Nine thousand, eight hundred and twenty-one miles later, Ben Wilcox has made upstate New York his second home, spending a couple years in Watertown and now transitioning to life in Oswego. The biggest change? The weather.

On April 7, the last time Wilcox was on the mound for the Oswego State baseball team, it was 55 degrees Fahrenheit outside at the Laker Baseball Field. Back home in Oyster Bay, Australia, for Wilcox, on April 8, it was 34.7 degrees Celsius – a hot 94 degrees Fahrenheit. 

On the baseball diamond, between Australia and the United States, Wilcox said the level of play is a lot higher in the states.

“The level over here is much higher,” Wilcox said. “But, at the same time, the weather over here is so much colder than it is at home. It’s freezing here.”

Since there are not a lot of college athletics, according to Wilcox, he decided to make the move to the U.S. in attempts for a collegiate baseball career. With the help of the National Scouting Report in Australia, he gained interest from Jefferson Community College and SUNY Canton.

A phone call from Jefferson Community College head coach John Northrup made the difference for Wilcox, ultimately choosing the Cannoneers so he had the chance to get looked at by better four-year schools.

“I came over here to get a good education and play baseball at the same time,” Wilcox said. “I thought I’d come over here and do that and thought it’d be a good experience.”

To start his collegiate career, Wilcox made the 21-hour flight from Australia to Syracuse to play for Jefferson Community College in Watertown. The Cannoneers had three other Australians on the team during Wilcox’s freshman season – a trend that Northrup has continued over the last couple seasons.

During Wilcox’s sophomore season, four other players were from Australia, three of which were pitchers as well.

“We’ve had a decent number of Australians in our program in the last four or five years, so it’s something we try to get a few each year,” Northrup said. “We’ve had really good luck, not only on the baseball field with them, but most Australians are really good academic students as well.”

After his two seasons with Jefferson Community College, Wilcox transferred to Oswego State, and there were a lot of connections between both teams. Northrup and his former assistant coach, Kyle Simmons, are both Oswego State alumni who played on the baseball team. 

Junior Dylan Wiley also transferred from Jefferson Community College the year before Wilcox made the jump. Both Simmons and Wiley have been part of teams which attended the College World Series. Northrup said Simmons was able to help Wilcox by telling him about Oswego State baseball and what Oswego State head coach Scott Landers was like.

While the initial transition from Australia to Watertown, coming from the opposite side of the world, was hard, moving from Watertown to Oswego was easier. The hardest change for Wilcox was going from a junior college to a four-year school.

“Having Dylan here already made it easier for him,” Landers said. “When you’re a 24-hour plane ride away from home, the feeling of having somebody here really helps.”

Wilcox’s skill level has helped him succeed both at Jefferson Community College and now at Oswego State, both Northrup and Landers said. The latter said the junior’s off-speed pitches, such as his curveball and slider, are his best pitches.

“Ben is a bulldog. He loves to compete. I’ve never had a problem giving him the ball, knowing that he gives everything that he could possibly give to give us a good opportunity to win the game,” Northrup said. “He’s a good competitor. He’s smart in terms of knowing how to be successful and knows what he wants.”

For Landers, his personality off the baseball diamond has been key as well, adding a literal unique voice to the program.

“He’s pretty funny. The accent, obviously, goes into that,” Landers said. “Honestly, without the accent, he’d be just a normal kid around here, just like the other guys.”

While Wilcox was a starting pitcher for Jefferson Community College, this year, he has been a reliever for the most part this season for the Lakers. He did start once this season, garnering his first Div. III win.

The ability to adapt to a different role is something Northrup highlighted about Wilcox. He said Wilcox will make the most of any role he is giving, and “that’s what makes Ben special.” 

“I think he’s made great jumps,” Landers said. “His velocity has jumped while being here. Hopefully he keeps moving in the right direction.”

Wilcox said he hopes to use the experience from Jefferson Community College toward his time at Oswego State, which has a lot higher level of play compared to the Cannoneers. He also said the Lakers are much more family oriented compared to his former team. But he is striving for personal improvement.

“It was fun. I met a lot of good guys. … I don’t think I would’ve done it any other way,” Wilcox said. “I want to move myself through the order of pitching and move up the ranks, hopefully.”

Photo courtesy of Oswego State Sports