Marble Falls powerlifting finishes regular season by earning 3rd at Texas A&M
CAPTION: Marble Falls powerlifter Genesis Lemon is a regional qualifier again. Lemon continues to impress with commitment to technique and ability to lift weight. Photo by Martelle Luedecke/Luedecke Photography
The Marble Falls High School powerlifting team finished in third place at the Texas A&M Invitational Feb. 17.
That’s a combined score of both the Mustangs and Lady Mustangs, head coach Richard Scales said.
“The main reason why I wanted to go to this one was to get exposure for the boys,” he said. “I have a bunch of seniors. And regionals is a morning meet. I wanted them to get acclimated to moving around. I need their bodies ready to compete in the morning.”
The finish was especially important for the Lady Mustangs since it was their last chance to get a regional ranking. The top 12 in each weight class qualify for the Region 2, Division 2 meet, which is March 1 at Dublin High School.
Regional qualifiers are Makenzie Long in the 114-pound division, Cheyenne Blair in the 132-pound division, Bethany Fry in the 165-pound division, Alexis Dalton and Isabell Medina in the 181-pound division, Sophia Pedraza in the 198-pound division, Montserrat Fregoso in the 220-pound division, and Genesis Lemon in the 242-pound division.
The boys Region 2, Division 2 qualifiers re Aaron Arredondo, Aaron Dominguez, Daniel Dominguez, David Dominguez, Noah Escandon, Mynor Flores, Josue Fonseca, Jose Galvan, Josue Garcia, Adan Lopez, Xavier Lopez, Keaton Proctor, Chase Richard, Arnulfo Salazar, Oswaldo Sanchez, Christian Sein and Jose Solorzano.
The Mustangs earned five gold medals at the Texas A&M meet: Richard in the 123-pound division, Adan Lopez in the 132-pound division, Arredondo in the 148-pound division, Salazar in the 165-pound division, and Xavier Lopez in the 198-pound division. Solorzano earned a silver medal in the 220-pound division. Sein and Aaron earned bronze in the 123-pound and 132-pound divisions, respectively. Other point contributors were Garcia, Proctor and Sanchez.
“The boys scored 48 points,” Scales said. “Xavier does Xavier things. He lifted 1,675 pounds — that’s a lot. We want to get him to 750 on deadlift. Adan Lopez made huge gains. I was proud of him. Keaton is still trying to qualifying for regionals. He’s lifted 80 pounds more than he’s shown. That should be high enough to qualify for regionals.”
He was especially happy for Salazar.
“I had this freshman come out, Arnulfo Salazar,” the coach said. “He’s one of our first place finishers. That’s pretty impressive. On his last lift on deadlift, he lifted the weight but didn’t do it cleanly. If he does it again at regionals, he’s another state meet qualifier. It’s something that’s easily coachable that I can fix.”
He also was happy for Sergio Hernandez, who set a new personal best with 1,210 pounds. His old record was 1,195 pounds.
“His squat was at 490,” Scales said. “He squatted 520.”
Scales noted that Solorzano was close to squatting 650 pounds.
“He had some balance issues and lost his balance,” he said. “He lifted a total of 1,495 pounds even with the mishaps. That’s 25 pounds more than he’s done. That’s over the automatic qualifying total to go to state.”
The challenge, however, is to lift those totals at the regional meet. Lifters must either finish first or second in their weight class or lift a qualifying standard to advance to state.
As for the others, Scales said there are improvements that can be made that will allow the athletes to earn scores. Lifting weight is only part of the sport. Judges also look at the techniques.
“There are minor technical flaws that can be fixed,” he said.
Marble Falls turns its attention to the regional meet. Scales was more than optimistic about the chances for his lifters.
“I have five boys who have already gone past the automatic total and five more who are right there,” he said. “If all the boys at regionals do what they’re capable of, there’s a possibility we’ll get 10 boys to state this year.”
The boys Region 2, Division 2 meet is March 9 at Gatesville High School. The girls Class 4A state meet is March 13-16 at Comerica Center in Frisco. The boys Division 2 state meet is March 22 at Taylor County Expo Center in Abilene.
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RESULTS
PEAP Texas A&M University (squat-bench press-deadlift–total)
Boys
123 — 1, Chase Richard, 375-240-405–1,020; 123 — 3, Christian Sein, 350-185-375–910; 132 — 1, Adan Lopez, 450-245-470–1,165, 3, Aaron Dominguez, 430-215-405–1,050; 148 — 1, Aaron Arredondo, 515-335-420–1,270; 165 — 1, Arnulfo Salazar, 485-315-440–1,240; 181 — 5, Oswaldo Sanchez, 450-285-480–1,215; 198 — 1, Xavier Lopez, 650-335-710–1,695, 5, Josue Garcia, 520-365-510–1,395, 6, Noah Escandon, 560-325-480–1,365; 220 — 2, Jose Solorzano, 640-335-500–1,475, 9, Sergio Hernandez, 520-230-460–1,210; 242 — 4, Keaton Proctor, 500-250-490–1,240; 275 — 7, Jose Galvan, 495-270-450–1,215
Girls
114 — 8, Makenzie Long, 165-80-180–425; 132 — 8, Cheyenne Blair, 220-120-220–560; 165 — 6, Bethany Fry, 285-135-305–725; 181– 3, Alexis Dalton, 330-145-350–825, 8, Abigail Boucher, 260-130-280–670; 198 — 5, Sophia Pedraza, 225-115-240–580; 220 — 7, Montserrat Fregoso, 285-140-265–690
