Sister act | Butler girls soccer’s success this season comes at the feet of four sets of siblings
Strong bonds can help sports teams at any level in their quest for a successful campaign. In that regard, Butler girls soccer hit the ground running this season.
Nine players for the Golden Tornado have a sister also playing for Butler this fall.
The group includes three siblings from the Steyer family — Brooke, Quinn and Teagan; along with Ava and Addie DeLorenzo; Molly and Lexi Rudish; and Lucia and Jules Leyland. They are part of the biggest roster head coach Dan Buzzard has had in his four years leading the team.
“I’ve never had that many siblings on one of my teams, even when I coached freshman baseball for 10 years,” Buzzard said. “We want there to be a family-like culture with the soccer team, and all of those sisters just add to that feeling.”
The siblings were all introduced to the sport through Butler County Soccer Association.
“We do the best we can to provide players with an environment that is encouraging and challenging at the same time,” said Colin Leyland, president of BCSA and the father of Lucia and Jules. “We want to keep them coming back every year. It may be an older sibling who influences a kid getting involved with soccer to start, but I think a big reason why they stick with it is the friendships they form with players of their own age.”
The Steyer family was afforded a special memory Oct. 5 at Art Bernardi Stadium. It was senior night and Brooke, along with being recognized for her contributions to the program, was on the field when Quinn, a freshman, scored her first varsity goal in a 2-0 win over Taylor Allderdice.
“We celebrated the seniors, but we made strong connections with the younger players this year, too,” Brooke said. “For Quinn to score that night, it was an important moment for us.”
Quinn Steyer is a forward and her twin, Teagan, is a goalkeeper. Big sister Brooke is a defender.
“It’s really neat that we play three different positions,” Brooke said. “We can play in the basement or in the yard and each get better from going up against each other.”
Brooke Steyer influenced not only Quinn and Teagan to get involved, but it also opened the door for her father, Jason Steyer, to learn the game.
“I had no background in soccer before she started playing,” Jason said. “I played hockey in high school, but my kids lit a fire under me and it created a passion.”
Jason Steyer coached soccer for over a decade and is now BCSA’s vice president and president of Goal Getters, the girls soccer booster club at Butler High School.
“All of the families with multiple girls playing this year for Butler are heavily involved in soccer,” Colin Leyland said. “Amanda Rudish (mother of Molly and Lexi) is vice president for Goal Getters. Karen DeLorenzo (mother of Ava and Addie) was a previous coach for BCSA.”
The family connections have helped bolster the Golden Tornado (8-8-1), who will be competing in the upcoming WPIAL Class 4A playoffs.
“When you get to this point of the season, every team is dealing with injuries,” Buzzard said. “Thanks to our numbers, we can bring more girls than ever in off the bench.”
