BUTLER TWP — During her 14 years as a gymnast at the Butler Gymnastics Center, Hannah Welker has never won a national, regional or state championship.

But she won over the college recruiters.

The Knoch senior, who finished second in the 2005 state meet and won the prestigious Buckeye Classic, has accepted a scholarship offer in gymnastics from the University of Illinois.

She also received scholarship offers from Eastern Michigan, Kent State and Bowling Green.

"The fact Hannah hasn't won at the state meet merely shows how tough Pennsylvania is in this sport and how scant the margin of error is,"coach Steve Heasley said. "She is an outstanding gymnast.

"When she hits her (uneven) bar routine, it's as good as there is in the region. Her balance beam and floor routine are very competitive as well."

Welker is a four-time region qualifier at Level 10.

The Illinois women's gymnastics program cracked the Top 25 in 2006 and finished the 2007 season ranked 20th in the nation — the first top-20 ranking in the program's history.

The Fighting Illini also placed third at the Big Ten Championships last spring, their highest finish in the conference since 1990.

"I started the recruiting process at the beginning of my junior year,"Welker said. "I visited Illinois in October, liked the school and thought the campus was beautiful.

"The gymnastics team is like a big family there. They really made me feel comfortable. It's where I want to be."

Prior to last fall, Welker sent DVDs of her performances to 20 major schools. She pared her list to 10 last spring and sent those schools a second DVD.

Welker has been a three-time Talent Opportunity Program national qualifier and qualified to attend a national training camp in 2001.

Only 11 years old then, she met some of the premier gymnastics coaches in the country, including veteran Olympics coach Bela Karolyi.

"That was an incredible experience,"Welker said. "It kinda put my name on the map."

Welker plans to major in broadcast journalism at Illinois.

"I'm proud of her and I'm excited for her,"Heasley said. "She's going to have a tremendous college career.

"Hannah is one of the most unusual kids I've ever coached here. She is excited every day she comes here. And whenever she does come, everybody in the room knows she's here.

"She's constantly upbeat. If you're down, she'll put a smile on your face just like that. I could coach another 50 years and not come across another personality like hers,"he added.

For years, Welker has been coming to the Butler Gymnastics Club five days a week, four hours per day.

"When I broke into Level 10 four years ago, I realized I wanted to go after a college scholarship,"Welker said. "That's when I knew it's what I wanted to do with this sport.

"I feel like all the hard work I put into this has paid off."

Heasley said he'll be losing a role model when Welker heads for Illinois next fall.

"It's bittersweet," he said. "I'm thrilled for her, but it will never be the same around here. Hannah has so much charisma. She is absolutely genuine."

Welker becomes the sixth female gymnast from the Butler club to attain a Division I scholarship. Seneca Valley graduate Jessica Suder, a sophomore at Central Michigan, is the only one currently in school.

Five males from the Butler club are now competing for Division I programs:Eddie Hay at Ohio State, Chad Wiest at Illinois, Dusty Cranmer at Iowa, Cody Carnahan at Penn State and Aaron Zaiser at Air Force.