Sanchez wins 2nd at State powerlifting meet

Lady Mustang powerlifter brought home 2nd place from the State meet.

Natalia Junior Sam Sanchez attended her second state powerlifting meet of her career and she left a true mark in Waco. The 97 lb. Weight class competitor, was able to hold her own all day and give herself a golden shot at her first ever state title.
Unfortunately, Sanchez fell just 10 lbs. shy of a state title, as she finished in 2nd place out of 20+ lifters in her weight class with a 700 lb. Total. Sanchez total included a 280 lb. Squat, a 145 lb. Bench press and a 275 lb. Dead lift.
Sanchez performance was key to success for the girls in blue, as they were able to finish in 14th place as a team with 7 team points out of 60+ schools in attendance.
“I am really proud of our girls representing our program, school and community this past weekend in Waco, Texas at the State Powerlifting Meet,” Coach Ilyan Martinez said. “Our girls and program have come a long way and it’s exciting to see our kids expect to compete for state championships. We fell short of that goal but encouraged and excited about the standard of excellence and championship culture we are building here.”
Next up was senior JuJu Morales who was able to finish in 4th place in the 132 lb. Weight class thanks to an 860 lb. Total. Morales used a 345 lb. Squat, a 225 lb. Bench press and a 290 lb. Dead lift to account for her total. She was edged out of the top three spots which were owned by state champion Alyssa Hill-Van Alstyne-930 lb. Total, Alessandra Ruiz-Dilley-910 lb. Total and Hallie Brinson-Early 895 lb. Total.
“Our team was led by Junior two lifter Sam Sanchez who took home 2nd place and broke a state squat record with a 280lb squat,” Martinez said. I am also proud of Senior and four time state lifter JuJu Morales who took 4th place and broke the bench press record with a 225lb Bench.”
Other finishes: 97 lb. Weight class: Julia Owens 13th place- 225 lb. Squat, 115 lb. Bench press, 225 lb. Deadlift-565 lb. Total. 105 lb. Weight class: Bryanna Perez 9th place- 275 lb. Squat, 145 lb. Bench press, 265 lb. Deadlift-685 lb. Total. Anastasia Rodriguez 10th place- 260 lb. Squat, 150 lb. Bench press, 250 lb. Deadlift-660 lb. Total. 148 lb. Weight class: Dezarea Perez 6th place- 335 lb. Squat, 165 lb. Bench press, 335 lb. Deadlift-835 lb. Total.
“We are only graduating 2 out for 6 of our girls and I’m excited about the future of our program,” Coach Martinez said. “I am looking forward to continuing to build on the tradition and culture here with our entire program.”
By Eric Smith