BUTLER TWP — Getting to the WPIAL playoffs has been a difficult task for the Butler High School girls volleyball team.

Finding championship-caliber competition hasn't.

“North Allegheny, Seneca Valley and Pine-Richland are three of the top programs in the state,” Butler coach Meghan Lucas said of her section rivals. “When we do find our way into the playoffs, those games seem easier than the regular season.”

The Golden Tornado have been to the playoffs twice — 2006 and 2008 — in Lucas' eight years at the helm. But postseason visits may soon become more frequent.

The Tornado Volleyball Club 16-under AAU team lost only three games total in six tournaments this offseason. Each of the tourneys consisted of 12 teams or more.

Butler won tournaments at California (Pa.), Westminster, New Castle and Erie. The team lost in the finals at Penn State-Behrend and semifinals at Edinboro.

“This is the fifth year we've had an AAU team and definitely, this has been our best season record-wise,” Lucas said. “These girls are going to make an impact.

“We came up against teams twice as big as us. To look at us, we didn't look like a powerhouse at all. These kids just had the attitude that losing is not an option. The strongest part of our game was our defense.”

The eight-player squad consisted of six sophomores, a freshman and an eighth-grader. Gabby Carney is the freshman, Alyssa DiPippa the eighth-grader.

Ashley Grooms was the Tornado's setter with Carney and Heather Straynick being standout hitters from the middle and outside, respectively.

Olivia Weist, Lauren Maher, Erin Hilderbrand and Suzy Klann were solid contributors as well.

“The whole team worked well together,” assistant coach Danielle Hogue said. “And they never got tired of playing.”

The team played up to seven games in one day as the tournaments were held on Saturdays. While tourneys generally ran from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., Butler's last tournament began at 1:30 p.m. and didn't end until midnight.

“Junior Olympic volleyball ties up weekends because we practice Sunday afternoons,” Hogue said. “We have track kids, basketball kids on the team ... You need dedicated athletes and these girls are.”

Hogue is a 2004 Slippery Rock High graduate who played volleyball at Westminster College. The Titans won their conference and reached the NCAA Division III Tournament her senior year.

Hogue now teaches learning support math at Butler Intermediate.

“These are a scrappy bunch of girls and that's hard to come by these days,” Lucas said. “They play with fire in their eyes.

“A lot of the girls in the jumping events on the track team are my volleyball players. Playing one sport makes them better in the other.”

Lucas said Butler's volleyball fortunes are on the rise.

“This is a great volleyball state,” she said. “Penn State has won three straight national titles and our high school teams are among the best in the country.

“The girls on this team were selected because of their attitude and how hard they work. You're definitely going to hear a lot from them in the next year or two.”