The grind never stops for the girls' weightlifting team at Fort Myers High School, and all their dedication in the weight room is showing off. Stacking weights and stacking medals...winning championships is a tradition for the Green Wave.
"They train very hard day in and day out," said Fort Myers weightlifting coach Pat Casey. "This isn’t just like a little hobby for them. They literally train year-round."
On Friday, January 10, the Green Wave secured the title at the Lee County Athletic Conference tournament at Mariner High School, winning it for the ninth straight year.
"It was really fun, especially to be a part of the last three," said senior captain Natalia Franco. "It's even better to experience it in my last year."
"The girls really earned it," said Casey. "They stayed consistent, disciplined, and it definitely didn't come easy, but they got it done."
As girls' weightlifting gains popularity in Southwest Florida, the competition continues to get tougher and stronger. But so do these ladies.
"It takes a lot of work ethic and determination," said senior captain Peyton Burnside.
"No matter if we win or lose our last meet, we come right back in and train," said senior captain Finley Mitchell. "We don't take it as 'we won, so we can take a day off.' We just go right back into training for the next one."
Each category - Olympic and Traditional lifts - is divided into ten weight classes. Among the 60 total top-three spots, Fort Myers claimed 23 of them.
Next, the Green Wave are in action in their own house, hosting districts next Thursday, January 23.
"It’ll be competitive, but we're looking forward to it," said Casey.