BAY ST. LOUIS – The Sumrall seniors weren’t ready to hang up their jerseys for the last time Monday.
“It’s not about to be my last high school game,” senior Billy Garrity said.
The soon-to-be graduates of Sumrall High School combined for 10 hits in Monday’s 11-0 Game 3 win over St. Stanislaus. In a win-or-go home contest, the Bobcats extended their season by at least two more games, advancing to the 4A South State series, which will start later this week.
While Sumrall was on offense, senior Graham Crawford could be seen next to the on-deck circle telling his teammates what to expect from the St. Stanislaus pitchers. He also went up to every senior before the game to make sure everybody was locked in.
“We’ve been here for four years and we’ve always talked about how our senior year was going to be our year,” he said. “I told them, ‘This will not be the last time I wear a Sumrall uniform.’ Don’t get me wrong, I can’t wait to go play in college, but I knew it wasn’t going to be the last time.
“I just told them, ‘Everything you’ve got, you’ve got to bring it tonight.’”
It didn’t take long for Sumrall to make its presence known. Senior Zane Berry reached in the first inning off a bunt single, then Crawford singled to quickly put two on with one out. Garrity cleared the bases four pitches later with a no-doubter to right field to set the tone for the game.
“If we could jump on them, I felt really good about our chances,” Sumrall coach Larry Knight said. “The kid was throwing hard, had a good curveball, but Billy is that type of guy, he’s going to have more success seeing that type of pitching than he is seeing guys who throw 75, 76.”
On a 3-1 pitch, Garrity got all of it, and he had to admire it, too.
“I knew he had good velocity, and we usually hit good velocity,” he said. “I knew he was going to have to come with a fastball, and that was what I was anticipating. I just put a good swing on it and got the result I wanted.
“I’d probably have to say that was the farthest (home run). I’m usually not one to pimp a home run but that one, I watched that one for a minute.”
Despite the 11 runs on 11 hits, the Bobcats still struck out 8 times against St. Stanislaus starter Colin Frederickson. The Bobcats left two runners on base in the second and one more in the third before busting the game open in the fourth.
A triple from Sumrall leadoff hitter senior Dannis Jackson and a double by Crawford scored the first two runs of the inning, then an infield error off the bat of senior Mason Story brought two more runs home. Finally, a squeeze bunt from senior Tanner Morgan scored the fifth and final run of the inning.
“We were hitting balls hard,” Crawford said. “It seemed to fall tonight like it didn’t the other night. We went out there with a plan, an approach, and he had a good curveball. He hit that really well, it was hard to see, and you just had to almost guess and figure out what pitch was coming before you went up there. If you had an idea, you couldn’t make a mistake and not hit it.”
Berry’s RBI single in the fifth made it 9-0, then the Bobcats got two more runs in the sixth to put the run-rule into effect.
Sumrall’s starting pitcher, sophomore Kros Sivley, didn’t need much help from his offense. He pitched all six innings while allowing just two hits with seven strikeouts and no walks. He took a no-hitter into the fourth inning and he didn’t allow a Rock-a-Chaw base runner to reach third base all night.
After not pitching for nearly a month due to tendinitis and bursitis, Sivley made his comeback to the mound against Northeast Jones in the second round last week. On a 50- to 55-pitch count, the left-hander only lasted two-plus innings, but on Monday, Knight was willing to extend Sivley deeper into the game. After nine days off, he pitched 77 pitches against the Rock-a-Chaws.
“Tonight, we felt good going in maybe 80 to 90 pitches because he’s had a lot of rest,” Knight said. “The biggest thing for him is getting out there and feeling good about himself. His arm is probably better than it’s felt all year right now.”
The Bobcats now turn their attention to West Lauderdale in a much-anticipated matchup in the 4A South State series. The Knights (27-3) have swept their way through the postseason and into their date with the Bobcats.
“I think everybody expected (this series) before the season began,” Knight said. “They’re a great team, no doubt about it. We’ve seen them it seems like every year, but it hasn’t been for south state until now. It’s going to be exciting and they’re going to be a tough team to beat. We’re just glad we’re here and have an opportunity to play them.”
