Students Play to Their Strengths at Trinity’s Stumberg Competition Final Round

On Thursday, October 17, in Chapman Auditorium, five student startup teams competed in the final round of the Louis H. Stumberg Venture Competition. After presenting their pitch to the judges, the students behind Powerlifting Depth Checker (PDC) won $25,000 for their startup! 

Team PDC consisted of founder and manager Faysal Al-Zand '24, co-founder Lindsey Foushee '25, and lead iOS developer Khoi Tran ’26. The team brought together the disciplines of English, marketing, computer science, and data science for a well-rounded perspective that proved useful not just in creating their device but also in pitching it to the judges—and audience. PDC also won audience favorite! 

“Going into the competition, we felt confident in our ability to create a strong plan and follow through with it. We had to make sure that no stone was left unturned because we knew the other teams would do the same,” Al-Zand says. “Despite being competitors, I feel a great deal of respect for the other Stumberg finalist’s work ethic, resilience, and talent, and knew they would take full advantage of this opportunity. The win certainly opens some doors for us but with the responsibility to make the right choices and to continue learning from any mistakes we make along the way. So for us, we see it as just the beginning.”  

PDC is a groundbreaking fitness device designed to precisely monitor squat depth for powerlifters, athletes, and fitness enthusiasts alike. PDC consists of a leg strap phone holder and a depth-checker app, offering unparalleled accuracy and convenience for an affordable price. For powerlifters, PDC ensures compliance with competition standards for all squats, while for athletes across various disciplines, it confirms optimal muscle engagement through verification of sufficient squat depth.

“The $25k will go to designing and producing our PDC performance band, hiring a contracted or part-time content creator, and developing an Android version of our app,” Al-Zand says. “Our current priority is assembling a strong team and to begin interviews as we set up in our downtown office next week. We are looking for talented Android or iOS developers in the San Antonio area as well as product design engineers and content creators.” 

Congratulations to all the teams that competed this year, and thanks to the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship for their support of our Trinity startup community.