Elk Mound lifters take top spots in River Falls; Colfax grabs seventh and eighth places
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RIVER FALLS — The powerlifting season got underway on Saturday, December 14, when both Elk Mound and Colfax traveled to River Falls for the first meet of the season.
The Mounder boys and girls both finished in first place with the ladies earning 97 points and the boys earning 91 points.
As for Colfax, their low numbers played a key factor once again as they finished in seventh place for the boys with 21 points and in eighth place for the girls with nine points.
Both Colfax and Elk Mound will travel to Osceola on Saturday, January 11, for their next powerlifting meet of the season, with their final meet in Elk Mound on February 8.
Lifters who qualify for state will compete in Appleton on March 7 and 8.
Elk Mound
The Mounders had 51 lifters compete in River Falls, 47 varsity and 4 JV, with forty athletes finishing in the top 15 on varsity.
Laylue Kue finished in first place in the 105-lb. weight class with a 145-lb. squat, 85-lb. bench press, and a 225-lb dead lift.
Emma Gillespie, Nanya Kue, and Clare Hallum finished first, second, and fourth, respectively, for Elk Mound in the 114-lb. weight class. Gillespie wrapped up the day with a 170-lb. squat, 85-lb. bench press, and a 270-lb. dead lift, Kue finished with a 145-lb. squat, 80-lb. bench press, and a 225-lb. dead lift, and Hallum had a 150-lb. squat, 80-lb. bench press, and a 210-lb. dead lift.
In the 123-pound weight class, the Mounders had three athletes finish in the top four – Morgyn Hallum, Mercedes Hay, and Madelynn Dutzle. Hallum had a 220-lb. squat, 95-lb. bench press, and a 240-lb. dead lift; Hay finished with a 155-lb. squat, 90-lb. bench, and 210-lb. dead lift; and Dutzle had a 180-lb. squat, 70-lb. bench, and 200-lb. dead lift.
Orianna Horel and Teagan Pahl took first and second, respectively, in the 181-pound weight class. Horel finished with a 260-lb. squat, 105-lb. bench, and 300-lb. dead lift, Pahl had a 225-lb. squat, 110-lb. bench, and a 250-lb. dead lift.
Devin Balts and Lane Lee landed first place finishes for the Mounders. Balts, 114-pound weight class, had a 205-lb. squat, 125-lb. bench, and 260-lb. dead lift, and Lee, 132-pound weight class, finished with a 230-lb. squat, 145-lb. bench, and 320-lb. dead lift.
Major Gunderson-Morris also had a first place finish in the 198-pound weight class with a 385-lb. squat, 215-lb. bench, and a 505-lb. dead lift.
Colfax
All three of Colfax’s lifters placed at the River Falls meet on Saturday morning, December 14.
“We missed a few lifts with our varsity team that made it hard for us to qualify for state,” said head coach Matt DeMoe. “But overall we had a good meet. We have room to grow and the kids are ready to put the work in.”
Colfax’s only female to compete for varsity was Sydney Herrick and she finished in second place behind Syd Regan from Osceola. Herrick had a 215-lb. squat after failing to complete her third try at 245-lb., a 105-lb. bench, and a 275-lb. dead lift after failing a 295-lb lift.
Austin Schindler finished in second in the 220-pound weight class with a 350-lb. squat after failing his second try at 335-lb., a 210-lb. bench, and a 405-lb. dead lift after missing the 460-lb. lift.
Finishing in first for the 275+-pound weight class was Chase Aspengren. He had a 340-lb. squat, 235-lb. bench, and 400-lb. dead lift. Aspengren successfully completed all three tries in each category for the Vikings.
“Our middle school lifter did well, and learned what a meet is all about” DeMoe explained. “Now they will be putting in more work to increase their numbers.”

