MIDDLEBURG - With a few new faces looking to bring some highlights back for Christmas, area girls weightlifters are readying to travel to Suwannee High School for what most coaches call, the first pre-state level weightlifting tournament before the Christmas break.

Listed on the Power of Christmas preliminary team roster are Fleming Island, Clay, Ridgeview, St. Johns Country Day School and Clay.
"The firepower that goes to the Suwannnee Power of Christmas Invitational is about as good as the state championships," said Fleming Island girls weightlifting coach Sean Coultis, who guided graduate Autumn Leviston to a Christmas title en route to a state weightlifting title last year. "We have a handful of girls that have seen what putting the work in does and they have seen the results."
Last year, Clay High, the defending state champions and a repeat state champion, finished second at Suwannee, but used the experience to tweak under then-coach Rodney Keller to dominate the forthcoming state championship meet.
Now, former Clay High weightlifter Autumn Null has taken over for Keller and the Blue Devils' storied lineup has mostly graduated except for superstar Emma Heck, a twice-state champion and only a junior.
Last year, with the likes of six-time state (2A and 3A) champion Navarre High School on hand and Clay, last year’s 2A champions, plus host Suwannee, the 1A champions; Sunlake High, the 2A champions in 2019 and 2020; plus Leesburg, 2A runner-ups 2019 and 2020; plus River Ridge, the 1A champions 2016 thru 2018, Coultis, Null and Middleburg coach Rhiannon Weiskopf know the task at hand is enormous.
"We have around 60 athletes on our lifting roster, with 23 lifting for points," said Weiskopf, who guided her Lady Broncos to a dual-match win over Coultis's Golden Eagles last week. "Fleming Island is a very competitive team and knew the competition would be very close. Some of our lifters hit several PRs, which helped us pull out the win."
Weiskopf's list of first placers in their meet; Memphis Moses (wrestler), KK Hagen (softball), and Madison Underwood (track) among the list with Fleming Island, could be a Who's Who of athletes at Middleburg High School with her team comprised of athletes from multiple other sports on campus.
"We are blessed to have the best coaches, for allowing multi-sport athletes to lift with girls weightlifting," said Weiskopf. "We can pull from all different sports and clubs; softball, cheerleading, basketball, wrestling, band, and volleyball. We are very lucky to have such a great group of athletes who genuinely want to work hard for themselves and the team."
For Coultis, a smooth transition from a team with no state meet qualifiers a few years ago, to a team chock full of state qualifiers and a state champion, promises a few good years in his future.
"This is my third season and, to date, we now have 60 girls on the team," said Coultis, who was eighth in Traditional at Suwannee last year. "Step one was to create a weightlifting class, generate the interest then have them compete. We had none my first year, six got to state last year."
Coultis maintains that making the team practices lively and fun is step one, but reminding the athletes that weightlifting will only improve their sport.
"I try to get our veteran girls to welcome the new girls and remind them that they were once the ones scared to death to put weight above their heads," said Coultis. "I ask them for one month and if they don't see improvement, they can leave. Most stay."
Coultis named Bradi Johnson as a top name to make a state run; district, and region champion, at Suwannee with six girls, including freshman state qualifier Kyla Marshall, also to be competitive.
"Catherine Ward, a sophomore, is a fresh face that can make some noise," said Coultis. "Leah Anderson and Kyla both returned from state last year."