Competitors from four states made their way to Furman’s physical activity center last Saturday, April 20 to compete in the university’s annual powerlifting meet. Participants ranged in age from 12 to those in their 70s.

Furman students made up a large proportion of the competition, accounting for 20 of the 31 total participants. Of these students, many were competing for their first time, while others competed as seasoned veterans with years of experience.

Competitors were split into weight classes and scored on a pound-for-pound basis. Instead of being measured based on the total weight lifted, a participant’s body weight was taken into account and scored as a percentage based on that. In doing so, competitors in lower weight classes could fairly compete against those in higher ones.

Several Furman students went home with placement medals. For example, securing first place in the men’s deadlift was Jack Lucas ‘26. Lucas competed in the 181-pound weight class and scored the best pound-for-pound score of all of the deadlift competitors.

The best men’s bench press was awarded to powerlifting club president, Alex Hite ‘25, who lifted 330 pounds. Hite also took home the hardware for best men’s total overall with 1310 pounds.

The best men’s squat was awarded to Grayson Hoffman ‘25, and the best overall performance in the women’s category went to Sierra Obenaus ‘26. Furman’s team as a collective also secured the team victory.

Looking to next year, Hite encourages any interested students to reach out to him or powerlifting coach and health sciences professor Dr. Tony Caterisano to get involved, which can open the door to the gym community on campus.

“Next year, we’re looking to branch out a little bit with more scheduled workouts to get everyone together and grow the club in general,” Hite said. “We’re always in the gym so you can always come up to one of us, and we can get you involved or point you in the right direction.”