BY CLIFF SMELLEY
Bradford High School’s Destiny Randolph punched her ticket to state by winning her weight class at the Jan. 31 Region 3-1A girls weightlifting meet at West Nassau High School.
Randolph, who won a District 6 title the previous week, had a 275-pound total (140-pound clean and jerk, 135-pound bench press) to win the 183-pound class in the traditional event. She finished 5 pounds ahead of runner-up Riley Valent of Episcopal.
Valent held a 10-pound lead over Randolph after the clean-and-jerk session, but her opening attempt in the bench press was 90 compared to Randolph’s 125. Randolph was successful om all three of her bench attempts, getting 130 on her second attempt before lifting 135 on her final attempt.
Even if Randolph hadn’t been successful at 135, she would’ve won her class due to the weigh-in tiebreaker.
The state meet will be held at the R.J. Funding Center in Lakeland on Friday, Feb. 13, at 10 a.m.
Bradford had two other lifters compete at the Region 3 meet. Kolee LeMire had a seventh-place total of 210 (105, 105) in the 129 class, while Addison Thornton had a seventh-place total of 290 (140, 150) in the unlimited class.
