The MSMS female powerlifting team is ready to take on the 2017-2018 year. In powerlifting, lifters compete in three movements: the squat, the bench press and the deadlift. The movements make use of a barbell, a weighted bar that weighs 45 pounds and can be loaded to almost any amount.

In the squat, competitors place the bar on the top of their back and, as the name implies, squat down. Proper depth is defined as when the hip crease is below the top of the knee.

In the bench press, the competitors stabilize the bar over the shoulder joint and lower it to their chest and press it back up to the starting position.

In the deadlift, competitors must pick up a bar on the floor and stand up with their back straight. The amount of weight that the competitors do on each of the three lifts is added together, and this is referred to as the total. The total is what is used to rank the lifters.

“We are really excited for the ability to compete this year and have good reason to hope for the possibility of a state championship because our numbers are like those of the state championship of last year,” says co-captain Brianna Ladnier.

This is the first year the team will be in existence and their coach is Krista Williams.

“I’ve been doing powerlifting for years and I’m super excited for the ability to be able to continue doing it at MSMS,” says co-captain Ray Hoffman.

The team will train at Stark and this is where they would like to see improvement. “We wish we had better practice facilities than Stark. There is not a lot of equipment suited for powerlifting,” state Brianna and Ray enthusiastically.