Preliminary action moved into its first evening session on Monday at the 2009 USA Boxing National Championships. Competition in the junior men, open division men and open division women’s divisions at the Denver Coliseum in Denver, Colo. proved exciting, as the best amateur boxers in the United States began the long journey toward becoming a national champion..
Welterweight Javontae Starks (St. Paul, Minn.) continued his winning ways by defeating Manuel Marquez (Ft. Meyer, Fla.), 19-12. Starks, 2008 Future Stars National Champion, looks to add Welterweight National Champion to his resume, but will face tough competition in the stacked weight class.
Another 2008 Future Stars National Champion claimed a victory tonight. Alexandria Cardenas (San Angelo, Texas) out-pointed Sudana Fowler (Detroit, Mich.) by a wide 27-2 margin. Cardenas, a national champion in the featherweight division, moved up to the light welterweight division for this year’s event.
Coming off a trip from Armenia as a 2009 Junior World team member, Ray Ximenez (Dallas, Texas) returned to the states to face his fellow countrymen. The preliminary bout pitted him against Oscar Herrera (Aloha, Ore.) whom he defeated 11-1.
Action continues tomorrow at noon and 6 p.m. at the Denver Coliseum. Tickets are currently available through www.ticketswest.com and all King Soopers locations through the state of Colorado and start at only $7.50.
The 2009 USA Boxing National Championships Open Preliminary Action in the Mile High City
(DENVER, COLO.) – The 2009 USA Boxing National Championships kicked off competition in full force on Monday at the Denver Coliseum in Denver, Colo. Over 40 bouts of action in the junior, open and women’s divisions were contested on Monday afternoon.
2009 marks both the first time that all three divisions were combined at the 2009 USA Boxing National Championships, and the event’s debut in Denver. In addition, the tournament marks a return to the three-three minute rounds in open division men’s action. Open men have boxed four, two-minute rounds since the 2000 Olympic Games.
In junior division action, National Silver Gloves champion Steve Cross (Covington, Tenn.) pulled out a slim 8-7 victory over Eros Correa (San Jose, Calif.) in their first round contest to advance on to quarterfinal competition.
Two of the nation’s top light heavyweights faced off in first round action in men’s open division competition with 2008 Olympic Training Partner Siju Shabazz (Las Cruces, N.M.) battling returning champion Dorian Anthony (Lynwood, Calif.). Shabazz took the early lead in the contest, taking a 6-3 lead after the first round of action. He continued to build the lead in the second and enjoyed a 12-7 round with three minutes of action remaining. Shabazz added to his point total in the final round of action to win an 18-9 final decision.
Two former champions took the ring in women’s competition on Monday with five-time national champion Sacred Downing and 2005 titlist Melissa Roberts (Camp Lejeune, N.C.) both claiming first round victories. Downing won a convincing 24-8 decision over Samantha Martinez (Fort Worth, Texas) in their featherweight contest while Roberts recorded a fourth round stoppage over Alyssa Star Garcia (Eagle Lake, Texas) in their lightweight match-up.
Action will resume at 2009 USA Boxing National Championships at 6 p.m. with 42 preliminary bouts on tap for the evening session.
Junior Male
101 lbs: Steve Cross, Covington, Tenn. dec. Eros Correa, San Jose, Calif., 8-7
101 lbs: William Foster, West Haven, Conn. dec. Alfredo Mojica, Dallas, Texas, 5-4
101 lbs: Jonathan Benitez, Waianae, Hawaii, dec. Angel Garcia, Seattle, Wash., 16-1
101 lbs: Patrick Harris, Hyattsville, Md., stopped Cody Stone, Indianapolis, Ind., RSC-3 (1:57)
110 lbs: Hector Luna, San Bernadino, Calif., dec. Austin Watkins, Morbe, Mich., 17-2
