BUTLER TWP — Sprinters and distance runners are relatively easy to find in track and field.

Jumpers and throwers? Not so much.

Butler seems to fill in all of those holes on an annual basis — a major reason the Golden Tornado have been so dominant in the sport, especially this season.

“There are 18 events in track and field and only 11 are on the track,” Butler boys coach Mike Seybert pointed out. “There's 87 points to be had on the track, 63 in field events.

“Those field events often determine whether you win or lose.”

Often times, the field events take place without much fanfare while eyes of people in the stands are glued on sprint, hurdle and relay races on the track.

“It's fun, even though it feels like no one's watching at times,” sophomore long and triple jumper Megan Baggetta said. “I like it that way, though. It takes the pressure off.

“Our points matter a lot. At times, the track athletes will come running over to us, saying they didn't do so well (in track events) and ask us how we did. That makes us feel good.”

Brayden Young, Butler's top long jumper, admits to enjoying when that event is the last to be completed at a meet.

“Everyone's watching us then,” he said. “It's different. It's cool to be in the spotlight that way.”

Whether people are watching or not, the Tornado have been dominant in field events in virtually every meet this spring.

On the boys side, Young, Ryan Porch, Justin Kabay and Tyler Rekich have all hit 21 feet or better in the long jump. Carson Noble and Porch have triple-jumped over 41 feet.

Jake Ritzert and Landon Kretzer have shot puts of more than 44 feet, Jake Pomykata has tossed the discus 143-10 and the javelin 174 feet. Rekich has thrown the javelin 157 feet.

“I play a lot of baseball, so I figured I'd try the javelin,” Rekich said. “But it's like throwing a football more than throwing a baseball. You just have to get the technique down.”

Jordan Stutz has hit six feet in the high jump for Butler.

“I jump well in basketball, so it was a natural event for me,” Stutz said. “We all try different events here, whatever's good for the team.”

Tristan McGarrah has hit 14 feet, 3 inches in the pole vault this season and continues Butler's tradition in that event, following Jared Farabee, Jack Codispot and Andrew Kline.

Seybert figures McGarrah will snap the school record before he's through.

“Tristan's the real deal. He's going to hit 16 feet eventually,” the coach said.

His father, Jerry McGarrah, is Butler's pole vault coach.

“Every now and then, you'll get a kid who's just a natural at it,” Coach McGarrah said. “But usually, it takes time to develop that skill because it's such a unique event. Speed plays a big part, building momentum coming down the runway.

“Most high school track programs don't have a pole vault coach. The Steel City Pole Vault Club in Zelienople opened recently and is a place kids can go to refine and hone their skills. It takes a lot of athleticism to do it.”

On the girls side, Baggetta has a triple jump of 36 feet, 9.25 inches this season. Bella Shook is at 34-2, Ali Altman at 33-10. Alli Morrow, Altman and Baggetta all have long jumps of 16 feet or farther.

Alexia Mechling has a high jump of 5-4 while Altman and Katie Ban have hit 5-2.

“Megan has been a gymnast since age 4,” Butler girls coach John Williams saiod. “A lot of those girls transition into jumpers in track.

“You do a lot of jumping as a gymnast,” Baggetta said. “Those years of doing gymnastics have definitely helped me here.”

Mechling was a dancer before leaving that behind to concentrate on track and field.

“A lot of my friends were doing jumps in track. It looked like fun and I wanted to try it out,” Mechling said. “Now I want to compete in college, hopefully Division 1.”

Kenna Jackson has a shot put of 36-8 for the Tornado. Sarayne Forbes leads the team with a discus throw of 119-7. Maisy Gibson has a javelin toss of 111-10 while Megan Penrod has hit 110-10. Samantha Penrod has a pole vault leap of 11 feet, 1 inch.

“Yeah, some people figure the throwers to be big-bodied ... Kenna Jackson is a cheerleader, Sarayne Forbes a point guard in basketball ... those are athletic kids,” Williams said.

“A kid may be really big, but may not be strong enough. The arm strength has to be there, too. We find throwers from a lot of other sports.”

Mechling said she's thrilled every time she gets a first place “because getting those points is vital to the team. If it's a close meet, that could make us win.”

Butler track and field athletes experiment with numerous events in junior high in preparation for making a contribution at the high school level.

“That's all all of these kids want to do, find a way to score points for their school,” Seybert said.