Sumrall’s Kros Sivley stepping up for Southern Miss

SUMRALL, Miss. (WDAM) - Kros Sivley was a stud at Sumrall High School.

He became a spectator in year No. 1 at Southern Miss, redshirting his freshman season.

So when the southpaw finally took the mound in USM’s second game of the year vs. Liberty, he was making up for lost time.

“The other night when [pitching coach Christian Ostrander] approached me about putting him in I said absolutely,” said USM head coach Scott Berry. “I don’t think the kid’s given us any reason not to put him in. He’s got my vote.”

Sivley proved to be a good bet in his debut as a Golden Eagle, striking out eight in four scoreless innings to earn his first win.

It ended a year-and-a-half absence from game action. The time off wasn’t exactly fun but Sivley made sure he didn’t waste it.

“It was hard to stay motivated really because last year I knew I was gonna get redshirted,” Sivley said. “Just work hard and your day will come in the future some time. Coach Oz, he never gave up on me. And we just worked hard every day.”

“He came back on a mission from Christmas break,” Berry said. “His bullpens started becoming really good. Oz kept telling me, ‘Coach, this kid may help us man. He seems like he’s getting better every time out.’ When we put him in to face hitters in our scrimmages he would answer that call, too.”

Lately, Sivley’s become one of coach Oz’s first calls out of the USM bullpen.

He has 14 strikeouts to one walk with a 3.48 earned-run-average in five appearances.

And his practice time is starting to pay off – improving his off-speed pitches and learning how to stay in the zone.

“When I do get called, just do my best and just go out there and compete and have that dog mentality out there,” Sivley said.

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