Leading the way
BUTLER TWP — One runner.
That's how the Butler Area High School indoor track and field program got started nearly 20 years ago.
It's flourishing now more than ever.
“The daughter of a school board member drove to Fitzgerald Field House (University of Pittsburgh) because she wanted to compete in an indoor meet there that winter,” Mike Seybert, one of Butler's longtime track coaches, said in recalling the program's origin. “It snowed that day, and she had a hard time getting back home.
“The board member wondered why we didn't have an indoor team, why she had to make that trip alone. The following year, Butler had an indoor track program,” he said
It began as a club program with about 30 kids. It's since mushroomed into a varsity sport and has 80 athletes competing today.
Practices for this season began Dec. 1. The first indoor meet was in January, and the indoor season culminates this weekend with the Pa. High School Championships at Penn State University.
Butler's outdoor track and field program has won numerous WPIAL team championships. For years, the indoor program was considered a warmup season for those outdoor pursuits.
“It will always be that way in a sense,” Butler track coach John Williams said. “But competition is competition. These kids work hard to win now.”
The 2020 Golden Tornado indoor squad has already broken 11 program records, dating back as far as 1998. Butler's boys claimed the Tri-State Track Coaches Association indoor championship last weekend at Edinboro University.
Edinboro hosts most of the TSTCA indoor meets on Saturdays during the winter. Butler also competes on some Sundays at the SPIRE Institute in Geneva, Ohio.
As far as its own indoor practices during the week?
Wherever they can find room.
The runners run through the empty halls of the Intermediate High School after school. The throwers practice in the upper room of the high school gym. The jumpers practice with a makeshift approach and pit in the football locker room in the Annex building.“Whatever it takes, we do,” Seybert said. “These kids put in weight-room time, too, building cardio and conditioning.“These kids have a will to win. They want to get faster, jump higher, throw farther.”As they do so, the records fall.“Those marks serve as nice carrots. They serve as motivation,” Seybert said.Record haulGuinness Brown, a sophomore, has already snapped a few records. He tied a 13-year mark in the 60-meter hurdles and broke records in the 200- and 400-meter dashes that stood for 21 years.He's also run legs of the Tornado's 4x200 and 4x400 meter relays that have broken records this year. The 4x200 mark stood for 13 years.“Breaking records is always my goal,” Brown said. “It's all about working hard. I'm not surprised at what I'm doing for that reason.“It feels good when you get one, especially the individual records. That's all about you.”Byron Manchester, a junior, also ran legs of the 4x200 and 4x400 relays. He broke the 60-meter hurdle record that stood for only four years.“We want to have the best indoor (track) program in Pennsylvania,” Manchester said. “This whole team takes pride in that. I want to keep breaking that hurdle record, get to where no one can beat it.“The record I really wanted to get was the 4x200 one. Fred Pinto, our running coach, ran on the relay whose record we broke. That means a lot to us.”The previous 4x400 record time was set in 2018 by four runners now competing in college: Cade Gratzmiller (Slippery Rock), Ryan Marcella (Duquesne), Jacob Wolfrum (Duquesne) and Noah Beveridge (Syracuse).“I thought that record might stand for a while,” Seybert said. “Noah is probably the best distance runner we've had at Butler. Their record is gone after just two years? It shows the dedication and work ethic of these high school athletes and what they're doing today.”Tim Patterson broke Butler's 10-year-old indoor record in the 3,200 meters this season. He enjoyed holding that mark for only two weeks before his teammate, CJ Singleton, snapped it.
