Mars Hall of Fame: Lydia Burns set track and field records, won PIAA girls soccer title
Talent does not always lead to accomplishment, but Lydia (Dennis) Burns was bound and determined to not let her ability go to waste.
Prior to graduating from Mars Area High School in 2014, she won a WPIAL Class 3A title in the girls triple jump, set Butler County's all-time record in the girls long jump and helped the girls soccer team to the program's first-ever state championship.
In her first year of eligibility, Burns took her place among Mars' all-time greats with inclusion in the district's sports hall of fame. She was inducted as an individual and as a member of the 2011 girls soccer team during a ceremony last month.
“I wasn't focused on doing anything just for myself,” she said of her high school athletic career. “Everything was geared toward scoring as many points as I could for the track and field team or helping the soccer team get as far as possible.”
Burns currently lives in Texas.
“I came back for the hall of fame weekend (Sept. 20-21). Getting to see Blair (Gerlach, soccer coach) and my teammates again, it was such a fun time,” Burns said. “I was sad when it was time to leave.”
She had already been introduced to sports prior to her family's move from Virginia to the Mars area when she was 5. Her athletic interest blossomed afterward.
Burns joined the junior high track and field team, and by the time she reached varsity she was ready to leave her mark sooner rather than later.
Her district title in the triple jump came with a distance of 37 feet, 9½ inches at Baldwin High School her sophomore year.
“That was a personal-best for me up to that point,” Burns said. “It came as a bit of a surprise. I knew how hard I was working, but the WPIAL was very strong in the jumps. Winning that title pushed my competitiveness moving forward.
“I don't know why, but I liked the triple jump more than the long jump.”
That preference did not keep her from excelling in the latter, however. During her junior year, she went 18-9 in the long jump, at the time vaulting Burns to the top spot on the Butler Eagle's all-time honor roll in the event. It was only this past spring when it was broken after A-C Valley's Hannah Ithen leaped 18-10½.
In soccer, Burns was a midfielder/forward on the 2011 state title team. In her senior year when she tore her ACL, prematurely ending her high school soccer career. She remained close to the team, however, showing up to games with a leg brace and offering encouraging words for her teammates.
All the while, she had her heart set on one more season of high school competition.
“I knew I would be back for the track season in the spring," Burns said. "I was out for five months and it was still hurting a bit when the spring season started, but I was not going to miss out on track as a senior.”
Her attitude following the injury, along with her effort in the classroom, earned for Burns a Positive Athlete Award from Positive Athlete Pittsburgh.
“I worked hard in school and it was cool to be recognized for that and not just for being an athlete,” she said.
While still competing, Burns had given some thought to being a coach one day. Just weeks before graduating, she was reminded of what lay in front of her.
“I was at the WPIAL championship meet, sitting down and bummed because I wasn't going to the state meet,” Burns said. “One of our assistant coaches, Coach Rekich, came over to me and said that it wasn't the end of my story. I was going to be able to help athletes in the future.”
It was a prediction that has come true. After graduating from the University of Pittsburgh, Burns found her way to Texas. She currently teaches and coaches basketball and track and field at Belton High School, outside of Austin. She also plays in a coed soccer league.
“I always want sports to be part of my life,” said Burns, who thanked her parents, Mark and Kelly Dennis, for their support. “My mom was always my biggest cheerleader.”
Aaron and Lydia Burns have an 18-month-old son, Calvin.
