Fluvanna County High School students are big on sports, but what do they do to condition during the off season? Started by Coaches Steven Szarmach and Devin Watkins in 2010, the FCHS power-lifting team gives student-athletes a chance to do that. “The team was originally started with a handful of football players,” said Szarmach, “but since then it has evolved and we now have 41 athletes from grades 9-12 on the team. Those members are made up from both male and female athletes of many sports including: basketball, volleyball, football, wrestling, softball, lacrosse, tennis, and track – really any sport we have here at the high school.”

Conditioning isn’t the only thing student-athletes join the team for; while some do join to stay in shape, others join for the competition. “Our most important event every year is our trip to Columbus, Ohio, where the team competes in the Arnold Schwarzenegger Sports Festival, which is also the most fun we have during the year,” Szarmach added. “Our athletes always seem to step their game up even higher than usual while we’re there.” The team members meet at 7:30 A.M. three to four times a week in the weight room before school, practicing their techniques such as bench, dead lift, and squat. They also do multiple other exercises to work on their strength, such as flipping tires, pull-ups, jump rope, and an exercise called “cross-fit” which improves speed. Not only do team members enjoy themselves while lifting and training, but they have time for fun away from the gym as well.

The team has had a few very special guests come to the school over the team’s five year span, including WWE Superstar Sheamus, who came in 2013 to talk about his journey. “I was ecstatic when we were told that Sheamus was coming,” said Quint Crouch, “he’s the only wrestler I bother paying attention to anymore, so like I said, I was pretty excited.” Along with having guest visits, the team also gets plenty of opportunities to have fundraisers, from which the money not only goes towards the lifters, but to the entire sports program as a whole, helping the department purchase new equipment for the gym and weight room. “Although it’s rather difficult,” said senior Shawn Lynch, “I enjoy selling stuff for the fundraisers, mostly because I know it’s for a good cause, but also really just because it’s exactly what I said, enjoyable. Really I think the enjoyment comes from knowing that the money I earn may help pay for new equipment I’ll get to use next year.” These athletes have plenty of enjoyment while working and just messing around, and either way, it always pays off.

The hard work that the team puts in has led to past student-athletes earning all-district, region, and state honors. “The only things we coaches expect from our athletes is to have a physical on file at the beginning of the year, good grades and standards throughout, and most importantly, that they try their best. When that happens, the athletes themselves see that it pays off,” said Szarmach.