Butler boys dominate field, win WPIAL Class 3A team track title
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Wednesday, May 11, 2022 | 9:45 PM
Butler’s Presley Ornelas wins the boys 110-meter hurdles during the WPIAL Class 3A team track and field championships on Wednesday, May 11, 2022, at West Mifflin High School.
North Allegheny’s Ava Como takes second in the girls pole vault during the WPIALClass 3A team track and field championships on Wednesday, May 11, 2022, at West Mifflin High School.
North Allegheny’s Wren Kucler (left), Robin Kucler and Maura Miecko place first, second and third in the girls 1,600-meter run during the WPIAL Class 3A team track and field championships on Wednesday, May 11, 2022, at West Mifflin High School.
Butler’s Guinness Brown (rright) wins the boys 100-meter dash followed by Mt. Lebanon’s Connor Rychcik, North Allegheny’s Brandon Farr and Norwin’s Domnic Barca during the WPIAL Class 3A team track and field championships on Wednesday, May 11, 2022, at West Mifflin High School.
Norwin’s Ashley Laukus wins the girls high jump during the WPIAL Class 3A team track and field championships on Wednesday, May 11, 2022, at West Mifflin High School.
South Fayette’s Olivia Renk wins the girls 100-meter dash followed by Butler’s All Morrow and Lucia Wells during the WPIAL Class 3A team track and field championships on Wednesday, May 11, 2022, at West Mifflin High School.
South Fayette’s Grace Howard takes second in the girls high jump during the WPIAL Class 3A team track and field championships on Wednesday, May 11, 2022, at West Mifflin High School.
South Fayette’s Melana Schumaker wins the girls pole vault during the WPIAL Class 3A team track and field championships on Wednesday, May 11, 2022, at West Mifflin High School.
North Allegheny’s Robin Kucler and South Fayette’s Lily Colombo finish second and third as they pass South Fayette’s Emily Sinton at the finish of the girls 800-meter run during the WPIAL Class 3A team track and field championships on Wednesday, May 11, 2022, at West Mifflin High School.
North Allegheny’s Owen Curran wins the boys high jump during the WPIAL Class 3A team track and field championships on Wednesday, May 11, 2022, at West Mifflin High School.
North Allegheny’s Wern Kucler wins the girls 800-meter run during the WPIAL Class 3A team track and field championships on Wednesday, May 11, 2022, at West Mifflin High School.
Butler’s Emma Lehman (left) wins the girls 100-meter hurdles during the WPIAL Class 3A team track and field championships on Wednesday, May 11, 2022, at West Mifflin High School.
North Allegheny’s Wren Kucler passes the baton to sister Robin Kucler in the girls 4x800-meter relay during the WPIAL Class 3A team track and field championships on Wednesday, May 11, 2022, at West Mifflin High School.
Norwin’s Hannah Shaw takes third in the girls pole vault during the WPIAL Class 3A team track and field championships on Wednesday, May 11, 2022, at West Mifflin High School.
The Butler boys arrived at the WPIAL team championships with a mission: eliminate any suspense about who might be the winner.
“That was our goal,” sprinter Guinness Brown said. “Get it done early.”
Much like Brown running 100 meters, it was over quickly. The Butler boys claimed 10 of the 11 running events Wednesday at West Mifflin, including all three relays, to win the WPIAL Class 3A team title for the second year in a row. The North Allegheny boys finished second, Mt. Lebanon was third and Norwin was fourth in the four-team meet.
“We were confident coming in,” said Brown, a senior headed to Duke. “We all kind of know where our athletes are (performance-wise) at this point. We’ve been working really hard for this. So we knew that if we run what we run, we’ll be good. We’ll get it done.”
Brown won the 100 and 200 and ran legs on winning 400- and 800 relays. Notre Dame-bound distance runner C.J. Singleton won the 800, the 1,600 and led the 3,200 relay to a win.
They’ll take that momentum into the WPIAL individual championship next Wednesday at Slippery Rock.
When your roster has the best sprinter in school history and the best distance runner to wear a Butler uniform, you better capitalize, coach Mike Seybert said.
The Golden Tornado ran away with their prize Wednesday. They won 97-53 over North Allegheny, 117-33 over Mt. Lebanon and 115-35 over Norwin.
The boys title was Butler’s ninth overall.
“We have a deep senior class,” said Seybert, who has more than 20 on the roster. “When you have this many seniors that are peaking in all of the events at the same time, it’s an awesome thing.”
But while one Butler dynasty continued, another ended. North Allegheny won the girls team title, ending a streak of four consecutive championships for the Butler girls.
The girls title was North Allegheny’s first since 2004.
“It was a long time in between,” NA coach John Neff said. “We had a lot of seconds in there — and second is great — but I’m really proud that the girls were able to pull it out today.”
The Tigers won seven events including a 1-2-3 finish in the 1,600 with Wren Kucler, Robin Kucler and Maura Mlecko leading the field to the finish line. Neff said the team’s strength was a winning combination of young talent and experienced veterans.
For example, the Kucler sisters are freshmen and Mlecko is a senior. Wren Kucler also won the 800, the 3,200 and was part of the winning 3,200 relay.
NA’s Mia Tuman and Isabella Costa finished first and second in the 400.
“There are some kids who’ve been around for a while and are really hungry,” Neff said. “And there was an infusion of some new kids. It all came together.”
The South Fayette girls placed second behind Olivia Renk’s wins in the 100 and 200. Norwin was third, and Butler finished fourth.
Norwin won three individual events with Ashley Laukus tying for first in the girls high jump (5-2), Aaron Schmook winning the boys javelin (182-2) and Anthony Petrulo taking the boys shot put (48-1). The Knights also won the girls 3,200 relay.
The North Allegheny boys also found some success in field events with Owen Curran winning the high jump (6-2), Dwayne Taylor winning the triple jump (45-2½) and Kolin Dinkins winning the long jump (22-6).
But on the track, the Butler boys dominated. The only running event that escaped them was the 400, won by Mt. Lebanon’s Brendan Anderson.
Butler’s Presley Ornelas swept the hurdle events, teammate Sage Vavro won the 3,200,Tristan McGarrah took first in the pole vault and Jacob Pomykata won discus.
“Everything just fell into place,” said Seybert, who poignantly wore his state indoor championship T-shirt to West Mifflin.
The Butler boys won an indoor state title this winter, a fact Seybert didn’t want them to forget. The outdoor state champion will be decided at the PIAA individual meet in a couple of weeks.
“They got a taste of it during indoor season,” Seybert said. “Now they’re saying, ‘Yeah, we can compete against anybody in the state.’”
Chris Harlan is a TribLive reporter covering sports. He joined the Trib in 2009 after seven years as a reporter at the Beaver County Times. He can be reached at charlan@triblive.com.
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