The Montverde Academy boys weightlifting team was led by a dominant performance from Grant McKee, who captured first place in both the Olympic and Traditional lifts at the Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) Class 1A District 11 Championship on Thursday at Foundation Academy in Winter Garden.
As a team, the Eagles placed sixth out of seven schools in both the Traditional and Olympic competitions.
McKee delivered an outstanding showing in the 183-pound weight class, totaling 375 pounds in Olympic lifting with a 150-pound snatch and a 225-pound clean & jerk. He followed that with a 425-pound total in Traditional, recording a 200-pound bench press and a 225-pound clean & jerk to secure double gold.
Montverde Academy had several other strong performances across the weight classes.
In the Traditional competition, Jacob Martinez finished third at 119 pounds with a 265 total, while teammate Tyler Waters placed seventh (210). Ethan Seetahal took fifth at 129 pounds (325), and Tristan Milliken finished ninth at 139 (290). At 154 pounds, Jacob Moore placed fifth (370) and Lukas Walker took 10th (315). Quentin Gunasekera added a fifth-place finish at 183 (375), while Zexu Li placed ninth at 199 (330). In the 219-pound class, Jianlei Du secured fourth place with a 470 total, and Miguelangel Fernandez Hernandez also competed in the division.
In Olympic lifting, Martinez again placed third at 119 pounds (230), with Waters finishing seventh (195). Seetahal earned a fourth-place finish at 129 (285), while Oli Sari placed 10th (205). Milliken took eighth at 139 (225), and Moore (295) and Walker (280) placed seventh and eighth, respectively, at 154. Braden Ray finished 10th at 169 (260). McKee and Gunasekera repeated their first- and fifth-place finishes at 183 with totals of 375 and 320, respectively. Li placed ninth at 199 (330), and Du highlighted the upper weights with a runner-up finish at 219 (420).
Qualifiers will move on to the regional championships on April 23 at Frostproof Middle-Senior High School in Frostproof, Florida.
