What were Butler County’s top sports stories of 2025? We ranked them from 15 to 1
From Butler football’s comeback to the numerous district and state championships, 2025 was a busy year in sports in Butler County.
So when looking back on the top stories of the past 12 months in Butler County, there was plenty to choose from.
The Butler Eagle sports staff has come up with its top stories of the past year. Here’s how we ranked the top 15 stories. What were your top stories of the year?
We already knew about Glenn’s electric abilities as a running back, but the senior showed off his dynamism as a kick and punt return with seven touchdowns on special teams this year. That put him over the top for the Butler Eagle Scoring Trophy. He recorded 162 points in the regular season and became the fourth Yellowjacket to win the award.
The biggest sports business news of the year came from arguably the county’s most famous field. The Pullman Park authority was dissolved in the summer, and operating control has now been split between the city of Butler and the school district. Field upgrades and repairs have taken place since, and Butler Area School District will be responsible for the daily management of the park going forward.
The Tornado won their fifth PIAA Competitive Spirit Championships title in January, claiming the coed varsity gold with 84.33 points over McDowell. All three judges gave Butler a score of at least 84 in the final.
Magness soared to consecutive Class 2A girls pole vault titles in the spring, winning the WPIAL championship in 12-4 followed by the PIAA title in 12-0. The state gold medal was in memory of a friend, Dylan Tarbi, who died the year before while she was competing at states.
Felitsky led one of the most prolific passing offenses the WPIAL and Butler County has ever seen, throwing for 3,388 yards and leading the Trojans to the WPIAL Class 3A semifinals. His 46 touchdowns broke the district’s single-season record.
The quartet of Seava Cresta, Daphne Flerl, Audra Lazzara and Anna Lazzara won PIAA track and field gold in 48.46, setting a Trojanettes’ record in the process. That came not long after they set the WPIAL mark with a 48.07 to win a district title.
Jungling headlined a historic season for the Tornado rifle team, winning its first individual state title with a 413.8 and leading the club to a team state championship with a 1,019.9. He won is gold by half a point.
Going into the season, it seemed the Warriors were destined to end a losing streak dating back nearly two full years. But it came as a pleasant surprise when they shut out Coudersport 17-0 in the debut of head coach Clay Kohlmeyer, a former standout quarterback for the program in the 2000s.
Ireland, a junior last year, became one of the first Butler County girls wrestlers to claim major postseason hardware with a WPIAL 118-pound championship, a regional tournament title and a sixth-place finish in the PIAA Girls Individual Wrestling Championships, all firsts for a Knights program in its first year.
The Golden Tornado, in their second year as an independent, went 7-3, marking the first time in 28 years they had finished above .500. It was the first season they had seven wins since 1992. It came with a forfeit loss (after the fact) against Westinghouse but also included impressive wins over Shaler (32-26 in OT) and University (35-27).
After years toiling away for his hometown Pirates out of playoff contention, Bednar finalize realized a baseball dream. It required being traded at the MLB trade deadline to the Yankees. He made his first five postseason appearances after one of his best major league seasons (62 2/3 innings, 2.59 ERA, 86 strikeouts).
Sloboda was nearly perfect in 2024-25, going 50-1, defending his WPIAL Class 3A title, winning the PIAA regional tournament and then finishing third in the PIAA Individual Wrestling Championships in Hershey. His lone loss came in the state quarterfinals. He was named the Butler Eagle’s Male Athlete of the Year for 2024-25.
Butler Eagle Player of the Year Camryn Woods fired the winning goal in the 73rd minute against section rival Burrell to win the Yellowjackets their first district gold at Highmark Stadium in November.
From a small-town school to an All-American at Bucknell University, Bliss has already accomplished a lot as a javelin thrower. But she upped the bar in August in Eugene, Ore., with a throw of 189-6 to win the U.S. outdoor national championship.
In a year of historic firsts and fallen records, it was the Raiders’ run to their first state championship after dominating in the PIHL playoffs and Penguins Cup final that takes the top spot. Braden Morin had a hat trick against Holy Ghost Prep for the state title, a week after Marshall Hewitt fired a winner in triple overtime of the Penguins Cup.
