ALMA -- There simply weren't enough weight plates at the station for Greenwood senior Jon Womack's final power clean attempt Saturday at Charles B. Dyer Arena.
Womack needed to borrow additional plates from another lifting area during his power clean session that ended with a meet-record 395 pounds lifted. That effort helped Womack capture the title in the heavyweight division at the 27th annual high school weightlifting championship.
State Weightlifting Championship
at Charles B. Dyer Arena, Alma
Team Results
Overall Champion — Booneville
Class 6A/7A champion — Benton, 5090
Class 5A champion — Green County Tech, 4650
Class 4A champion — Booneville, 5140
Class 3A champion — Junction City, 4910
Class 2A champion — Danville and Hampton, 4470
Individual Results
Heavyweight
1.) Jon Womack, Greenwood, 780
2.) Will Burgess, Lake Hamilton, 700
3.) Robert Langford, Benton, 620
259
1.) Noah Fox, Greenwood, 640
2.) (tie) Hunter DeSalvo, Morrilton
Nicholas Prichard, Glen Rose, 630
242
1.) (tie) Trenton Hice, Paris
Trey Kitterman, Rogers Heritage, 610
3.) (tie) Keelan Stanley, Sylvan Hills
Devin Smith, Green County Tech, 600
220.
1.) Austin Shultz, Green County Tech, 620
2.) (tie) Zak Wallace, Benton, and Seth Salter, Batesville Southside, 590
198
1.) Brock Morris, Benton, 670
2.) Tre Murphy, Hampton, 600
3.) Jaden King, Truman, 570
181
1.) Kurtis Kemp, Pottsville, 590;
2.) Clasine Miller, El Dorado, 580
3.) Kevontae Haynes, Junction City, 530.
165
1.) Ethan Cousins, Parkers Chapel, 555
2.) Gunner Shaw, Piggot, 520
3.) Aiden Chatfield, 510
148
1.) Fred Daniel, Junction City, 540
2.) (tie) Seth Scott, Greenland, and Tre Darrough, Lake Hamilton, 480
132
1.) (tie) Gage Dyer, Mount Ida
Austin Foster, Booneville, 460
3.) Hector Martinez, Danville, 420
123
1.) Austin Hill, Hazen, 480
2.) Landen Beckett, Booneville, 360
3.) Jaden Potter Wynne, 350
"I came here looking forward to the power clean," Womack said. "I didn't get the 405 that I wanted. This was still my personal best. But still getting the state title isn't bad. It was a successful day."
Womack also bench pressed 385 pounds which put his total weight for the meet at 780, breaking the total weight record of 770 he tied last year.
"He is crazy strong," Greenwood football coach Rick Jones said. "You are born with a certain amount, and he is maximizing his talents. He has been working very hard the last month or so for this."
Womack said he was motivated to come back in his final year to break the total weight record he was able to tie a year ago, which was originally set in 2014.
"It's a record that might be there for years," Womack said. "The power clean at 395 will be a hard record to break. Setting the bar at 780 will be tough as well. Somebody will have to power clean or bench way more than me. Setting the record that high is a cool thing."
Booneville was able to capture the overall championship and Class 4A title with 5,140 total weight, beating out Class 6A/7A champions Benton, which finished with 5,090.
Junction City, the Class 3A champions, was third overall with a total of 4,910. Green County Tech finished as the Class 5A champions lifting 4,650 total weight. Danville and Hampton shared the championship in Class 2A, each having a 4,470 total.
"Based on our maxes last week, we felt we had a chance coming into this," Booneville football coach Scott Hyatt said. "We were really close to winning this last year. The kids felt like if we can get our maxes, we can pull it out. I'm very proud of them."
Austin Foster and Landen Beckett were able to help lead the way for Booneville. Foster finished in a tie for first place in the 132 weight class with 460 total weight lifted. Beckett finished second in the 123 weight class, lifting a total of 360 pounds.
"I thought we had a really good chance," Foster said. "This event really helps us a lot heading into football season. I'm really proud of the guys and what we were able to do today."
Booneville just missed winning last year's overall championship, losing by 115 pounds to Greenwood. The Bearcats were able to break through this time around.
"Last year we got second overall, but we wanted to improve," Beckett said. "We have added some titles now winning here. It's crazy to win it as a 4A school. We take a lot of pride in that."
Booneville, which runs a run-oriented offense in football, prides itself on strength. It has shown with recent success at the weightlifting championship.
"This is five of the last six years we have won a title in weightlifting," Hyatt said. "Our success here has carried over onto the football field as well. The kids are really fired up about this."
Benton's Brock Morris was able to break the meet record for total weight with 670 in the 198-pound weight division. He also set the record for power clean, finishing with 325 pounds.
Fred Daniel of Junction City set the record in the 148-pound weight division weight with a bench press of 315 pounds.
Austin Hill of Hazen tied the total weight record of 480 in the 123-pound weight division.
Sports on 04/22/2018