EDINBORO — The Butler High girls indoor track and field team recorded just one first-place performance Saturday, but it came away with the biggest prize of all.

At the Tri-State Track Coaches Association’s Indoor Championship at Edinboro University, Paige Rittelmann won the high jump by clearing 5 feet, 4 inches, and the Tornado picked up 17 other medals in winning the TSTCA title for the second consecutive year.

Butler prevailed over the 62-team field with 81.75 points, outdistancing Hempfield (67.25) and Hickory (46.5).

“A lot of the top-10 teams in the state competed,” Butler coach Annessa Steele said. “We had just one champion but the level of competition is amazing.”

Paige Allen was second in the long jump, fifth in the 200, sixth in the 60 and was a member of the third-place 800-meter relay team, while Lexis Frost was third in the 60 hurdles, third in the long jump and fourth in the triple jump.

“It’s always the indoor goal to train and get healthy for the outdoor season,” Steele said. “We train a little and we’re in the pool one to two times a week to stay off the legs. We don’t really race hard until the championship.”

Other multiple medal winners included Kennedy Evans (long jump, 800 relay, and sprint relay, seventh) and various relay members Jasmine Bailey, Vanessa Tomsey, Rachel Konieczny, Rachel Weyand, Alexis Swiergol and Tori Sawhney.

All five of the team’s relay squads earned medals.

With the loss of distance runners Danica Snyder and Trish Brandt due to graduation, the middle- and long-distance runners filled in admirably, according to Steele.

“I thought that was the biggest hole to fill for the outdoor season, but I’ve seen how far they’ve come,” Steele said. “They struggled in cross-country and they’ve done well in indoor. They scored more points than I thought they might.”

The 3,200 relay team of Swiergol, Sawhney, Holly Keefer and Macy Stahlnecker was second at 10:17.98, while the distance medley relay was fourth thanks to Konieczny, Weyand, Sawhney and Swiergol at 13:33.20.

“We had five long jumpers and four hurdlers take the top 18 of all 62 teams,” Steele noted. “To do that was pretty great.”

And Steele believes the indoor season is a good indication of what might be come outdoor season. the Tornado girls have won the past two WPIAL Class AAA championships in the spring and have now on the past two indoor crowns.

“I think it helps in terms of mental preparation and expectations,” Steele said. “When you win this, they expect to win the outdoor. It’s all a mindset.

“Again, it was real close against us and Hempfield. It comes down to one event and that’s how it ended up (last year), we beat them by one point.

“It’s good to get a lot of younger kids to compete and to ask them to perform is great for the team,” Steele added.

Rittelmann (high jump), Frost (triple jump, 60 hurdles), Allen (60) and Ava Bonetti (shot put, sixth, 37-7 1/2) have all qualified for the Pennsylvania Track and Field Coaches Association State Championship meet Saturday at Penn State University.

In the boys meet, Butler placed 12th with 19 points. Altoona was the team champion with 59 points and Latrobe was runner-up with 50 points.

Travis Reed’s third-place performance in the shot put (51-3 1/2) led the Tornado as well as secured a spot in the PTFCA.

The team’s sprint medley relay of Sean Rundle, Demetrius Lockley, Colten Nist and Tyler Widenhofer placed fourth with a time of 8:57.83.

The Seneca Valley 800 relay team of Oliver Philogene, Andrew Schroeder, Jonathan Dorogy and Forrest Barnes won the event with a time of 1:31.75.

Caitlin Bungo of Sewickley Academy, a resident of Adams Township, won the girls 800 with a time of 2:21.06.

The following are medalists for Butler at the TSTCA Indoor Championship Meet at Edinboro University Saturday:Girls60 meters: 6-Paige Allen 8.07

200 meters: 5-Paige Allen 26.95

60 hurdles: 3-Lexis Frost 9.54; 7-Nicole Andler 9.74

Long jump: 2-Paige Allen 16-9.75; 3-Lexis Frost 16-5.25; 7-Kennedy Evans 15-6.75

Triple jump: 4-Lexis Frost 34-4.25; 7-Kristen Knass 33-7.75

High jump: 1-Paige Rittelmann 5-4; 5-Lauren Maher 5-0

Pole vault: Becky Arturo 9-6

Shot put: 6-Ava Bonetti 37-7.5

800-meter relay: 3-Paige Allen, Kennedy Evans, Abby Fugh, Jasmine Bailey 1:50

1,600-meter relay: 4-Amanda Wiest, Vanessa Tomsey, Rachel Konieczny, Rachel Weyand

3,200-meter relay: 2-Holly Keefer, Alexis Swiergol, Tori Sawhney, Macy Stahlnecker 10:17.98

Distance medley relay: 4-Rachel Konieczny, Rachel Weyand, Tori Sawhney, Alexis Swiergol 13;33.20

Sprint medley relay: 7-Kennedy Evans, Jasmine Bailey, Vanessa Tomsey, Ashley Grooms 4;45.19

BoysShot put: 5-Travis Reed 51-3.5

Long jump: 6-Jake Alston 20-9.5

Triple jump: 7-Spencer Murray 42-7

Sprint medley relay: 4-Sean Rundle, Demetrius Lockley, Colten Nist, Tyler Widenhofer) 3:56.01

3,200-meter relay: 6-Sean Rundle, Chris Short, Dalton Hayes, Matt Steighner 8;57.83

800-meter relay: 8-Demetrius Lockley, Jake Alston, Colin Williamson, Mickey Fennell 1:34.58