Cherokee's Cody Ege follows brother, dad to the mound
By Steven Allspach Journal sports writer | Posted: Saturday, July 26, 2008
DES MOINES - The gleaming golden dome of the State Capitol looms in the background.
And, Cody Ege feels right at home, away from home.
Underneath the big video scoreboard at Principal Park here, Ege talked about another time, another place and what the future might hold for a high school junior-to-be.
"This may sound a little strange and goofy, but us little guys would play in a backyard or city park all morning and afternoon and then we'd go to this kid's house and sit in his garage and eat dog biscuits,'' chortles the smooth-fielding, hard-hitting Cherokee High School sophomore, who will play a key role for a Braves team that meets Davenport Assumption in Iowa's Class 2A state baseball championship game today, seeking its second straight title.
"I know that may seem a little strange, chewing on dog bones,'' said Ege. "It doesn't happen any more, but was one of the things goofy little guys do.
"We're all grown up now and try to act a little more mature.''
Mature describes Ege, despite being a just-turned 17-year-old sophomore.
Nowadays, Cody feasts on opposing prep pitchers and batters who can't quite catch up to tricky curveballs, dancing fastballs and swings of the bat more than quick enough to already have Division I coaches drooling.
He's hitting .497 in Cherokee's 30-1 season and is 12-0 as a pitcher, including a 6-2 win over Solon in the semifinals here earlier in the week when he spaced four hits and struck out 11, running his season total to 85 in 67 innings.
Cody is following in the footsteps of older brother Cory, the star of Cherokee's state title team a year ago.
"Our coaches at Cherokee are so good, but growing up I learned the game, about all of it, from my dad and Cory,'' says Cody, a lean 5-11. "Cory is probably the best baseball player I can think of.
"To be able to equal some of the things he accomplished is probably impossible. What a great athlete he is.
"I'm going to try to break some of his records, which are an incentive for me. But, I don't know if that will happen.''
Cory Ege, a rangy 6-foot-4, was an all-stater at shortstop in high school and started 41 games at second base as a true freshman at Northern Iowa last spring, hitting .255 with 33 runs scored.
He was at second for the Panthers because the mainstay at shortstop, Brandon Douglas, wound up being named the player of the year in the Missouri Valley Conference.
"When I was a sophomore I don't think I was doing the stuff Cody does,'' says Cory. "He's got a quicker bat and he's probably a better pitcher. Plus, I think his batting average is about 150 points higher than mine was as a sophomore.''
Cody isn't the last in the "C-Circuit'' of Cherokee baseball.
Curtis was a freshman in the program this season and is ticketed for extensive junior varsity duty as a sophomore, probably in the outfield.
All three brothers, born in Sioux City, are the sons of John and Barb Ege Messerole.
Barb Ege, then Barb Hoeck, was a standout female athlete at Woodbury Central High School.
John Ege, the boys' father, earned his own spurs on the diamond long before he blossomed into one of the best fast-pitch softball players in the country for many years.
The International Softball Congress and Amateur Softball Association hall of famer played for several outstanding clubs, including the powerhouse Sioux Penn Corp, Clear Lake Butt'r Top and Sioux City Gateway Soos teams.
Many followers of the fast-pitch game aren't aware that John was a baseball standout at Wayne State College, posting a 16-1 career pitching record with the Wildcats.
"I try to convey all the rudiments of baseball I can to my sons,'' said John. "Baseball is my first love. I played with so many great fast-pitch players and softball was great fun.
"The games are so different, though, in so many ways.
"As far as Cory, Cody and Curtis, I've always tried to be there for a game of catch. And when I've coached them as little guys I tried to teach them the right way, what I learned from guys that know the sport far better than me.
"Attention to fundamentals, hard work, dedication, mental toughness and a willingness to put in long extra hours, those are the things that help you to succeed.
"You hate to compare the boys, but one thing, they love the game, make it fun and still compete awfully hard.''
Cody Ege can testify to the influence of fundamentals.
"Cherokee baseball is all about getting things right,'' says Cody, a freshman starter at first base on the title team a year ago and varsity member as an eighth-grader. "Coach Koch has us doing these drills all the time that aren't very exciting.
"One of them, where we stand about 10 feet apart and roll a baseball back and forth, about puts you to sleep. We do that for 20, 30 minutes. Boring. But it is one of the things that makes us all better.''
Cory Ege was the starting Cherokee second baseman as an eighth-grader and owns a bushel basket full of school records.
All the Eges, all of them, are New York Yankees fans.
Cory wore the No. 9 jersey and Cody has No. 13, same as Alex Rodriguez.
"I like A-Rod, but my hero is No. 9, Cory Ege,'' says Cody, who wears a gold neck chain with a No. 9 pendant. "I wanted to inherit the No. 9, but it was already taken. Maybe I'll get it in the future.
"I want to play Division I baseball, maybe in the south. Texas has always been one of my favorite college teams.''
Koch, the coach, is also part of a baseball family. One of the Morningide College graduate's assistants is his son, Jared, who plays at South Dakota State. Another son, junior Matt, also a Division I prospect, is an unbeaten pitcher on the current Cherokee team.
