GIRLS WEIGHTLIFTING ENTERS THE POSTSEASON

Marathon’s Ella Dunn, left, Ayme Maradiaga, Sabrina Schofield and Justice Lee were all winners at the final regular season meet held Jan. 25. BARRY GAUKEL/Keys Weekly

Meet Results

TeamOlympicTraditional
Marathon4348
Coral Shores4043
Key West2113

Marathon’s lady lifters bested their Keys competitors again Jan. 15 at Coral Shores in a final meet before the postseason. The Dolphins won both the Olympic and traditional events with Coral Shores coming in a close second and Key West taking third. 

The Fins’ Ella Dunn and Ayme Maradiaga split the 101-pound weight class with Dunn winning the Olympic competition and Maradiaga earning the top score in traditional. Katriya Wright was first in Olympic lifts at 110 pounds while Ava Merryman and Brizni Vargas were first in traditional at 139 and 154 pounds, respectively. Rilynn Richards (119), Ella Evans (129), Justice Lee (183) and Sabrina Schofield (199) were double winners, registering top lifts in both events.

Key West’s weight class winners were Shylo Sanchez at 139 pounds and Alexa Condella at 154. Both athletes won the Olympic event in their classes. 

Coral Shores’ Jennille Arias swept both events in the 169-pound class and Sydney Eysenbach did the same in unlimited. Rachel Rusch was first at 110 pounds in the traditional event.

The Lady Conchs travel to their district event Thursday, Jan. 23 while the Lady ’Canes and Fins have their competition on Saturday, Jan. 25. As the girls vie for a shot at district, regional and state hardware, the boys weightlifting season, the harbinger of spring sports, gets underway Wednesday, Jan. 29 at Coral Shores.

Tracy McDonald
Tracy McDonald fled to the Keys from the frozen mountains of Pennsylvania hours after graduating from college and never looked back. She is a second generation coach and educator, and has taught in the public school system for over 25 years. She and her husband met at a beginning teacher meeting in 1997 and have three children born and raised in Monroe County. In her free time, McDonald loves flea markets, historical fiction and long runs in the heat.