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FREMONT – After winning the Class B Boys State High School Powerlifting competition and getting fourth at the Class A state meet last year, Yutan’s Will Peterson had a goal to win Class A this time around.

He did exactly that, by lifting a total of 655 kilos, or 1,444 pounds, which was the most of any competitor in the super heavyweight division of Class A during the state meet at Midland University in Fremont on Feb. 26 and 27.

“It felt very good to win,” Peterson said. “I figured I was going to win and after the squat, I was very confident.”

Peterson competed in both Class A and B state competitions last year in order to face more challenging opponents. This year, however, only one state competition was held, with all classes included. Again, Peterson put himself in the Class A category.

Despite knowing where he was at physically, Peterson was still a little nervous whether he could win when the competition started with lifters coming in at heavier weights than him. He didn’t let that doubt get to him and relied on his training and the advice from his coaches to power through.

“Going into the meet there were some nerves, just because I saw the openers posted and I saw that there was someone opening up higher than me in every single lift,” Peterson said. “My coaches reassured me that we’ve got a plan and were opening up fairly light, but don’t worry about it. I’ve got to give a lot of credit to my coaches for calling great numbers for me and keeping me level headed. I ended up going 8-for-9 and missed my first bench because of a technical issue.”

In his first attempt at the squat, Peterson started with a lift of 496.04 pounds. He then moved up to 534.63 pounds and on his final attempt, he had a squat of 562.18 pounds.

After scratching on his first attempt on the bench, Peterson lifted 314.16 pounds on his second time through. He bested that performance during his final attempt with a bench press of 330.69 pounds.

On the deadlift, he started with 496.04 pounds and moved up to 534.62 pounds. On his final attempt, he pulled out a 551.16 pound rep to win the competition in runaway fashion.

Peterson stated that there have been a lot of coaches that have helped him get to where he is at with powerlifting. They include Joe Dolezal, who is an assistant football coach at Yutan and is the one who introduced him to the sport, and Dan Krajicek, the current head coach of the Yutan football team.

Other coaches include Dustin Slepicka and Lupe Carrazco, who he has trained with at Omaha Barbell. They have helped him progress a lot over the last year in terms of adding weight, he said.

“In less than a year with training with those guys I have put on over 250 pounds to my total, despite only being about 10 pounds heavier,” Peterson said. “They really helped me dial in my form.”

The work that Peterson has put in is another big reason he is where he is at in the sport. He has been lifting three to four times a week for the last four years. It has taken a lot of time and dedication, but it has been worth it to him.

“The amount of time I have put in is definitely a good indicator of why I have gotten as far as I have,” Peterson said. “During football season I would play a game on Friday night and I would be at my gym in Omaha the next morning working out. Lifting takes an extra five to 15 hours out of my week.”

Powerlifting has also helped Peterson become more athletic. He went from a bench player as a freshman on the football team to becoming a starter this past season for the Chieftains on the line. On the track team, he threw the shot put 28 feet as a freshman, and without full rotation is already breaking 40 feet this season.

“I’ve definitely noticed with the stronger I get the more athletic I get,” Peterson said. “My best example would be in May when I really hadn’t done any speed or agility training in a while and I had a 24-inch vertical which beat a lot of people and surprised me.”

For Peterson, he is taking it day by day with his goals in powerlifting. Currently, he hopes to win the national meet and one day get a scholarship to powerlift in college.

“I really want to see how far I can take it,” Peterson said. “Unfortunately I don’t know how far that is. It’s one of those sports where anything can happen and it can be over like that.”

Peterson will be competing this year at the 2022 USA Powerlifting High School Nationals in Westin Lombard, Ill. He will be lifting on March 26.

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