INDIANAPOLIS — Kouts sophomore pitcher Billy Miller understood what was happening as the Class 1A state championship game unfolded Friday night.
Miller was dominating Northeast Dubois’ hitters, and there was a telltale sign.
“I knew I was cruising because the same guys were coming up in the same spot,” he said. “I kind of knew I was going through that.
“For sure, I know when I’m rolling.”
Miller kept rolling, throwing a two-hitter, as the Mustangs won 2-0 at Victory Field to become state champions.
Miller was sharp from start to finish for top-ranked Kouts (32-1).
“I feel like I was commanding my pitches really well,” he said. “I was commanding my fastball out, moving it around. My curveball was working really well. All my pitches were good.”
Kouts senior catcher Cooper Whitaker certainly agreed.
“Honestly, everything worked,” Whitaker said. “That’s the best game I’ve ever seen him pitch. It was pretty awesome.”
It didn’t take long for Kouts coach Jason Dorshorst to realize Miller was in fine form.
“He’s locked in all the time,” Dorshorst said. “But it was kind of more of a matter of how the hitters were going to react to him, and the first or second pitch of the game, it was a fastball, and they swung, blew their doors off.
“So it’s like, ‘All right, that’s one of their better hitters, let’s rock.’ So we knew pretty early.”
Miller retired 14 batters in a row from the first to sixth innings and finished with an extremely efficient 87 pitches. He struck out eight, and his lone walk came with two outs in the seventh.
“That first time through the order, I kind of knew I had my stuff,” Miller said.
The first time the Mustangs reached the state championship game did not go so well. They lost 14-1 to Indianapolis Lutheran last season.
This time, knowing what to expect, Miller and his teammates were much more relaxed on the state’s grandest stage. As Dorshorst said, “It was a very different vibe.”
“We remembered what it felt like last year,” Miller said. “We didn’t want to feel that pain again. So the whole offseason, we wanted to win, man.
“It doesn’t even feel real, man. All the hard work we put in, it just feels so rewarding. It’s awesome.”
Whitaker also felt the emotion of the moment.
“I can’t even put it into words,” he said. “I don’t think it’s really hit me. But I know the last out, it’s probably the greatest day of my life. I’ve been dreaming about this for so long. For it to finally happen, it’s surreal.”
The Mustangs, who will move to Class 2A next season, won the school’s first state title in any sport.
“It’s absolutely wild,” Dorshorst said. “It’s funny. All four coaches, we said we thought we were all going to bawl like babies, just start crying out there. None of us did. I don’t think it’s hit us yet. It doesn’t feel real yet. It really doesn’t.”
What’s unquestionably real is the Mustangs’ 32-game winning streak. They lost just one game this season, their opener to Class 3A state champion Guerin, which defeated Andrean earlier Friday.
Kouts opened the scoring against Northeast Dubois (23-6) in the second inning on Whitaker’s double and senior left fielder Collin Breitzke’s sacrifice fly.
The Mustangs added a run in the third when sophomore right fielder Ben Finney stole second and scored on two errors on the play.
Those two runs were more than enough for Miller, who praised the team’s seniors. Among that group is senior center fielder Jesse Overholt, who won the Mental Attitude Award.
“We have a lot of seniors, and they’re very good leaders,” Miller said. “We all hang out all the time outside of baseball, so we have a really good bond, and the senior leadership really helped too.
“They meant everything to us, man. It’s sad it’s over, but at least we got out on a win.”
