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Will Davis, Brandon Miller, Connor Scaff and Kenny Velasquez were the Warriors’ top finishers at the regional meet. -
Hilliard’s Colton Conner lifts his way to regional champion.
Amanda Ream
NCR Editor & Publisher
Several local male weightlifters, including two-time state champion Colton Conner, will compete in the state weightlifting championship April 19-20 at the RP Funding Center in Lakeland.
Traditional Qualifiers
Conner, a Hilliard senior, lifted 515 pounds to win the 139 competition at the Class 1A, Region 2 meet Saturday at Suwannee High School. He lifted 525 the week prior to earn first place at the District 6 meet at Fernandina Beach High School.
Conner won state championships his sophomore and junior years and aims for a third gold medal.
According to an unofficial state qualifiers list provided by the Florida High School Athletic Association, Conner and Fernandina Beach’s Clay Hicks qualified in the 139 class. Hicks placed 10th in the region with 420 pounds and 430 pounds at district for second place.
West Nassau High School’s Kenny Velasquez and Brandon Miller qualify for state in the 154 class. Velasquez lifted 480 pounds for second place at the regional meet while Miller lifted 475 to claim third place. Velasquez earned first place at the district meet and Miller took second, both with the same total weight.
In the 169 class, West Nassau’s Kaleb Studt and Fernandina Beach’s Luke Twardy and Ely Yarbrough have unofficially qualified for the state meet. Studt placed seventh in the region with 495 pounds lifted and third at district with 490 pounds. Twardy claimed third place at the regional meet with 535 pounds and first at district with 555 pounds. Yarbrough was fourth at district with 470 pounds and ninth in the region with 485 pounds.
West Nassau’s Connor Scaff will compete in the 199 class after lifting 565 pounds at the regional for second place and 555 pounds at district for first place.
Teammate Will Davis should head to state in the 183 class with a 550-pound total for second place at the regional meet and also earning second in the district with 535 pounds.
Warrior Garrett Rica may compete at state in the 219 class, earning fifth in the region with a 555-pound total and second in the district with a 510-pound total.
Cason Gregory and Tucker Shuler should represent the Warriors in the 238 class while Josh Modupe lifts for Fernandina Beach. Gregory earned fifth in the region with 585 pounds while Shuler earned seventh with 575 pounds. At district, Gregory was first and Shuler second with the same lift totals. Modupe finished in sixth at the regional meet with 575 pounds and third at district with 570 pounds.
Hilliard’s Ryland Hall will compete in the unlimited class. He earned third in the region with a 655-pound total and first in the district with a 645-pound total.
Fernandina Beach’s Ryan Hepler is the lone potential Nassau County qualifier in the 129 class. He finished eighth in the region with 390 pounds and first in the district with 385 pounds.
West Nassau’s Caleb Keeton should compete at 119 pounds, having placed seventh in the region with 325 pounds and first at district with 330 pounds.
Olympic Qualifiers
Keeton will also compete in the 119 class after placing fourth at the regional meet with 285 pounds and first at district with the same weight.
Hepler will represent the Pirates in the 129 class as Nassau County’s lone qualifier at the weight after finishing sixth in the region with 330 pounds and first in the district with 385 pounds.
If the unofficial qualifiers are not changed, Warrior Sean Thigpen will compete in the 139 class. He finished 10th in the region with 330 pounds and third in the district with the same weight. Fernandina Beach’s Pierce Alexander should also compete in the class. He finished eighth at the regional meet with 335 pounds and second at district with 330 pounds.
Warriors Velasquez and Miller will compete among the 154 class. Velasquez placed second in the region with 420 pounds and first in the district with the same weight. Miller placed fifth in the region with 370 pounds and third in the district with 360 pounds.
Fernandina Beach’s Twardy and West Nassau’s Studt should compete in the 169 class. Twardy placed first at regional with 525 pounds while Studt placed fourth with 450 pounds. At the district meet, Twardy was first with 535 pounds while Studt was second with 465.
Warrior Davis will compete in the 183 class after placing sixth in the regional with 415 pounds and third in the district with 400 pounds. Teammate Scaff competes in the 199 class after placing fourth in the region with 440 pounds and first in the district with 435 pounds.
Fernandina Beach’s Kevin Ortiz should also lift in the 199 class after finishing fifth in the region with 430 pounds and second in the district with the same weight.
Warrior Rica should lift at state in the 219 class. He placed eighth in the region with 415 pounds and second at district with 410 pounds.
Fernandina Beach’s Modupe and Warriors Shuler and Gregory should compete in the 238 class. Modupe placed second in the region with 540 pounds and first in district with 525. Shuler finished in fifth place in the region with 475 pounds and second in the district with the same weight. Gregory placed seventh in the region with 450 pounds and third in district with 435 pounds.
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