SLIPPERY ROCK TWP — The Junior ROTC teams from Butler and Seneca Valley high schools accomplished their missions at the annual Raider Challenge Competition at Slippery Rock University.

They displayed teamwork, character and leadership at Saturday's event.

Butler finished second among the five mixed teams of boys and girls, and Seneca Valley, which hasn't fielded a team in two years, finished last among the three male-only teams.

Both area teams trained for months leading up to the competition, which was overseen by students in the university's ROTC program and members of the National Guard.

“I ran them into the ground,” said Joe Cieslo, senior Army instructor for the Seneca Valley team. “I want them to see they can compete with other teams that have been here. It's a great event. It really challenges them. We're building for the future.”

Senior and team captain Matthew Ehret said he was a freshmen the last time the team competed.

“My goal is for them to compete as hard as they can,” Ehret said before the competition. “I'm not sure we can compete with Butler and some of the other teams that are here every year. We have the athletic capability to compete with them. This team is just the tip of the spear.”

A full story appears in Monday's Butler Eagle.