TROY, Mich. (WXYZ) — Troy Athens High School is home to a women's powerlifting team.
These girls may be young, but they sure are tough.
“I’ve been on the team all four years," senior Lillian Kotila said.
She says her love for the gym and the encouragement from her friends and family inspired her to try this sport.
“To be a woman in this sport makes me happy that I get to potentially be a role model to a younger girl," Kotila said. "I also enjoy that all of our coaches have left us with a lot of mental toughness."
Head coach Nick Lusk, who started coaching the men's and women's teams in 2019, has taken both programs straight to the top.
“For me, it’s just how can I teach them the best to prepare them for life," Lusk said. "It’s a true miracle what these girls have been able to do, and it’s all because of their dedication and hard work."
He says he's extremely proud of the women's team for everything they've accomplished this school year including winning states for a third year in a row. One member also set a new national record by lifting more than 400 pounds.
“I got the state record. It was 425 (pounds), and that was smooth for me. So at nationals, they said it was 418 (pounds), so I knew I could get that one. So, the new national record is 424 (pounds)," senior Mikayla Twum said.
Twum joined the team just last year and she’s already setting the bar high.
Hear more from Mikayla Twum in the video player below:
“Sometimes, it just feels so hopeless, it’s not moving. You just feel like you’ve been in the same place forever, and just to push past your mental limits, I know it’s helped me," Twum said.
She lifted 405 pounds in the weight room on Thursday and she says she'll be training like this before she goes to worlds in May.
See Mikayla Twum lift 405 pounds in the video player below:
“I know that everyone has the strength inside them to be so much stronger than they think they are," Twum said.
