Shark finds a home with Indian River

By John MacDonald

Sports writer

On the mound, Bryan Cooney has proven to be way more than a one-hit wonder.

More like no-hit wonder.

While pitching for Sebastian this past season, Cooney, then a sophomore, faced Fort Pierce Central with a ticket to the District 13-5A semifinal on the line.

Quickly becoming known as a big-game pitcher, the Sebastian resident had arguably his best outing of the season, going 5 2/3 innings without giving up a hit.

Cooney struck out three and walked four before giving way to Steven Tunstill who allowed a hit, but preserved the shutout in the Sharks 1-0 win.

"I don't think I was thinking about it (the no-hitter)," Cooney said. "I was thinking about preventing them from scoring and giving us a better chance to win."

The 16-year-old has been doing that for coach George Young for two years. Whether it be at Sebastian River or suiting up for Young's American Legion squads, Cooney has steadily improved his performance.

"He's coming together very well," Young said. "He's now able to throw three pitches for strikes.

"He's a nice quality ace on the mound for us."

Cooney's most recent outing only seems to serve as a testimony to Young's sentiments. While playing in the Shelbyville, Tenn., Invitational, Cooney helped lead the Indian River Elite Post 189 team to a second-place finish. Pitching in the semifinal game against Shelbyville Post 23, Cooney hurled five innings, striking out 10 while giving up four hits in the Elite's 10-2 mercy-rule win.

Despite the impressive showing, Cooney felt he could have done better.

"The first four innings, I gave up no runs," Cooney said. "The last inning, I got too comfortable. I lost focus.

"I walked three or four batters and they got a couple of runs, but I was able to get out of it."

Unfortunately for the Elite, they fell one win short of the championship, losing to Columbia, Tenn., Post 19, 9-5 in the tournament finale.

Even though the Elite came up a bit short, Cooney said the team's mood was upbeat.

"Most of the guys were a little disappointed, but we were happy how we all played," Cooney said. "We went 4-2 overall and finished second out of six teams.

"One team beat us twice and they were the defending state champion of Tennessee."

Winning four of six on the trip puts the Elite at 16-8 on the season.

"We're doing pretty good," Cooney said. "We surpassed our expectations from last year's beginning (of the season).

Cooney has proven to be an asset for the Elite at the plate as well. At the season-opening Bob Rovey Memorial Tournament in Lantana, Cooney helped the team to another second-place finish, as the Elite won three of four games from Florida's best. On the last day of the tournament, Cooney excelled, going 2-for-3 with three RBI's, leading the Elite to a sweep of the day's action, while proving he can handle the advanced competition.

"Last year, I started on the lower (American Legion) team," Cooney said. "About 25-30 games in, I joined the "A" team.

"I'd say it's a pretty big jump. The teams are mixed with high school upperclassmen and college lower classmen.

"Some guys have been playing college for two years already."

Cooney not only has begun to make a name for himself in American Legion circles, but even displayed glimpses during his freshman year at Sebastian River of being able to play beyond his years.

After being moved up to varsity in the middle of the season, Cooney was instrumental in the Sharks finishing the season with a bang.

After a slow start, Sebastian River made it to the 13-5A championship game. Facing a tough Port St. Lucie squad, Cooney gave up just two runs (one earned) in 4 1/3 innings to help the team to a 5-4 win.

"It was pretty fun," Cooney said. "To be able to contribute to the first district title in school history is probably something I'll never forget.

"(Starting the game) felt good. It let me know that my coaches believed in me so I could believe in myself.

"To go out there with no worries and throw strikes. To get guys out and help the team win."

Although the team was not able to duplicate its performance in 2007, the Sharks finished up as district runner-up with a respectable 15-14 record.

"After winning the district title, we expected to win it again," Cooney said. "We actually started the season better than the year before, but we kind of struggled most of the year.

"We were too inconsistent."

Individually, Cooney set out to build upon the progress he made in his inaugural season.

"I felt I could improve myself by the experience I gained as a freshman," Cooney said. "I had pretty high expectations for myself.

"I think I did more than I thought I could."

Cooney finished the season 3-6, but had a sparkling ERA of 1.87. He also had 58 strikeouts in 60 innings. Besides his no-hit bid against the Cobras, Cooney also turned in another gem against highly-touted Melbourne earlier in the season, although in a losing effort.

"I gave up two earned runs and we lost 2-0," Cooney said. "I gave up four or five hits and was pretty good through seven innings.

"They were undefeated and ranked second or third in the state."

Now facing similar top-notch opposition on a regular basis with the Elite, Cooney is relishing the chance to prove he belongs with the best.

"I like all the competition," Cooney said. "Traveling to all the different places and stuff. Seeing the players for each team.

"I just want to have fun, really."