"Having kids like the Eges makes your job a little easier, that's for certain,'' says Scott Koch. "On top of that, they're willing to learn and learn, but when they got to high school they were already accomplished, intelligent, well-schooled players.''
And, Cody Ege feels right at home, away from home.
Underneath the big video scoreboard at Principal Park here, Ege talked about another time, another place and what the future might hold for a high school junior-to-be.
"This may sound a little strange and goofy, but us little guys would play in a backyard or city park all morning and afternoon and then we'd go to this kid's house and sit in his garage and eat dog biscuits,'' chortles the smooth-fielding, hard-hitting Cherokee High School sophomore, who will play a key role for a Braves team that meets Davenport Assumption in Iowa's Class 2A state baseball championship game today, seeking its second straight title.
"I know that may seem a little strange, chewing on dog bones,'' said Ege. "It doesn't happen any more, but was one of the things goofy little guys do.
"We're all grown up now and try to act a little more mature.''
Mature describes Ege, despite being a just-turned 17-year-old sophomore.
Nowadays, Cody feasts on opposing prep pitchers and batters who can't quite catch up to tricky curveballs, dancing fastballs and swings of the bat more than quick enough to already have Division I coaches drooling.
He's hitting .497 in Cherokee's 30-1 season and is 12-0 as a pitcher, including a 6-2 win over Solon in the semifinals here earlier in the week when he spaced four hits and struck out 11, running his season total to 85 in 67 innings.
Cody is following in the footsteps of older brother Cory, the star of Cherokee's state title team a year ago.
"Our coaches at Cherokee are so good, but growing up I learned the game, about all of it, from my dad and Cory,'' says Cody, a lean 5-11. "Cory is probably the best baseball player I can think of.
"To be able to equal some of the things he accomplished is probably impossible. What a great athlete he is.
"I'm going to try to break some of his records, which are an incentive for me. But, I don't know if that will happen.''
Cory Ege, a rangy 6-foot-4, was an all-stater at shortstop in high school and started 41 games at second base as a true freshman at Northern Iowa last spring, hitting .255 with 33 runs scored.
He was at second for the Panthers because the mainstay at shortstop, Brandon Douglas, wound up being named the player of the year in the Missouri Valley Conference.
"When I was a sophomore I don't think I was doing the stuff Cody does,'' says Cory. "He's got a quicker bat and he's probably a better pitcher. Plus, I think his batting average is about 150 points higher than mine was as a sophomore.''
Cody isn't the last in the "C-Circuit'' of Cherokee baseball.
Curtis was a freshman in the program this season and is ticketed for extensive junior varsity duty as a sophomore, probably in the outfield.
All three brothers, born in Sioux City, are the sons of John and Barb Ege Messerole.
Barb Ege, then Barb Hoeck, was a standout female athlete at Woodbury Central High School.
John Ege, the boys' father, earned his own spurs on the diamond long before he blossomed into one of the best fast-pitch softball players in the country for many years.
The International Softball Congress and Amateur Softball Association hall of famer played for several outstanding clubs, including the powerhouse Sioux Penn Corp, Clear Lake Butt'r Top and Sioux City Gateway Soos teams.
Many followers of the fast-pitch game aren't aware that John was a baseball standout at Wayne State College, posting a 16-1 career pitching record with the Wildcats.
"I try to convey all the rudiments of baseball I can to my sons,'' said John. "Baseball is my first love. I played with so many great fast-pitch players and softball was great fun.
"The games are so different, though, in so many ways.
"As far as Cory, Cody and Curtis, I've always tried to be there for a game of catch. And when I've coached them as little guys I tried to teach them the right way, what I learned from guys that know the sport far better than me.
"Attention to fundamentals, hard work, dedication, mental toughness and a willingness to put in long extra hours, those are the things that help you to succeed.
"You hate to compare the boys, but one thing, they love the game, make it fun and still compete awfully hard.''
Cody Ege can testify to the influence of fundamentals.
"Cherokee baseball is all about getting things right,'' says Cody, a freshman starter at first base on the title team a year ago and varsity member as an eighth-grader. "Coach Koch has us doing these drills all the time that aren't very exciting.
"One of them, where we stand about 10 feet apart and roll a baseball back and forth, about puts you to sleep. We do that for 20, 30 minutes. Boring. But it is one of the things that makes us all better.''
Cory Ege was the starting Cherokee second baseman as an eighth-grader and owns a bushel basket full of school records.
All the Eges, all of them, are New York Yankees fans.
Cory wore the No. 9 jersey and Cody has No. 13, same as Alex Rodriguez.
"I like A-Rod, but my hero is No. 9, Cory Ege,'' says Cody, who wears a gold neck chain with a No. 9 pendant. "I wanted to inherit the No. 9, but it was already taken. Maybe I'll get it in the future.
"I want to play Division I baseball, maybe in the south. Texas has always been one of my favorite college teams.''
Koch, the coach, is also part of a baseball family. One of the Morningide College graduate's assistants is his son, Jared, who plays at South Dakota State. Another son, junior Matt, also a Division I prospect, is an unbeaten pitcher on the current Cherokee team.
"Having kids like the Eges makes your job a little easier, that's for certain,'' says Scott Koch. "On top of that, they're willing to learn and learn, but when they got to high school they were already accomplished, intelligent, well-schooled players.''
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