The Bowie Lady Rabbits finished tied for fourth as a team at the regional powerlifting meet in Chico on Saturday.
The Lady Rabbits had seven girls qualify for the state meet and two girls earn alternate bids.
In the past only the top two finishers in each weight class were guaranteed a spot at the state meet and whoever finished in third place would get an alternate bid. This year lifters qualified by the 1A-6A classification at the state meet instead of split up by three divisions.
That meant at the regional meet it was not just where a lifter finished, but who finished in front of them that determined if they qualified for the state meet.
The Nocona Lady Indians had one girl complete all three of her lifts on Saturday.
Natalie Pirkey finished eighth in the 123 pound weight class, which unfortunately was not enough for her to qualify for the state meet.
Bowie’s top two lifters both finished second in their weight classes, Ashley Aguirre in the 165 pound weight class and Kerstin Wolfe in the 181 pound weight class.
Other Lady Rabbit lifters who finished among the top five in their weight classes included Laisha Johnson finished third in the 114 pound weight class, Traycee Stewart finishing fourth in the 97 pound weight class and Katie Boyles finishing fourth in the 198 pound weight class.
All five girls also qualified for the state meet.
Leah Boyd also scored for the team finishing fifth in the 259 pound weight class. Unfortunately, due to who finished ahead of her, she earned a state alternate spot.
Jordan Vaught finished sixth in the 220 pound weight class, but earned a trip to the state meet. The same was true for Kinley Russell, who finished seventh overall in the 132 pound weight class.
The last alternate for the state meet is Jenna Rogers, who finished sixth in the 198 pound weight class.
With seven girls qualifying for the state meet, this is as many as Bowie has sent in the last several years, outdoing the 2019 and 2020 teams that sent five.
The state meet is scheduled for 1 p.m. on March 17 at the American Bank Center in Corpus Christi.

To see weight totals for all of the Bowie and Nocona lifters, pick up a copy of the mid-week edition of the Bowie News.