Clutching her football helmet at her side, Heavin Warner turns away from the post-game huddle and walks off the field.

Benton’s female kicker enjoyed a successfully productive night, booting through both of her extra-point opportunities during a tough loss to Maryville, but unlike her teammates, her night is far from over.

Warner still has to get in a lengthy cross country workout before her day is over — six miles long, to be exact. And don’t forget about the day-long softball tournament the next morning.

Although her involvement on the football team makes her undeniably unique, that’s not remotely her most remarkable achievement. The Cardinals’ junior has an audacious goal of competing in six varsity sports this school year — three of them this fall.

Such dedication surely must have a remarkable explanation.

“I don’t know,” Warner said. “I just don’t like to sit around.”

★ ★ ★

Warner’s typical routine is hectic enough to overload a Blackberry.

Some days, she’s on the football field as early as 6:30 a.m., honing her technique with Benton kicking coach Rick Reigert. After dozens of repetitions, it’s off to school — where she makes straight A’s.

A full softball practice across the street at Hyde Park follows her school day and usually lasts a couple of hours, at least. If she doesn’t have a game, she’ll trek back across Hyde Park Avenue to practice extra points at the end of football practice. On Wednesday, she didn’t finish her gridiron workout until 7.

With little to no daylight remaining, she then completes the cross country workout with her father, John, lighting her way with the headlights of his car. Then, what else? Oh yeah, homework.

“It really impresses me. I mean there’s no way I can keep up with her schedule,” John Warner said. “I’ve never seen anybody that works just as hard as she does. I’m a lucky parent.”

And a busy one to boot. Her parents make it to all the football games that they can, but there’s no way they can make it to every event. Not even Heavin can do that, as she has yet to compete for the cross country team this season.

But a major burden lifted from Heavin’s folks when she turned 16 years old.

“At least she can drive herself now,” John said, laughing.

★ ★ ★

Warner pulls her long, brown ponytail away from her shoulder pads and focuses on her target.

She takes a deep breath and stares down at Sparks Field’s turf. Another deep breath and she turns her attention to a spot between the two uprights.

“I want it down the middle, so I aim down the middle and hope it goes there,” Heavin said.

After she drills the kick, the student section chants her name. It’s her sixth extra point in 10 tries, and she converted her first four PATs the week before against Bishop LeBlond.

Warner missed all this last year — the atmosphere, the camaraderie. But she wanted to give softball a try and cross country always sounded fun. And the two-sport schedule wasn’t all that bad, after all. She knew the drill after suiting up for both soccer and track as a freshman and handled that well enough.

Warner faced a conundrum when the football team came calling this summer. In the end, she didn’t really have a choice. She’d just have to find time to squeeze in another sport.

“She just loves competing so much. She just can’t get enough of it,” said Duane Kimble, Benton’s track and cross country coach. “It’s just all about competition for her. She wants to do everything that life has to offer.”

Every coach, regardless of the sport, raves about her dedication and work ethic — perhaps no one more than football coach Matt Tabor, who sees past gender when it comes to his hard-working kicker.

“I don’t try to use the words ‘her’ or ‘she’ with her. Really, at the end of the day, she’s an athlete. That’s really what she is,” Tabor said. “She’s just another athlete on our football team who puts in more time and effort into everything that she does.”

★ ★ ★

It’s a near-perfect metaphor brought to life. Heavin’s improved kicking abilities encapsulate her approach in sports, in life. Through unmatched dedication, she’s turned into one of the best kickers in the area and is only getting better.

She’s also one of the biggest offensive threats on the soccer team and will have an increased role during basketball this winter.

Reigert, a local kicking coach since 1992, saw the raw potential when Heavin booted a few extra points for the Cardinals’ freshman team and was thrilled when she agreed to give kicking another try during the summer. But he didn’t mince words. He told her the same thing he tells every one of his pupils: there are no short cuts in this discipline — only hours of practice and countless snaps will lead to improvement.

No problem. Heavin doesn’t really know any other way

operate.

“That’s probably one of her biggest attributes is her work ethic. You don’t see it on that level very often,” Reigert said.

She’s far from done. Despite all she’s accomplished, she wants more. Heavin isn’t content with the extra points. She’s knocked in field goals from 40 yards out during practice but hasn’t received the opportunity to put three points on the board for her team yet — an opportunity she craves and prepares herself for every time Benton starts driving.

“I want to. I’ve kicked it in practice, but I haven’t got to in games yet,” Heavin said. “I want to get a field goal real bad. That’s my goal.”

While constantly striving for more, she wants to let her teammates know they can count on her — regardless of the field, course or court she’s competing on.

“She’s not satisfied for just being average,” Reigert said. “That’s not her.”