. Fortunately that has been improving ever since and we hope he’ll be playing baseball again soon.”
As of today, Nic still has eight stitches in his eye, and will head back to hospital after the Bendigo Bank Australian Little League Championship to receive an artificial iris. Following the incident, Nic’s pupil doesn’t dilate, and the artificial iris will control dilation to his pupil.
Nic is a passionate and skilled young player, and according to his father, Les Tyrpenou, his desire to improve in the sport he loves is clear for all to see.
“Nic was the youngest member of Manly’s team last year and he had a pretty good tournament,” Tyrpenou said.
“However as soon as he got home last year, he said, ‘Dad, I want to start training for next year’, and he did. Nic has put in an incredible amount of work to prepare for the Australian Championship, so for something so unfortunate to happen so close to the tournament, we were all devastated for him.”
Nearly any other parent in this situation would have every right to stay at home, care for Nic and watch from afar as his team vied for the ultimate prize in Little League Baseball, however the desire and drive of Nic is clear for those who know him, and that carrot still dangles despite what’s happened.
“When Nic was seven years old, Les showed him a video of the Little League World Series, and ever since then, he’s been determined to get there,” Harper said.
“The only way for Nic to play at the Little League World Series was for him to be here, around his teammates, cheering them on every step of the way.”
The support that Nic has shown for his teammates has been returned in spades by not only the Manly family, but the entire Australian Little League community.
“The support has really knocked me over to be honest,” Les Tyrpenou said.
“Not only have the other kids in our team been checking on Nic every day to make sure he’s going okay, but players from other charters from New South Wales and interstate have heard about Nic’s story and have pledged their support. It’s been truly incredible.”
That support after what has been such a devastating time for Nic and his family is something that the family believes is a characteristic of the broader Little League program.
Many of the teams at the 2017 Australian Little League Championship are wearing maroon wristbands that are inscribed with ‘I Support Nic’, and win, lose or draw, each and every game Manly plays, Nic is in the dugout, riding every moment, wearing his heart on his sleeve and keeping everybody upbeat and involved.
Nic’s determination and drive to continue his baseball is obvious, and as he continues to recover, he’s aiming to get back on the diamond in July for the Emerging Blue Sox program.
The three founding principles of Little League are courage, character and loyalty, and Nic’s story in undoubtedly a prime example of those three principles in action. The courage he’s shown in his adversity, the character demonstrated by the Little League community and the loyalty of his family, friends, coaches and teammates is a prime example of why Little League is so special.