Topic: News: Florida High School Girls Weightlifting Grows Rapidly

[Chris Ⓐ LeRoux]

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Florida High School Girls Weightlifting Grows Rapidly
By Mike English

Although it's one of the FHSAA's smaller sports, girls weightlifting is getting bigger in Florida.

When the FHSAA took the sport under its wing for the 2003-04 season, there were 116 participating schools — some like Jupiter High had been fielding unofficial teams for several years before sanctioning.

Last year there were 163 teams in eight sections (there is only one classification). This year, that's up to 183 teams in nine sections — and there are seven more independent teams competing but not participating in the state playoffs.

Besides being a small sport, weightlifting also has a short season.

"The whole season is three meets and it is only a 6 1/2 week while we're in school," said coach Doug Sanders.

The regular season finishes up before the Christmas break, then they come back with sectionals and the state meet after the holiday.

Sanders has 15 girls on the squad this year, covering six of the 10 weight classes, which start at 101 pounds and go up to 199 pounds.

The Warriors lineup includes four lifters who placed in last year's state championships. Aiming for another trip to the state meet are senior Chelsea Delois at 139 pounds, senior Amanda Klein at 129, senior Mary White at 119 and junior Alexis Cataldo at 119.

Also returning to the team are: 101 — juniors Jill Demme and Rachel Lichter; 110 — sophomores Nicki Klein and Lilly McBee; 119 — junior Chloe Delois; 129 — junior Ashley Lewis.

New lifters are: 110 — sophomore Alex Guisinger; 119 — junior Courtney Marshall; 139 — freshman Logan Dunn; 154 — sophomores Hanna Bruno and Brittany Freeman.

Sanders expects the four who qualified for state last year will qualify again this year and possibly several more will advance.

"They have all been working hard," he said.

It's an eclectic group, including cheerleaders, basketball players, flag football players, lacrosse players and track and cross country runners.

"We have four cheerleaders," said Sanders, who stars his third season as the JHS coach. "They like it because it helps them in their other sports."

"We're looking to qualify four or five girls from sectionals to the state meet this year," he said.

Competition is in two lifts — bench press and clean and jerk. The top three finishers at the sectional meet advance to the state finals.

Sectionals are Jan. 26 at Port St. Lucie High. The state finals will again be hosted by New Port Richey's River Ridge High School on Feb. 9.

The Warriors finished 14th at the state meet last year. Sanders was named the sports' Coach of the Year for the second straight season as Jupiter captured the PBCAC North Division championship.

Demme, Cataldo, Amanda Klein, Chelsea Delois and White were all named to the All-Conference First Team, while Lichter, McBee and Nicki Klein were Second-Team picks.

Rookies make up

Dwyer roster

At Dwyer High, coach Reggie Stanley has six girls out for the weightlifting team but none are returning from last year.

"We have a whole new crew this year, nobody is returning," said Stanley.

Dwyer only had four girls last year, all seniors, and just one — senior Abigail Edemidiong — qualify for the state finals last year. It was her second trip to state, but Edemidiong didn't get a good lift in the bench press and didn't finish, still she was an All-Conference First Team member.

The new team includes junior Ulatha Cange (a transfer from Georgia), sophomores Jada Williams, Janae Jones, Clare Hosack, Carly Young, Sasha Vassel and freshman Christian Gericca.

"Most of them are doing other sports and I get them when I can," Stanley said.

The roster includes basketball and track. None of them have any competitive weightlifting experience

"I had to convince them to come out," Stanley said. "Girls, when they think about weightlifting, they think they'll get big. I told them they would compete against girls their own size and they wouldn't get big.

"I told them they would get stronger."

The Panthers have five meet scheduled in the short season.

All the Dwyer lifters are about the same size and compete in the middle weight divisions, Stanley said.

"I have one girls that will be in around 160 or 165 pounds but the rest of them are in the 120 pound range," he said. "We can't seem to spread them out."

GIRLS HIGH SCHOOL WEIGHTLIFTING

SECTION 9: Dwyer High, Jupiter High, Atlantic, Boca Raton, Boynton Beach, Fort Pierce Central, Fort Pierce Westwood, Glades Central, Jensen Beach, John I. Leonard, Lake Worth, Marathon, Martin County, Okeechobee, Pahokee, Palm Beach Central, Palm Beach Gardens, Palm Beach Lakes, Pine Crest, Port St. Lucie, Royal Palm Beach, St. Edwards, Santaluces, Sebastian River, Seminole Ridge, Spanish River, Treasure Coast and Wellington.