BUTLER TWP— It began the year as a team without a home or a winning reputation.

But the Butler baseball team persevered — and that perseverance paid off.

The Golden Tornado, 12-6 overall, 8-4 in section play, are in the WPIALplayoffs for the first time since the current seniors were in first grade.

"All of us just matured this year,"shortstop Darren Blakley said.

Butler just missed qualifying for the playoffs during coach Dave Florie's first two years with the team.

In Florie's third season, the Tornado broke through with the help of first-year seniors Jeff Slater, Ryan Armahizer and Nick Rossmiller, all of whom reached the playoffs in other sports during the 2007-08 school year.

"The intestinal fortitude those guys brought to the team was huge,"Florie said. "We're talking about some winners here. Those kids know how to win and how to be competitive."

Armahizer played on the junior varsity team his sophomore year and did not come out for baseball last year. He decided to return to the program this spring.

"I was glad to make the team, but I've never sat in my life,"Armahizer said. "I didn't want to start doing that now, so I treated every practice like it was a big-time game. I just worked hard."

"When we were making player cuts, I told Ryan it was difficult for a senior to sit the bench,"Florie said. "He told me he wanted to help elevate Butler baseball to a top-notch program any way he could.

"That's the kind of kid we have on this team."

Because the ongoing renovations of Pullman Park didn't allow the facility to house games this spring, Butler played five of its first six section games on the road — and went 5-1.

"The good start we had went a long way toward getting us in,"Florie said. "We figured eight (section) wins would do it, so we only had to win half of the games in the second half."

Senior pitcher Tim Geibel said the success the Tornado had during the first half of the section season convinced them of their destiny.

"When we beat Pine-Richland, Shaler and North Allegheny on the road, we knew we were good enough to get there,"Geibel said.

Armahizer said he believes some opposing teams took Butler lightly early in the season.

"We're traveling an hour on a bus, jump off and we're mentally ready to play baseball," he said. "The other team was probably at the field hitting for an hour already.

"Butler didn't have the best reputation in baseball around here — I think we surprised some people."

Florie keeps plenty of statistics, the most notable being the H, which stands for hard-hit balls.

Sophomore John Crummy led the team with 19 H's. He had a .349 batting average to go with it.

But not all Butler hitters had a high average to go with their high number of H's. Third baseman David Schmidt hit .222, but had nine H's in 27 at-bats. Catcher Ryan Geibel hit .158, but had numerous H's as well. Armahizer hit .125, but had seven H's.

"The most important stat is the hard-hit ball,"Florie said. "That means more to me than batting average. You can be in the lineup all year, hit the ball hard and just hit a lot of at-'em balls."

Junior outfielder Dustin Uhlman said Florie emphasizes getting the barrel of the bat on the ball consistently.

"I know he's made me a better hitter," he said. "It's all about quality at-bats. Hit the ball hard and even if it's right at somebody, it becomes a challenging play for them. You never know what might happen."

The majority of Butler batters have acquired patience at the plate and the Tornado's walk total has risen dramatically as a result.

"Those walks make a difference,"Florie said. "We had only 7 H's in a 12-9 win over Pine-Richland, but drew 12 walks. We had 7 H's again in a 13-0 win over North Hills, but drew 12 walks again.

"Get guys on base, you score runs."

Butler doesn't have the overpowering pitcher who has thrown the majority of innings this spring. Matt McCormick has 36 innings, Tim Geibel 34Z\c, Zach Cuffman 22.

Rossmiller (12X\c innings), Greg Hays (11) and sophomore Alek Bollinger (9) have contributed as well.

"You always prefer to have somebody who's going to blow the ball by people and be a stopper for you,"Florie admitted. "We needed four pitchers to win at Shaler, three to win at Pine-Richland.

"When we give a kid a start, if he's not doing well, we pull him quickly. We have a lot of pitchers who can do the job. That system has worked well for us."

Tim Geibel likes it.

"When I start a game, my arm feels great because I haven't thrown a lot of innings," he said. "All of our pitchers are in that situation."

Plenty of pitchers, drawing plenty of walks, collecting H's, adding playoff-seasoned athletes and overall maturity — it's all worked in ending Butler's WPIALplayoff drought.

Now the next loss will be the last Butler baseball game for the 11 seniors on the squad.

"The really big thing is we've given other kids the motivation to come out and keep Butler baseball successful," Blakley said. "That's what I'm most proud of."

Here are some key numbers surrounding the 2008 Butler varsity baseball team:• Butler averaged six runs per game and allowed four runs per game.• The Golden Tornado hit .294 as a team and had a 3.80 team earned run average.• Butler shut out three opponents and scored 10 or more runs in a game five times.• Tim Geibel led the Tornado with a .476 batting average and 20 hits. He also sported a 2.86 ERAin 34 1/3 innings pitched.• Matt McCormick struck out 48 in 36 innings pitched.• Darren Blakley hit ..341, led the team with 18 walks and five stolen bases.• Dustin Uhlman hit .325, walked 15 times, led the team with two home runs and 15 RBI.• John Crummy hit .349 as a sophomore.• Bill Coleman hit .333 with 10 walks and 10 RBI.• Despite hitting .158, Ryan Geibel had 10 walks and 10 RBI.