The girls powerlifting team began its season on Monday, Dec. 8, and has seen a lot of growth in the number of members on the team.
Since the powerlifting team’s addition to the school’s athletic program in 2022, it has seen a steady increase in popularity. One athlete who has noticed this rise is junior Avery Huber, a leader among the girls on the team.
“I think the idea of women’s empowerment has become bigger,” Huber said. “More girls are starting to realize that it’s okay to do sports like that if you’re good at it.”
Powerlifting consists of three core lifts: bench press, hang clean and squat, which the team spends time refining at practice to train for the heavy lifting on competition days.
The weight room provides access to quality equipment, which is one reason sophomore Isabel Leblanc wanted to join the team.
“Over the past couple years of taking the school’s [Athletic Development and Performance program] and strength and conditioning made me interested in lifting more,” Leblanc said. “My gym doesn’t have free weights where you could hang clean and venture.”
As the team continues to advance in numbers, powerlifting coach Tim Thomas observes the mental growth in the lifters.
“Confidence is a big thing,” Thomas said. “Feeling comfortable under that bar, whatever that lift is, and once they get a feel for that, they start pushing themselves a little bit more and finding out just how strong they are.”
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