H.S. state powerlifting: Abilene Wylie's Carlton takes second; De Leon's Pena wins title
Landy Carlton set a state record in one of his three lifts and tied for the best overall score in his weight class at the Texas High School Powerlifting Association’s Division I state meet Saturday at the Taylor County Expo.
Yet the Wylie senior didn’t walk away all too happy.
“It’s a good day, but you always want to come out first,” said Carlton, ever the competitor.
He did have a good day. A very good day. Carlton, competing in the 148-weight class, set a record in his first event, the squat, lifting 650 pounds. He set also set a personal best in the bench press with a 350, then lifted 515 in the final event, the dead lift, to finish with a 1,515 total.
Edinburg North’s Christian Gomez also lifted a division-best 1,515.
Gomez was declared the winner because he was the lighter lifter, weighing 144 pounds. Carlton weighs 147.2 pounds.
Still, not a bad day after finishing sixth at state last year.
“I did well. I lifted really good,” Carlton said. “It came down to a weight decision, and the other kid is lighter than me. So, I lost this one. I feel like I did good. I had some decisions that were maybe poor in jumping a little too high. It just happens.”
Those decisions came in the deadlift, and it’s easy to second-guess those them in hindsight. But the reality is Conroe’s Rogelio Barrera was a threat to unseat both Carlton and Gomez for the title going into the deadlift. Barrera, who came into the state meet with the best total (1,530), lifted 600 in the deadlift in winning the Region 4 title by 230 pounds.
Barrera went into the final event Saturday with 950 points, trailing Carlton (1,000) and Gomez (995), and he was the final lifter.
So, Carlton had to take some chances. After lifting 515 on his first deadlift attempt, he upped the poundage to 550 – and couldn’t close the deal on his final two attempts.
“I thought I had in the bag, but I came up short on the deadlift,” Carlton said.
Barrera? He didn’t get a lift on three attempts and bombed out, meaning he didn’t even place.
“Powerlifting gets you in a spot where you have to bank on a million things all at once,” Wylie coach Cort Arthur said. “We took a gamble on him finishing strong at the end, and sometimes you miss, man.
"But there’s not a better fighter in the division. He fought so hard. Set records. He was absolutely great.”
Gomez, who came in the state meet with the third-best total (1,445) behind Carlton (1,515) needed a big day to beat Carlton. All he needed was the tie to win the tiebreaker.
“We want to win, and we train to win,” Arthur said. “So, I get why he’s upset. But it’ll sink in a little bit later. The kid he tied with had as good a day as you can have. There’s no reason to be upset. Pound for pound, they might be the two strongest kids in the powerlifting meet.”
Wylie’s Jaxon Peacock finished third behind Gomez and Carlton with a 1,330 total. He came into the state meet with the 10-best total (1,290) and made a big jump to snag a medal.
“He had a great day, and he was 50 or 60 pounds heavier than what he did at the regional powerlifting meet,” Arthur said. “So, his total was greatly increased.”
Wylie’s Cayden Clay finished ninth in the 308 class (1,680).
Edinburg North won the Division I team title with 33 points, followed by Edinburg Vela (16) and San Antonio East Central (16). Weslaco East was fourth (12) and Wylie, the defending state champions, were fifth (8).
“I’m so proud of our kids,” Arthur said. “I love them to death. People might not understand the time and effort, the early mornings, boys and girls both, how bad you hurt all the time while doing this in a fourth-month span. I can’t quantify how awesome our kids are at how much they put up and fight through. I couldn’t be prouder.”
De Leon's Pena wins state title
De Leon senior Mario Pena went into the Texas High School Powerlifting Association’s Division IV state meet thinking he would have to gamble a bit to beat the No. 1 qualifier – Kress’ Roberto Noriega – in the 123-pound weight class.
Noriega won Region I with a 1,098-pound total in the three lifts, while Pena, the Region 2 champ, was just 5 pounds back.
The battle never materialized. Noriega couldn’t make a lift on his three attempts in the first event, the squat, opening the door for Pena to win De Leon’s first state powerlifting title.
Pena won his class with a state-record 1,075 total – beating Miles’ Tevin Meade, who had 1,060.
“It feels great,” Pena said. “Tiring, but great.”
Pena also set a record in the squat (415), while lifting 260 in the bench press and 400 in the day’s final event, the deadlift.
“He had a great day,” De Leon coach Jessie Fanning said. “We kind of had a plan going into it, and he followed the plan. It all worked out in his favor.”
Well, the plan changed a bit after Noriega’s day was over after the first event. He had lifted 405 at the region meet.
Since the third-best qualifier – David Perez of Ben Bolt Palito Blanco (1,065) – came into the meet 15 pounds back of Pena, Fanning knew Pena didn’t have to take any risks. It helped when Perez bombed out on the second lift, the bench press, and, like Noriega, didn’t place either.
“We had to re-adjust our game plan a little bit and just make sure he goes smooth through it, make sure we get what we know we can get,” Fanning said. “It went from a being a battle for first to, hey, we want to make sure we stay in first.”
Pena did just that – nabbing the second-year program’s first state title. He finished third at state last year.
“He’s put in a lot of work the last few years,” Fanning said. “So, this was well-deserved.”’
De Leon’s Joe Leal finished sixth in the 308 class (1,555).
It was quite a year for the Bearcats. They won the Region 3 team title.
“That was a big deal for us,” Fanning said. “It’s not easy to do. … A lot of guys who bought into. Had some success. We went to work this year.”
Roscoe’s Michael Fulton finished third in the 165 class (1,335). Sundown’s Rickey Melendez for second (1,355), while LaPryor’s Valentin Garza won the class (1,460).
Coleman’s Oscar Camacho also nabbed third in the 242 class (1,570). Whitewright’s MarcAnthony Gonzales won the class (1,600), since he was lighter than Garrison’s Gavin Pollard, who also lifted 1,600.
Highland’s Tristen Harding was ninth in the 181 class (1,280), and Strawn’s Jered Stiles also finished ninth in the superheavy weight class (1,155).
Garrison won the Division IV team title (19 points), followed by Kenedy (13), La Villa (12). De Leon was 10th (7).
This article originally appeared on Abilene Reporter-News: Abilene Wylie's Carlton takes 2nd at state H.S. powerlifting meet
