Attendance for Marble Falls Forge ’24 remains high

Attendance for Marble Falls Forge ’24 remains high Jennifer Fierro Special To The Highlander Tue, 06/25/2024 - 03:26 Image

• During Marble Falls Forge '24, the Mustangs pair up to undergo mat drills. One drill is to push against each other using their hips and sides, which brings amusement to Greg Lemon (front, left) and Brody Graham and Carson Parmer (back, left) and Brenton Liscum. Photos by Jennifer Fierro/TexasChalkTalk.com
• Falls track and field head coach Austin Silva (center) gathers the Mustangs to commend them on their work during agility and mat drills before they head to the weight room for the next part of Marble Falls Forge '24. Marble

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With more than 100 Marble Falls High School student athletes attending the athletic department’s strength-and-conditioning program, coaches believe the Mustangs and Lady Mustangs are “forging” a new road to success.

The program, called Marble Falls Forge ‘24, is helping athletes take the next step in their preparation for the 2024-25 sports year, so that when fall training camps begin in early August, coaches can install new schemes and add more to what is already knows.

Athletic director Keri Timmerman said it’s not unusual to have as many as 120 on the high school campus where they are taking full advantage of the weight room to get stronger and on the arti- ficial turf to go through mat drills to get tougher and agility stations to get faster.

“Our kids are doing a great job,” he said. “I’m really proud of their hard work. I think the kids are working really hard. They want to be good. They want to be told how to be good. That’s our job as coaches.”

“That’s a great number for us,” assistant athletic director John Berkman said. “That’s more than what we’ve had (in the past) during the summer. You always want more. We’re in a good spot.”

The program is drawing between 45-50 middle school athletes. Timmerman said there’s plenty of space for more seventh and eighth-graders.

“We’d like that group to grow a little,” he said.

Equally important, he said, is the players are telling coaches why they aren’t coming. Some are taking family vacations or going to summer camps. Timmerman said he and the staff appreciate the communication.

“They’re starting to figure it out," he said. "If they’re in town, they need to be here.”

Jennifer Fierro publishes reports about area youth athletic events on her website TexasChalk-Talk.com. To send her a note, email fierrojenni fer@yahoo.com.