Cruising speed
BUTLER TWP — Butler's girls track and field team added to an already impressive 2016 season.
The Golden Tornado's 4x400 relay team of Odile Enslen, Shana Hoy, Liz Simms and Alexis Leech captured first place Friday at the Butler Track and Field Invitational with a time of four minutes, 3.88 seconds.
The victory also clinched for Butler the team title as the Tornado finished with 61 points, six ahead of runner-up Avonworth/Northgate.
It is the fourth time that Butler has claimed the team championship at its own invite and first since 2011.
“This is big for the girls,” said Butler coach John Williams. “They want to defend their home track and these things aren't easy to win. This is the biggest invite we have ever had with 58 teams. This is a good mid-season test. It includes some of the best athletes in the WPIAL, even outside the WPIAL. It shows you where you are at.”
Butler is currently 4-0 in Section 3-AAA meets and can clinch the section title outright with victories over Seneca Valley and North Hills on Tuesday.
The Tornado have done it with an overwhelmingly young team.
“We have 80 girls on the team. Only eight of them are seniors and we have almost 30 freshmen,” said Williams. “'Speed, Determination and Focus,' that's what we have written on the board in our locker room. It's a great group.”
Butler's victory over North Allegheny April 11 helped keep the Tigers out of the upcoming WPIAL team playoffs for the first time in NA's history.
“That was our motivation. We just wanted to keep them out,” said Simms. “We've just had so many people step up into positions we weren't expecting this year.”
If the Tornado needed any more momentum entering Tuesday's meet, they earned it on Friday.
“The fact that we came in undefeated on the year and won a meet with almost 60 teams, it feels great,” Enslen said.
Maura Kimmel is not satisfied with just being good. She aspires to be great.
Her latest effort here proves it.
The senior defended her Butler Invite titles from a year ago in the girls' shot put and discus, but with much better efforts this time around. She won the shot put (42 feet, 11 inches) and discus (140-3) Friday, with the latter performance shattering the previous meet record of 131-6 by California's Kailyn Clancy in 2014.
“I sort of look at the records at invites before competing, but the key is to do your best, whether it is good enough to break a record or not,” said Kimmel. “I know I had more in me today in the shot put, but I was happy with how I did in the discus.”
Kimmel, who will soon be throwing for the University of Pennsylvania, will compete in the discus at the Penn Relays next Thursday.
“It (ability) was always there. She just needed somebody to bring it out and let her know that she can be great,” said Moniteau throwing coach Ryan Protzman. “She has gotten stronger, but also quicker. We're always trying to get the perfect technique to get that big throw.”
