Marble Falls boys powerlifting wins another regional title

CAPTION: The Marble Falls boys powerlifting team with their Region 2, Division 2 championships. The Mustangs are Tyler McIntyre (front row, left), Julio Gaytan, Arnulfo Salazar, David Dominguez, Josue Fonseca, Adrian Arredondo, Daniel Dominguez, Easton Carey; head coach Karl “Beef” Bielfeldt (back row, left), Jaxson Bales, Keaton Proctor and assistant coach Logan Simmons. The Mustangs also won the title in 2024. Courtesy photo

The Marble Falls High School boys powerlifting team is the 2026 Region 2, Division 2 champion thanks to earning 40 points at the meet March 14.

The Mustangs took three gold medals, three silver, a bronze and a fifth place to claim the team title.

“We took five more than we did last year,” head coach Karl “Beef” Bielfeldt said. “We only had six last year. We doubled the number that we took to regionals this year. So that that helps, obviously. We added a couple more in different weight classes. The plan we had in place actually went the way we had it set out on paper. All of them had to at some point do something a little bit more than they thought they were going to do and just kind of get the results that we got.”

The gold medals came from David Dominguez, Adrian Arredondo and Arnulfo Salazar.

Dominguez won the 123-pound weight class with a squat of 425 pounds, a bench press of 195 pounds and dead lift of 455 pounds for a total of 1,075 pounds.

“David got first on his last pull,” Bielfeldt said.

Arredondo’s gold came in the 148-pound weight division with a 550-pound squat, a 285-pound bench press, and a 440-pound dead lift for a total of 1,275 pounds.

Salazar continued his mastery of the 181-pound weight class thanks to a 565-pound squat, 415-pound bench press, and a 585-pound dead lift with a total of 1,565 pounds.

To say that Salazar is the lifter to beat in his weight class is an understatement. He has friendly competitions with other lifters, who aren’t shy about letting him know they are coming after his records and totals. That was especially true with Alvarado’s Schyler Dethorne. But the Mustang made a statement by lifting 415 pounds in the bench press to break his own record of 390 pounds he set last year.

“We had talked about Nulfo going after the regional total record,” the coach said. “But we decided not to. Everybody was coming for that bench record he set last year. He was already going to open up higher than what he did last year. Nulfo stepped up and said, ‘No this is mine. You’re going to have to take it from me.’ So he beat it on his initial attempt and then set it again. (Dethorne) tried but wasn’t even close. It was fun to watch that dynamic play out.”

Bielfeldt was equally proud of the silver medalists.

Tyler McIntyre took silver in the 114-pound weight class with a squat of 315 pounds, a 185-pound bench press, and a 420-pound dead lift for a total of 920 pounds. His 420 pounds in the dead lift is a new regional record.

“I knew there was a shot for Tyler McIntyre breaking the regional deadlift record,” the coach said. “That record has been around since 1999. So yeah for 27 years that one has stood. He beat it by five pounds and almost made another one. But they got him on a little bit of a hitch on his third try.”

Daniel Dominguez claimed silver in the 132-pound weight class with a 455-pound squat, a 195-pound bench press, and a 475-pound dead lift for a total of 1,125 pounds.

“The Dominguez brothers are repeats to state,” the coach said. “I know they have a little chip. And I think they actually kind of swapped as far as who got first and second. Last year I think it was reversed. They both have good squats and good dead lifts.”

Keaton Proctor finished second in the 242-pound weight division thanks to a 615-pound squat, a 345-pound bench press, and a 525-pound dead lift for a total of 1,485 pounds. Going into the meet, Proctor was ranked seventh.

“He gets to go to state his senior year,” Bielfeldt said. “He was another who didn’t have the regionals he wanted last year.

The lone bronze was courtesy of Josue Fonseca in the 165-pound weight class, who had a squat of 520 pounds, a 295-pound bench press, and a 465-pound dead lift for a total of 1,280 pounds.

The top two in each weight class advance to the state meet.

Fonseca’s finish was especially gratifying. A year earlier, he arrived at the regional meet with the mindset of advancing to state. But he didn’t get a score for a lift, which eliminated him from contention.

This year, not only did Fonseca finish third, he is the first alternate in his weight class.

“Unfortunately, it was only 20 pounds off from his qualifying total for state,” Bielfeldt said. “He had a chance. We tried to pull forward at the end.”

And though sophomore Jaxon Bales’ season ended, he contributed to the point total by finishing fifth in the super heavyweights with a squat of 485 pounds, a bench press of 275 pounds, and a dead lift of 430 pounds for a total of 1,190 pounds.

Easton Carey was eighth in 114-pound weight class with a 205-pound squat, a 205-pound bench press, and a 225-pound dead lift for a total of 525 pounds.

The state meet is March 27 in at the Taylor County Expo Center in Abilene.