Butler wins 2025 PIAA Competitive Spirit Championship, claiming fifth title in program history
It began with tryouts in May and ended Friday with a 2:30 routine at Santander Arena in Reading.
But it is what Butler High’s competitive cheer team came home with that elevates it to an exclusive list in program history.
The Golden Tornado earned a score of 84.33 points in the final round of the PIAA Competitive Spirit Championships Coed Varsity competition, topping runner-up McDowell by over four points.
It is the fifth state title for the program and third in the Coed Division.
“We’ve been talking about (winning) this since the beginning of the season,” said Ella Davenport, a senior backspot. “Cheering is not just standing on the sidelines at football and basketball games. I love showing how strong we are as a team. I had confidence in my teammates, and I’m so proud of what we accomplished.”
Butler was one of 18 teams that competed Thursday in the preliminary round, and it, along with four other teams, scored well enough to bypass Friday morning’s semifinal round. The six-team final was held Friday afternoon.
“That was huge for us,” Butler coach Kristin Karam said. “The girls got to sleep in and it gave us a nice shot of confidence, but we still knew there were things we needed to be a little sharper with in the final.”
Butler’s state-winning effort received scores of 84.7, 84.3 and 84 from the three judges. Its average preliminary score had been 74.467.
After finishing their routine, the Golden Tornado had to wait three hours before they learned where they placed.
“We knew our score, which had no deductions, and that was good,” Karam said. “There were a lot of other WPIAL teams there in the different divisions, and we went and watched them.”
When the wait was finally over, Butler realized its dedication had paid off with the desired hardware: a state championship trophy.
“Our routine was the best we could do, and we thought we had a really good shot,” said Lucy McFall, another senior backspot. “I was so excited when I found out we won. We believed in each other, had put in so much hard work.”
Two hours at a time every Monday, Wednesday and Thursday at Center Township Elementary — and that’s not counting additional work individual members invested.
Members of the team had already formed a strong bond, and the state crown can only strengthen it.
“We feel we can be ourselves around each other,” said Addy Evanko, a senior base. “There’s not a single person on the team we don’t care about. It’s a family.”
Four other Butler County-area teams competed at the championships. Seneca Valley placed sixth in the Class 3A Large Varsity Division; Karns City was fourth in Class 2A Large Varsity; Mars made it to the semifinal round in Class 3A Small Varsity and A-C Valley/Union was eliminated in the Coed Varsity preliminaries.
Klayre Brown, Ella Davenport, London Davis, Addy Evanko, Olivia Flanigan, Emma Hilliard, Corinne Hindman, Alexis Kelly, Kaylee Krchnak, Kendra Lacey, Madison Lewis, Lucy McFall, Julia Neff, Kyle Newton-Boston, Haley Norris, Lyla Rodgers, Isabella Roskovski, Anthony Salmon, Aleena Stewart, Kendall Strawbridge, Halle Swidzinski, Abbygail Volk
Coaches: Kristin Karam, Marianne Miller, Brooke Carr, Logan Donnel
