By Rick Pedone
Sports Editor

The St. Cloud High boys and girls USA Weightlifting teams competed at the Sunshine State Games in Lakeland recently and the girls, despite missing two lifters, placed second.

The competition lifts were the snatch and the clean and jerk.

Ashley Sauer won the 53 kilograms (117 pounds) division with a 202-pound total. Leeah Schroeder placed fourth in the 53kg division with a 174-pound total.

Mackenzie Woodard finished third at 63kg (139 pounds) with a 207-pound total and Haley Weber won the 75kg-over (165 pounds) division with a 187-pound total.  She had not trained in a few weeks but still came out with a great effort to win, Coach Cory Aun said.

Tanner Hickey was second for the boys at 56kg (124 pounds) 196 total pounds.

“Tanner lost his balance on a few lifts but was fearless on the platform getting under any weight he could pull,” Aun said.

Jacob Purcell from Harmony finished second with a 315-pound total in the 62kg (136 pounds) weight class.

Former St. Cloud High lifter Ethan Post made his Olympic-style weightlifting debut and lifted at 77kg (170 pounds), which was the toughest and most competitive class that day. He totaled 319 pounds but has totaled 355 pounds in practice.

Aun also competed in the 77kg weight class and placed second with a total of 520 pounds.

Jason Aun, Cory Aun’s brother and a former weightlifting resident at the U.S. Olympic Education Center in Michigan, lifted at 77kg and was third with a 506-pound total.