Thirty-Eight Young Boxers Win Final Round Berths at the 2014 Junior Olympic National Championships

[By Julie Goldsticker/USA Boxing]

(JUNE 14) – The 2014 Junior Olympic National Championships semifinal round featured several outstanding bouts on Friday at the Charleston Civic Center in Charleston, W. Va. Thirty-eight semifinal bouts took place on the third day of action at the 43rd annual event. All of Friday’s semifinal victors moved on to Saturday’s championship round.

Tournament favorites Daniel Gonzalez (Moreno Valley, Calif.) and Jayda Thomas (Detroit, Mich.) each took semifinal wins to move on to the male light flyweight and female bantamweight title bouts respectively. Yet, not all of the Junior Open titlists and returning champions enjoyed the same success. Manuel Flores (Thermal, Calif.) won a split decision over 2013 Junior Olympic National Champion Dylan Price (Sicklerville, N.J.) in the opening bout of the day.

Two reigning Junior Open champions fell in Friday’s semifinal action as well. Ryan Garcia (Adelanto, Calif.) took a split decision over two-time titlist Devin Haney (Las Vegas, Nev.) and bantamweight Victor Morales (Vancouver, Wash.) dropped a 2-1 decision to Eric Puente (Carlsbad, Calif.).

Two-time Junior Open champion Suray Mahmutovic (Daly City, Calif.) earned a berth in his first Junior Olympic National Championships final round contest with a unanimous decision over Kashif Muhammad-Brown (Upper Marlboro, Md.) in their light heavyweight semifinal. On the opposite side of the bracket, Gonzalo Cardenas (Rosenberg, Texas) defeated 2013 Junior Olympic National Championships silver medalist Mario Hernandez (Sparks, Nev.) to join Mahmutovic in the finals.

Janelson Figueroa (Detroit, Mich.) and Brandon Lee (Coachella, Calif.) faced off in the bout of the tournament on Friday night. The action was fast and furious through all three rounds of the welterweight semifinal bout and the crowd roared with appreciation for every heavy shot the pair landed. Yet there could only be one winner and Figueroa pulled out a split decision to move on to Saturday’s championship round.

Twenty-four championship bouts will highlight the final day of 2014 Junior Olympic National Championships competition at 2 p.m. on Saturday at the Charleston Civic Center. Tickets are available for $10 and can be purchased at ticketmaster.com or at the door. Children under 12 are free.

USA Boxing’s Junior Olympic program is a critical developmental pipeline for the organization and has consistently produced future Olympians and professional world champions. 2012 Olympic Gold Medalist Claressa Shields (Flint, Mich.) won the 2011 event in Mobile prior to claiming the first-ever middleweight gold in women’s Olympic boxing action.

Friday’s Semifinal Results
 101 lbs/female: Mia Valadez, Los Angeles, Calif., dec. Vidalia Dickens, Crossville, Tenn., 3-0
101 lbs/male: Keyshawn Davis, Norfolk, Va., dec. Ricardo Sandoval, Rialto, Calif., 3-0
101 lbs/male: Derry Edwards, Vacaville, Calif., dec. Adrian Benton, Cincinnati, Ohio, 3-0
106 lbs/male: Manuel Flores, Thermal, Calif., dec. Dylan Price, Sicklerville, N.J., 2-1
106 lbs/male: Fernando Martinez, Phoenix, Ariz., dec. Tyler Morales, Vancouver, Wash., 3-0
110 lbs/female: Ruth Diaz, Houston, Texas dec. Jazzell Rabago Bobadilla, Ewa Beach, Hawaii, 3-0
110 lbs/female: Jessenia Murrillo, Rockford, Ill., dec. Crystal Tuminello, Anderson, S.C., 2-1
110 lbs/male: Ruben Robles, Los Angeles, Calif., dec. Ted Mrkonja, Pittsburgh, Pa., 3-0
110 lbs/male: Marc Castro, Fresno, Calif., dec. Rogelio Ortega, Pasadena, Calif., 3-0
114 lbs/female: Jessica Juarez, San Diego, Calif., dec. Ashlee Garcia, Dallas, Texas, 3-0
114 lbs/female: Olivia Hendrickson, Waterford, Wis., won on TKO over Mydia Alonso, Wilkes-Barre, Pa., TKO-2 (:58)
114 lbs/male: Daniel Gonzalez, Moreno Valley, Calif., dec. Mathias Radcliffe, Reseda, Calif., 2-1
114 lbs/male: Ronnell Johnson, Westerville, Ohio dec. Jose Ibarra, Willow Springs, N.C., 2-1
119 lbs/female: Zoe Glass, Lansing, Mich., dec. Jermesha Poke, St. Louis, Mo., 2-1
119 lbs/female: Jayda Thomas, Detroit, Mich., dec. Lesly Soria, Los Angeles, Calif., 3-0
119 lbs/male: Eric Puente, Carlsbad, Calif., dec. Victor Morales, Vancouver, Wash., 2-1
119 lbs/male: Delonte Johnson, Cleveland, Ohio dec. Brian O’Shea, Yonkers, N.Y., 3-0
125 lbs/female: Andrea Medina, National City, Calif., dec. Britan Vallier, Crowley, La., 3-0
125 lbs/female: Diana Estrada, Hillsboro, Ore., dec. Melanie Gonzalez, Houston, Texas, 2-1
125 lbs/male: Leon Lawson III, Flint, Mich., dec. Keenan Glaude, Lafayette, La., 2-1
125 lbs/male: Ryan Garcia, Adelanto, Calif., dec. Devin Haney, Las Vegas, Nev., 2-1
132 lbs/female: Siane Moore, St. Louis, Mo., dec. Cheyenne Lewellan, Summerville, S.C., 2-1
132 lbs/female: Lupe Gutierrez, Sacramento, Calif., dec. Jasmine Hernandez, National City, Calif., 3-0
132 lbs/male: Carlos Nava, Pasadena, Texas, dec. Bryan Lua, Madera, Calif., 3-0
132 lbs/male: Charlie Sheehy, Brisbane, Calif., dec. Alfredo Escarcego, 3-0
138 lbs/male: Noel Temores, Gilroy, Calif., dec. Noah Kapner, Gravette, Ark., 2-1
138 lbs/male: Andres Borrego, Arvada, Colo., dec. Joshua Anton, West Palmdale, Calif., 2-1
145 lbs/male: Joseph Veazy, Pasadena, Md., dec. Alan Lican, Grande Island, Neb., 3-0
145 lbs/male: Janelson Figueroa, Detroit, Mich., dec. Brandon Lee, Coachella, Calif., 2-1
154 lbs/male: Troy Isley, Alexandria, Va., dec. Ray Shipp, St. Louis, Mo., 3-0
154 lbs/male: Manuel Rodriguez, Indio, Calif., dec. Josue Montano, Edinburg, Texas, 3-0
165 lbs/male: Akeem Mayle, Zanesville, Ohio dec. Joeshon James, Sacramento, Calif., 2-1
165 lbs/male: Atif Oberlton, Philadelphia, Pa., dec. Casey Wilson, Baxter Springs, Kansas, 3-0
176 lbs/male: Gonzalo Cardenas, Rosenberg, Texas dec. Mario Hernandez, Sparks, Nev., 2-1
176 lbs/male: Suray Mahmutovic, Sacramento, Calif., dec. Kashif Muhammad-Brown, Upper Marlboro, Md., 3-0
176+ lbs: Devin Young, Aiken, S.C., dec. Richard Torrez, Tulare, Calif., 2-1
176+ lbs: Roland Lemus, Los Angeles, Calif., dec. Fabian Valentine, Reading, Pa., 2-1