LEBANON, Ill. - The McKendree men's and women's powerlifting teams competed at the Bearcat Classic on September 9, 2023.

Eleven Bearcats, five women and six men, hit the platform for the pre-season home meet at the McKendree Sports and Performance Center.  On the day, the Bearcats had four first-place finishes from Ellie Johnston, MJ Hochgraber, Matt Mancia, and Evan Dressel. Multiple athletes also hit personal records during the meet. Finally, ten of the eleven lifters hit the qualifying total in their weight classes for collegiate nationals. They will head to Atlanta to represent McKendree on the national stage this coming spring on April 11, 2024.

Coach Bechel gave his thoughts on the meet, "We are super proud of the athletes' work so far and cannot wait to see what the future holds!"

Congratulations to the McKendree Powerlifting Team. The team will return to action on Sunday, November 12 to compete at the USAPL Collegiate Invite at William and Jewell University. Head over to the McKendree Powerlifting page on Instagram to follow the team throughout the season.

Full Results Below: 

Women's Team Results:

Marijayne Hochgraber (MJ)
67.5kg Weightclass / 1st place
Attempts: 9/9
Squat: 115kg (PR)
Bench: 65kg
Deadlift: 137.5kg (PR)
Total: 316kg (PR)

Ellie Johnston
100kg Weightclass / 1st place
Attempts: 9/9
Squat: 150kg
Bench: 70kg
Deadlift:165kg
Total: 384kg

Carly Reese
100+ kg Weightclass / 2nd place
Attempts: 8/8
Squat: 162.5kg
Bench: 90kg
Deadlift: 160kg
Total: 411kg

Maram Makhlouf 
90kg Weightclass / 2nd place
Attempts: 9/9
Squat: 145kg
Bench: 65kg
Deadlift: 120kg
Total: 329kg

Gabby Cabrera
100+ kg Weightclass / 5th place
Attempts: 9/9
Squat: 135kg
Bench: 92.5kg
Deadlift: 130kg
Total: 357kg

Men's Team Results:

Brogan Black
145kg Weightclass / 2nd place
Attempts: 8/9
Squat: 250kg (PR)
Bench: 140kg (PR)
Deadlift: 237.5kg
Total: 626kg (PR)

Evan Dressel 
75kg Weightclass / 1st place
Attempts: 7/9
Squat: 210kg (PR)
Bench: 120kg
Deadlift: 232.5kg (PR)
Total: 561kg

Matt Mancia
56kg Weightclass / 1st place
Attempts: 6/7
Squat: 152.5kg
Bench: 90kg
Deadlift: 197.5kg
Total: 439kg

Dawson Stebbins
75kg Weightclass / 2nd place
Attempts: 7/9
Squat: 210kg (PR)
Bench: 120kg (PR)
Deadlift: 232.5kg
Total: 561.3kg (PR)

Tyler Buss
67.6kg Weightclass / 2nd place
Attempts: 6/8
Squat: 180kg
Bench: 117.5kg
Deadlift: 177.5kg
Total: 474kg

Carson Kreher
100kg Weightclass / 4th place
Attempts: 6/7
Squat: 225kg
Bench: 150kg (PR)
Deadlift: 192.5kg
Total: 566.3kg