110 lbs: Ricky Lacefield, Lincoln, Neb., dec. Joshua McShane, Waianae, Hawaii, 9-4
110 lbs: Edwin Sandoval, Bakersfield, Calif., dec. Pedro Duran, Downey, Calif., 9-4
110 lbs: Keevan Evans, Little Rock, Ark., dec. David Sandoval, Tacoma, Wash., 11-5
119 lbs: Ricky Rodriguez, Evans, Colo., dec. Nick Jefferson, Puyallup, Wash., 15-4
119 lbs: Luis Feliciano, Milwaukee, Wis., dec. Joshua Jones, Philadelphia, Pa., 15-3
119 lbs: Luis Ambrosio, Fresno, Calif., dec. Kiun Evans, Little Rock, Ark., 11-7
119 lbs: Kenneth Sims, Jr., Chicago, Ill., won on walkover over Stephen McIntyre, Dothan, Ala., W/O
119 lbs: Juan Rijo, Jr., dec. Rochester, N. Y., dec. Angel Garcia, Milwaukee, Wisc., 12-3
119 lbs: Joseph Diaz, South Elmonte, Calif., dec. Dennis Galarza, Orlando, Fla., 9-3
132 lbs: Donald Brown, Elmonte, Calif., dec. Tevin Alieu, Providence, R. I., 7-6
132 lbs: Jose Arambula, Harvey, Ill., dec. Antonio Capulin, Houston, Texas, 6-6+
132 lbs: Parris Chisholm, III, Oxon Hill, Md., dec. Michael Montgomery, Macon, Ga., 11-7
132 lbs: Jose Macias, Bullhead, Ariz., dec. Jayme Rupp, Helena, Mont., 10-5
132 lbs: Manuel Rojas, Dallas, Texas, dec. Arnold Dinong, Ewa Beach, Hawaii, 8-5
132 lbs: Ramon Velasquez, Watsonville, Calif., dec. Junior Zurita, Beaverton, Ore., 9-6
145 lbs: Bobby Bryant, Olive Branch, Miss., stopped Michael Williams, Pine Buff, Ark., RSC-1 (0:22)
145 lbs: Antoine Douglas, Washington, DC dec. Joseph Goss, Bridgeport, Conn., 4-2
145 lbs: Jonathan Dinong, Waianae, Hawaii, dec. Lukas Whitetail, Mclaughlin, S. D., 7-2
145 lbs: Erik Sanchez, Salinas, Calif., dec. Brandon Mendoza, Nampa, Idaho, 11-4
165 lbs: Eric Guajardo, San Antonio, Texas, stopped Damian Romero, La Salle, Colo., RSC-1 (1:42)
Junior Female
125 lbs/F: Guadalupe Nevarez, Phoenix, Ariz., stopped Shoshanna Lynn, Tulsa, Oak., RSC-3
Senior Male
119 lbs: Jesus Magdaleno, Las Vegas, Nev. dec. Roman Morales, San Ardo, Calif., 26-10
119 lbs: Isaac Torres, Mission, Texas, dec. Earl Edwards, Phenix City, Ala., 22-15
119 lbs: Gabriel Montoya, Cheyenne, Wyo., dec. Thomas Huitt-Johnson, St. Joseph, Mo., 22-13
119 lbs: Rob Colasante, Munhall, Pa. dec. Marcus Gaddis, Landover, Md., 19-8
119 lbs: Manuel Avila, Fresno, Calif., dec. Jazzima Hogue, Denver, Colo., 17-11
119 lbs: Luis Rosa, East Haven, Conn., dec. John Franklin, Fort Carson/Kansas City, Mo., 19-9
178 lbs: Thomas Williams, Fort Washington, Md., dec. Manny Thompson, Wichita, Kan., 19-13
178 lbs: Armando Pina, Chicago, Ill., dec. Joaquin Lopez, Ukiah, Calif., 17-9
178 lbs: Robert Brant, Oakdale, Minn., dec. Shad Cramer, Spokane, Wash., 7-3
178 lbs: Ibn Akbar Ricardson, Newark, N. J., dec. Nicholas Alwan, Pope Air Force Base. N. C., 20-8
178 lbs: Steve Geffrard, Boca Raton, Fla., stopped Dave Otis, Belgrade, Mont., RSC-3 (2:18)
178 lbs: Robert Sherman, Houston, Texas, dec. Andrew Hernandez, Phoenix, Ari., 17-14
178 lbs: Siju Shabazz, Las Cruces, N. M., dec. Dorian Anthony, Lynwood, Calif., 18-9
178 lbs: Jeffrey Spencer, Fort Carson, Colo./Gary, Ind., dec. DeRae Crane, Marquette, Mich., 20-18
Senior Female
101 lbs/F: Laura Ramirez, Bronx, N. Y., dec. Sadie Roberts, Hudson, Iowa, 14-2
101 lbs/F: Colleen Loo, Khului, Hawaii, dec. Jessia Ponce, Napa, Calif., 8-7
101 lbs/F: Sherry Sanders, Tulsa, Oak., won on walkover over Ashley Alvarado, Houston, Texas, W/O
101 lbs/F: Paola Arana, Duarte, Calif., dec. Samantha Guzman, Oak Park, Ill., 22-20
119 lbs/F: Raelene Salazar Pineda, San Bernadino, Calif., dec. Angel Hamby, Orlando, Fla., 10-5
119 lbs/F: Sacred Downing, Trenton, N. J, dec. Samantha Martinez, Fort Worth, Texas, 24-8
119 lbs/F: Tiffany Perez Hammond, IND., dec. Christina Cruz, New York, N. Y., 20-12
119 lbs/F: Rita Martinez, Las Cruces, N.M., stopped Marisa Aldana, Garden City, Kan., RET-2 (1:55)
125 lbs/F: Melissa Roberts, Camp Lejeune, N. C., stopped Alyssa Star Garcia, Eagle Lake Texas, RSC-4