St. Ed’s sophomore weightlifter Kendra Mathes will compete in the FHSAA District 9 qualifying meet this Saturday at Martin County High School as an odds-on-favorite to make it to the state championship tournament in Kissimmee on Feb. 7.
That optimism is based on a string of performances this season that left the competition in a state of near-disbelief. Parents and coaches everywhere should now realize that one pathway to success in female weightlifting may very well begin with early gymnastics training.
If you’re looking for bulging muscles and grunts echoing off the walls, Kendra is not your candidate. She is quite petite, currently lifting in the 110 lb. class. Even so, if she can shed a pound or two and drop to the 101 lb. class, she feels her chances to do well at states will be even better.
“My success as a weightlifter has a lot to do with gymnastics,” Kendra says. “I did it for eight years so I just naturally developed those muscles growing up, and it just transferred over to weightlifting. My sister Cristian had a lot to do with it. She was good at weightlifting so Mr. Rogers wanted me to join the team in eighth grade. This is my third year on the team and I’m having a lot of fun. The big thing this year would be to medal at states.”
She is trending toward that medal under the tutelage of Head Coach Les Rogers. She has the added advantage of training under one of the best coaches in the business. Rogers will offer any insight he can to help his pupil achieve her goals.
“She’s definitely a contender to qualify for the state meet, but the competition there gets really tough,” Rogers said. “I think she’s got a shot to place right now, but it depends on how things stack up and who she will be up against.
“She’s done so well in the regular season that I am not really worried about her being able to make one of the top three qualifying spots to go to states. I’m not worried about having her real fresh at the qualifying meet. Her next meet I’m worried about is the state meet. That’s what we’re working toward right now.”
Kendra must finish in the top three in her weight class on Saturday to get to Kissimmee. That would appear to be a fait accompli off an undefeated regular season against much larger schools. Her combined bench plus clean & jerk totals were on a steady upswing of 210, 215, 225, 230, 225 and a finishing peak of 235. Those totals regularly bested the runner-up by 50 lbs. or more.
That is the type of progress Rogers likes to see for all of his lifters, both male and female. He has five other girls on his team this year and all set personal records at the final regular season meet against Vero Beach High.
Junior Rachel Blakeman was similarly inspired to lift by her sisters Maddy and Olivia. In her third year with the team, Rachel uses weight training to give her an extra edge on the lacrosse field. She is also an avid swimmer for the school team.
“Being around Mr. Rogers is just a lot of fun,” Rachel said. “Two of my friends joined the team this year and hopefully we will grow again next year. Overall I think we just need to beat our personal records and try our best.”
Lifting at 119 Rachel matched her personal best total of 135 in the regular season finale against Vero Beach High Sschool. In the 154 weight class junior Sabrina Santos set a personal record with a total of 195.
“This is my first time ever lifting weights,” Sabrina said. “Coach Rogers teaches us to use good form and technique. He emphasizes safety too, because if you do something wrong you can really hurt yourself. He’s very encouraging and never lets us doubt ourselves. It brings out the best in us and makes us want to try our hardest.”
Junior Emma Chiarenza (150), sophomore Angela Schwerer (150), and freshman Sarah Anne Evans (135) all achieved personal record totals in their respective weight classes to close out the season.
“The girls did a fine job this year,” Rogers said. “The concept that they can achieve great things through hard work goes beyond the weight room. I always like to see when they are getting better.”
All eyes will now focus on Kendra. Medals are awarded to the top six lifters at states. Of the 15 Pirate lifters to qualify for states in the past, only three were girls. Kendra would be the first girl to medal. Jad Shalhoub accomplished that feat for the boys with a third-place finish last year.
