4 Orlando area weightlifters win FHSAA state championships: St. Cloud, Winter Springs, Lake Minneola, Oviedo
St. Cloud junior Mikey Ziss felt some pressure as a defending state champion going into Friday’s FHSAA Class 3A state weightlifting meet in Lakeland.
But just like last year, he was more than strong enough to dominate at the RP Funding Center in Lakeland.
Ziss repeated his sweep of both state titles in the 119-pound weight class and broke three state records along the way. He totaled 480 pounds to win by 40 in the Olympic competition and muscled up 460 in Traditional — which was 60 pounds heavier than runner-up Shawn Morgan of Pace and third-place Jagarii Gardner of Hagerty managed.
Winter Springs senior Kody Taylor was also a double champ in the 183 weight class.
Lake Minneola senior Israel Clovis, making his first state-meet appearance, won the 238-pound Traditional title with a big 740-pound total. Clovis, who qualified for the 2022 and 2023 finals but was absent for religious reasons, totaled 605 in Olympic to place second behind Zach Caron of Spruce Creek.
Oviedo’s Lucas Crowley and Lake Howell’s Roman Rea each totaled 615 atop the 169 Traditional weight class. Crowley took the title because he weighed-in lighter than Rea.
Lake Minneola’s Israel Clovis kept the faith in quest for weightlifting state championship
“I actually came into it a little bit nervous,” Ziss said. “Everybody was expecting me to win again this year. I did everything I hoped for. It’s just so nice for all my hard work to pay off.”
Ziss, who weighed-in at 117.9 pounds, tied a state record for his weight class with his opener of 185 in the snatch. He eclipsed it on his next left, clearing 195, and broke his own record with a monster 205 pounds on his third and final effort.
From there Ziss hit all three of his clean and jerk lifts, finishing with a record-setting 255 to surpass two more FHSAA standards. That made his Olympic total his third record of the day.
Taylor won his Olympic title by 5 pounds with a 545 effort and won Traditional by a 40-pound margin with a 665. He bench-pressed 355 to go with a 310 clean and 235 snatch.
Rea added his second runner-up showing with a 555 Olympic total.
Timber Creek’s Elvie Valmores was the Traditional (510) and Olympic (460) runner-up in the 139 weight class.
St. Cloud’s Jonathan Morales was Traditional runner-up with a 550 total in the 154 weight class.
Treyvin Clark of Seminole lifted 545 for second in the Olympic 199 weight class.
In Traditional 199, Harmony’s Louis Rodriguez took second with a 645 effort.
In team competition, Winter Springs and St. Cloud tied for fourth place with 10 points each in the Olympic lifts (snatch plus clean and jerk). St. Cloud was fifth with 12 points and Oviedo sixth with 11 in Traditional (bench press plus clean and jerk).
Pace of the Panhandle won both team titles.
Dramatic duel for elite Winter Springs and Windermere weightlifters ended in stunning fashion
Varsity content editor Buddy Collings can be reached by email at bcollings@orlandosentinel.com.
