DUBOIS — The District 9 Class AA baseball final pitted one of the area’s best offensive teams against perhaps the district’s best pitcher.

Kane’s Carson Whiteman did his best to slow down Johnsonburg’s potent lineup, but the undefeated Rams caused havoc at the plate and on the bases. On the strength of manufactured runs and a stellar performance by starting pitcher Gabe Watts, the top-seeded Rams (21-0) beat No. 6 Kane (13-7), 4-1, at Showers Field in DuBois in Monday’s championship game.

Whiteman and Kane’s defense were good, but Watts and the Rams were simply better.

“It’s one of those groups that has played together for a long time, and they love these moments,” Jburg coach Mike Porter said. “You put them in a big game and they seem to rise up to it. They’ve done it many times in the past.”

Watts gave up four hits over 6+ innings while striking out nine and walking two. The senior left-hander’s fastball, consistently crossing the plate at 83 miles per hour, complimented a curveball of which he seemingly had complete control.

“His mix was very good and his control was very good,” Kane coach Josh Jekielek said of Watts. “He was painting the edges of the plate, and that’s huge to be able to do. If you don’t have control, you don’t have anything.”

Jburg’s offense gave Watts an early lead, as Aiden Zimmerman led off the Rams’ half of the first with a single. Zimmerman wasted no time implementing one of Jburg’s defining strengths, as he stole second base before immediately stealing third.

On Zimmerman’s second stolen base attempt, an errant throw to the bag sailed into left field, allowing the sophomore to score. The Rams went on to steal a total of eight bases in the game, just shy of their season average (8.5).

“Their team speed is a massive part of their success,” Jekielek said. “They’re fast through the lineup, so if you issue a walk or they get a base hit, you immediately have trouble. They get thrown out at bases very few times, even at third.”

Jburg’s big offensive inning, which proved to be the game’s difference, came in the third, when Luke Zimmerman dropped a leadoff double down the left field line. The freshman promptly stole third, then scored on a groundout by Aiden Zimmerman.

“This team is fast from top to bottom,” Porter said. “Guys get on base, you know what you’re dealing with. They fly.”

Dominic Allegretto followed Aiden Zimmerman’s RBI groundout with a single, then stole second base. The Wolves elected to intentionally walk cleanup hitter Ethan Wells, putting Rams on first and second with two outs.

During the ensuing at-bat, however, Whiteman balked. The lapse advanced the Jburg runners to second and third, setting up Dalton Stahli for a two-run single.

Stahli’s knock was the last time the Rams would score on Whiteman, but by that point, they had already provided sufficient run support for Watts.

“I thought we hit the ball OK, we just didn’t find a spot for it mostly,” Jekielek said. “They’re a very good team, and against a very good team, we did the mistake-free part. We didn’t do the other part that you need to do against a very good team to win.”

Whiteman finished with four strikeouts, one walk and six hits allowed over six innings.

The senior right-hander had entered the game striking out an average of over two batters per inning. The Rams were able to put his mid-80s fastball in play, however, spurring enough offense to leave the game in the hands of their defense and pitching.

“(Whiteman is) the scariest guy we’ve gotta face for sure,” Porter said. “We knew that coming in. We knew the key was getting to him early and putting a couple runs up. We don’t give up a lot of runs, so if we can put two or three runs up, we put some pressure on them and their batters.”

Kane rallied in its last turn at-bat, as a leadoff walk to Shane Ackley chased Watts from the game. Aiden Zimmerman picked Watts up, however, striking out back-to-back batters for a quick two outs.

Bobby Rumcik singled to keep Kane alive, but Zimmerman got Harley Morris to ground out and end the game.

Watts earned the win; Zimmerman earned the save. And the Rams backed the duo up with another perfect defensive game.

“Defense is what we do best,” Porter said. “A lot of people say, ‘You always have the speed.’ Well, this team always has defense. We just go game after game without errors, and if we do have an error, it’s usually on a play that is better than average to make.”

Whiteman scored Kane’s lone run after reaching on a fielder’s choice in the sixth. Morris doubled in the third, and Shane Ackley and Justin Peterson each singled, accounting for all of Kane’s offense.

“It’s highly disappointing to lose,” Jekielek said. “I thought our kids played a tough game. (Whiteman) pitched well, they made some plays and we left a few plays on the field.”

Despite the loss, the Wolves’ season will continue, as they will play District 6’s runner-up on Wednesday for a spot in the state tournament bracket.

Jburg, meanwhile, will await the fourth-place team from District 7 in a quarterfinal on June 7.

“When you get into one-game elimination baseball, it’s tough,” Porter said. “You can’t have that off game.”

While the Rams’ offense has helped it to a slew of lopsided victories, it’s their pitching and defense, Porter said, that will become their biggest assets this time of year.

“You are going to have to string hits together to beat us,” Porter said. “You’re not going to hit it at somebody and get away with free bases.”

AT DUBOIS

                         R H E

Kane 000 001 0 1 5 1

Johnsonburg 400 000 0 4 5 0

Kane: Carson Whiteman (4 SO, 1 BB) and Bobby Rumcik

Jburg: Gabe Watts (9 SO, 2 BB), Aiden Zimmerman (7) (2 SO) and Ethan Wells