Christian Peterson
reporter.riverbendnews@gmail.com
On Friday, March 14, 17 teams converged on Suwannee High School for the 2025 Bulldogs Weightlifting Invitational. Among this group were defending Class 1A State Champions Suwannee High School, defending Class 2A State Champions Leesburg High School and 2024's Class 1A State Runners-up South Sumter. Over 300 lifters from across the state of Florida made their way to Suwannee County to test their mettle against the best around.
While the star of the show was the Bulldogs, the Branford Buccaneers were also present, and one player stood out among the crowd. In the traditional event, Zander Hegenaur lifted in the 129 pound weight class. He placed eighth with a max lift of 360 pounds. His prowess didn't stop there either, in the olympic event he once again lifted in the 129 pound weight class. Here he placed ninth with a max lift of 290 pounds.
The Traditional weightlifting event was an impressive showdown for the Bulldogs. In the 119-pound weight class, Randy Garcia placed third with a max lift of 395 pounds, and Rah'Darius Cray took seventh place with a max lift of 350 pounds. In the 129-pound weight class, Chris Gonzalez took third place with a max lift of 425 pounds. Close behind him was Mark Garcia in sixth place with a max lift of 380 pounds. Following them was the 139-pound weight class, where Kamden Lang took second place with a max lift of 450 pounds. De'Auman Jones followed, taking ninth place with a max lift of 410 pounds. The 154-pound weight class followed, with Cyler Akins taking the top spot with a max lift of 505 pounds. Gilberto Chavez also placed, taking sixth place with a max lift of 460 pounds. In the 169-pound weight class, Noah Chauncey took second place with a max lift of 525 pounds. Marshall White followed in fourth place with a max lift of 505 pounds. The competition continued in the 183-pound weight class, with Jayden Francis taking sixth place with a max lift of 525 pounds. Clay Starling took 10th place with a max lift of 505 pounds. The 199-pound weight class saw Reese Bronson taking second place with a max lift of 580 pounds. Gage Browning also placed, taking seventh place with a max lift of 510 pounds. The 219-pound weight class saw Brody Bean take third place with a max lift of 580 pounds. Close behind was Davian Ramirez in fifth place with a max lift of 545 pounds. The 238-pound weight class had Colton Hagedorn taking fifth place with a max lift of 570 pounds. Finally, in the Unlimited weight class, Will Brown took second place with a max lift of 635 pounds. In total, the Bulldogs took first place with a total of 49 points, 19 points ahead of the second-place team.
The competition wasn't over with just the Traditional event, as the Olympic event was ongoing too. In the 119-pound weight class, Randy Garcia took third place with a max lift of 370 pounds. Directly behind him in fourth place was Cray with a max lift of 315 pounds. In the 129-pound weight class, Gonzalez took first place with a max lift of 410 pounds. Mark Garcia was close behind in third place with a max lift of 370 pounds. The 139-pound weight class was next, where Lang took third place with a max lift of 405 pounds: he was followed by Jones, who took eighth place with a max lift of 355 pounds.
The competition continued with the 154-pound weight class, where Akins took first place with a max lift of 460 pounds. Frank Brookins placed fifth place with a max lift of 395 pounds. The 169-pound weight class was next, where White placed seventh with a max lift of 415 pounds. Directly behind him was Xander McAlpin, who was in eighth place with a max lift of 415 pounds. The 183-pound weight class followed, with Starling taking fifth place with a max lift of 475 pounds. Jayden Francis was close behind in seventh place with a max lift of 435 pounds. The momentum kept up in the 199-pound weight class, where Bronson took first place with a max lift of 490 pounds. Browning was close behind in fourth place with a max lift of 460 pounds. The 219-pound weight class was next, where Ramirez took fourth place with a max lift of 475 pounds. Bean also placed, taking seventh with a max lift of 450 pounds. The 238-pound weight class followed, with Hagedorn taking fourth place with a max lift of 500 pounds. On top of that, Holden Mantooth took tenth place with a max lift of 415 pounds. Finally, in the Unlimited weight class, Brown took first place with a max lift of 540 pounds. Once again, the Bulldogs took the top spot as a team with a total of 56 points, 11 points more than the second-place team.