Carole Cress-Descovich

This is the sixth in a series of articles profiling the 2012 inductees into the Butler County Sports Hall of Fame. The Hall's annual banquet is at 6:30 p.m. April 28 at the Butler Days Inn.ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — For Carole Cress-Descovich, running was just something fun to do.It just wasn't fun for anybody running against her.Cress-Descovich, a 1986 Mars graduate and a four-time WPIAL champion in sprint events, has parlayed her speed into induction into the Butler County Sports Hall of Fame.“I'm totally honored by this,” the now Orchard Park (NY) resident said. “It's nostalgic.”Track and field was her sport since middle school.“I just fell into it because running always came so easily for me,” Cress-Descovich said. “I began competing in intramurals in middle school and just had fun with it.“Once I got to high school, the coaches and the girls I ran with only added to it. We became so tight as a group and I was motivated to do well.”Cress-Descovich wound up winning WPIAL titles in the 100 meters in 1985 and 1986, 200 meters in 1985 and was part of the Planets' championship 400-meter relay unit as a sophomore in 1984.Her times of 12.5 seconds in the 100 and 25.9 in the 200 remain Mars High School records today, 26 years later. Her time in the 200 still stands as the 10th-fastest ever run by a Butler County female.“We set the (school) record in the 400 relay, too, but I'm unsure if it still stands,” Cress-Descovich said. “It very well might.”Her running partners on that relay were Cindie Miller, Holly Santa and Lori Matter.“We set the relay record in 1985,” Cress-Descovich said. “I lost touch with those girls over the years, but I'll never forget them.”Cress-Descovich credited her development as a runner in high school to Mars head track coach Clem Papik and assistant coach John Henicheck. The latter nominated her for the county Hall of Fame.She was inducted into the Mars Area High School Athletic Hall of Fame in 2007.“Coach Henicheck was our hurdles coach, but his family was next-door neighbors to mine,” Cress-Descovich said. “His two daughters were my best friends.“You feel honored breaking records, but that felt like part of the process to us. You always wanted to better yourself.”Cress-Descovich continued to better herself in college, moving on to Frostburg State (Md.) and participating on the 4x100, 4x200 and 4x800 relay units that set school records there.She competed in track for three years in college before transferring to Medical College of Virginia in Richmond, where she received her degree in nursing.“The pre-nursing program at Frostburg is what attracted me there,” Cress-Descovich said. “I enjoyed my college track career, too, but I quickly realized my running career was not going to get me a job.“I wanted to be a nurse, so I did what I needed to do to prepare for that profession.”Cress-Descovich was a registered nurse for 10 years. Today, she is a stay at home mom, raising children Nicholas, Andrew and Sophia.She still runs today, but only to stay in shape.“I've missed it, but I've taken other steps in my life,” Cress-Descovich said.“My kids are young yet, but I'd love for them to find their own little niche in sports. I want them to find their own way and just go for it.”Tickets for the Hall of Fame dinner are $20 and are available at Parker Appliances in Chicora, Moses Jewelers at the Clearview Mall, Bill's Beer Barn or Snack n' Pack in Butler, Maddalon's Jewelers in Zelienople, Saxonburg Drug or at www.bcshof.com.