Chris Grooms, whose record Patterson broke, is now Butler's assistant cross country coach. Patterson competes in cross country during the fall.“I've been with our indoor team for four years,” Patterson said. “It's designed to get you ready for the spring season, but it's competitive in and of itself.“Tradition has become a big part of indoor track at Butler. I think long-standing records will continue to fall.”Singleton is a member of Butler's boys basketball team as well. The indoor track team practices from 3 to 5:15 p.m. each Tuesday — on nights he has a basketball game.“CJ finds a way to get his work in,” Williams said. “We've had a few kids compete in other winter sports while doing indoor, but not many.“Even though he broke the (3,200) record, CJ was disappointed he didn't run still faster.”Seybert admitted the indoor practice time as a team is somewhat limited.“It's what these kids do on their own that makes the difference,” he said.Bouncing backAnna Baxter broke Butler's 60-meter hurdle record that stood for eight years. Megan Baggetta, a freshman, snapped the triple jump record that stood for nine.Baxter turned an ankle in two places during a meet last year at SPIRE, short-circuiting the remainder of her indoor season.This year, she broke the eight-year record in the hurdles early in the campaign.“Comebacks are bigger than setbacks,” Baxter said. “I knew I could get there. Just stay positive, stay focused. A lot of this is mental.”While the combined indoor and outdoor track season runs for six months, Baxter has no fear of burnout.“I know my body,” she said. “The coaches do push us to consistently improve — and they should — they also have our best interests at heart.”Baggetta had never done indoor track before this year. She's also been a gymnast since the age of 3.“I wanted to do a sport in high school and some of my friends suggested jumping in track,” she said. “I found it to be similar to what I've been doing as a gymnast all my life.”Williams agreed.“It's the same type of exercise,” he said. “The running, the leaping ... Megan took right to this.”She still does gymnastics, with vault and floor being her best events.“The first time I jumped (in track), I knew I was gonna like it,” Baggetta said. “I can't say I knew I was gonna break a record.”TransitioningSome distance runners ply their craft throughout the school year. Isaiah Seybert and Skyler and Sage Vavro are among those who run cross country in the fall, indoor track in the winter and outdoor track in the spring.Seybert's father is Butler coach Mike Seybert, “so I've always been around it,” he said. “One season leads into the next. For me, it's all about team championships.”“My mom, Christina Minto, ran in high school,” Skyler Vavro said. “It's been a big part of my family. There is so much competition on this team, even in practice.“The heat is always on all of us. We wouldn't have it any other way.”
The 2020 Butler Area High School indoor track and field team has broken or tied 11 school records this season. Those records follow, the previous marks in parentheses:Girls3,000 Meters: Jen Cichra 10 minutes, 57.68 seconds (Alexis Swiergol 11:02.5 in 2011, Autumn Pettinato 11:01.33 in 2020)60-Meter Hurdles: Anna Baxter 9.39 seconds (Lexis Frost 9.51 in 2012)Triple Jump: Megan Baggetta 36 feet, 8.25 inches (Lexis Frost 36-6.5 in 2011)Boys60-Meters: Guinness Brown 7.14 seconds (Doug Moran 7.14 in 2007)200 Meters: Guinness Brown 22.65 seconds (Josh Dumbaugh 22.82 in 1999)400 Meters: Guinness Brown 50.70 seconds (Josh Dumbaugh 50.99 in 1999)60-Meter Hurdles: Byron Manchester 8.54 seconds (Dylan Swidzinski 8.69 in 2016)High Jump: Sami Taoufik 6 feet, 8 inches (Andy Cunningham 6-6 in 1998)4x200 Relay: Guinness Brown, Braydon Young, Byron Manchester, Isaiah Seybert, 1 minute, 31.44 seconds (Doug Moran, Fred Pinto, Casey Piper, Mason McLaughlin, 1:31.60 in 2007)4x400 Relay: Guinness Brown, Alex Karenbauer, Byron Manchester, Isaiah Seybert 3 minutes, 28.43 seconds (Cade Gratzmiller, Ryan Marcella, Noah Beveridge, Jake Wolfrum 3:31.82 in 2018)3,200 Meters: CJ Singleton 9 minutes, 35.88 seconds (Chris Grooms 10:10.05 in 2010, Tim Patterson 9:42.25 in 2020)
