Wildcats set 11 school records for weightlifting after summer training

After a summer of hard work, seven female athletes broke 11 school records by lifting heavy.

After a summer of hard work, seven female athletes broke 11 Oak Harbor High School records by lifting heavy.

An average of 25 female athletes joined a summer conditioning program led by Colby Heefner from IRG Physical Therapy. He ran workouts at the high school in batting cages and weight rooms as coronavirus precautions allowed.

Heefner said last summer brought the most female athletes he’s ever had in summer training, which he has been leading for three years.

Heefner led them through workouts that required them to squat, dead lift and bench press impressive amounts of weight. Sometimes they would change the weight, sometimes the tempo or the number of reps. The girls showed up to work five days a week throughout the summer.

“We do (our workouts), we do them often, and eventually we get results,” he said.

Melany Alanis broke three records in the bench press, squat and deadlift. Ashely Hinds broke records in two weight classes for the back squat, and one for the overhead press. MeKayla Smith-Day also broke a record in the back squat in a different weight class.

Sydney Walker, Brianna Richard, Ania Hardin and Mia Carman each broke records with the trap bar deadlift in different weight classes. Ainsley Nelson broke a record in the dip.

As the girls kept working, they found they could lift heavier and heavier weights. Heefner noted that the girls learned they could lift more than they thought.

“Once it clicks in their head that they can push a little further and knows what it feels like to get under heavy weight, they find out they’re stronger than they think,” he explained.

The realization is not unique just to female athletes; male athletes also learned confidence in the weight room. There were 80-90 male athletes who were part of the program.

“It’s all about building confidence,” he said.