By ERNST CLEOFE
Sports Writer
Erin "Barney" Flattery def. Sarah "It's Miller Time" Miller
The first fight of the evening featured an eventful matchup between Flattery, a junior, and sophomore Miller. The decisive moments came in the final seconds of round three when Flattery snatched the victory.
Miller controlled the first round, setting the tone by landing a strong straight jab for the first punch of the night. Miller kept close to Flattery and used her quickness to break through Flattery's guard.
In the second, Flattery started to come back by shortening her punches to counter Miller's quickness, and it was clear the third round would decide the victor.
The third round started with energy as Flattery and Miller traded solid combinations. In the final 20 seconds of the round, Miller cornered Flattery and gained the advantage. But in the final seconds, Flattery broke free from the corner and threw a flurry of punches to end the round. The last second effort proved to be key with Flattery winning narrowly in a unanimous decision.
Kelsey "Try and Hit Me" Blomekedef. Laura "Sunshiner"Semeraro
Senior Blomeke earned a victory against junior Semeraro with smart strategy changes throughout the bout.
The first round was a defensive battle with each boxer feeling out the other's style.
In the second round, Blomeke finally broke through Semeraro's guard with the first of her in-match strategy changes. By aggressively pushing forward, Blomeke kept Semeraro off-balance and in retreat for much of the round.
Blomeke finished the match strong and ensured the victory by throwing continuous punches and forcing Semeraro to keep her guard up.
Blomeke won the bout in a unanimous decision.
Stany "The Bulgarian Beast" Sevovadef. Grace Welte "Maker"
Junior Sevova overwhelmed sophomore Welte with her quickness in a dominant win.
Sevova opened the match with an energetic start, effectively moving and dodging Welte's punches. Sevova would then pick opportune times to land combinations as Welte was off-balance.
In the second round, Sevova continued with the same quick dodges and punches. Despite Welte's guard, Sevova broke through and kept Welte from establishing any rhythm.
With the first two rounds in Sevova's favor, the third round seemed somewhat more even. The two boxers traded a few series in a more reserved round.
Sevova's energy and quickness led to her victory by a unanimous decision.
Kat "Astrophe" Leach def. Dina "Is a Female Version of a Hustler" Montemarano
In a close fight and a battle of captains, junior Leach defeated senior Montemarano with consistency throughout the three rounds.
After a quiet first half to the first round, Leach started to break through Montemarano's blocking with punches that included Leach's crowd-silencing right hook in the middle of the round. Montemarano recovered late with good exchanges with Leach.
In the second round, Leach took control of the fight with her quickness. Using quick jabs, she found holes in Montemarano's blocks and struck whenever Montemarano hesitated.
The third round was fairly even, with Montemarano solidifying her blocking. She effectively countered as Leach started to miss punches late in the fight.
But the third round was not enough, and Leach earned the unanimous-decision victory.
Michelle "Lights Out" Lauxdef. Molly "MothaTrucka"Allare
Senior Laux and freshman Allare fought in a neck-and neck battle with momentum swings throughout the rounds.
Allare came out in the first round as the more aggressive fighter, but Laux capitalized on that aggressiveness. With Allare focusing on the attack, Laux countered against Allare's lack of defense.
In the second round, Allare solidified her guard and began to show more accuracy with her punches. However, Laux still was able to break through and get solid shots on Allare.
Laux tried to finish the fight in the third round by being more aggressive, but, like Allare in the first round, Laux's defense suffered. Allare started to land better punches through her counter.
After a close fight, Laux won in a split decision.
Anna "The Husker Hammer" Heffron def. Julie "Out of Mind" Saxer
Sophomore Heffron overwhelmed junior Saxer with a consistent intensity and aggressiveness.
Heffron started the match off well by forcing Saxer to constantly back away from her punches. But in the second half of the first round, Saxer initiated a momentum swing with quick, accurate jabs from her guard, one of which bloodied Heffron's nose.
But Heffron began the second round with the same intensity as the first. She came out with fast punches that forced Saxer to back into the corner, and even down to a knee at one point. Heffron's speed continually kept Saxer off-balance, which led to a mostly defensive round from Saxer.
Saxer started off the third by reducing the distance between the fighters and limiting Heffron's speed. But as Saxer started to tire out late in the match, Heffron kept up her energy and finished with good combinations, including a big punch at the last bell.
Heffron's success with speed led to a unanimous decision in her favor.
Contact Ernst Cleofe at ecleofe@nd.edu
By ISAAC LORTON
Sports Writer
Erin "Burn Baby" Byrne def. Courtney "Bury Her" Currier
In yet another battle of captains, senior Byrne defeated junior Currier with an impressive final round effort.
The first round appeared to be Currier's. She came out strong and dodged Byrne well, while at the same time landing solid punches. Byrne countered well though, and landed a few of her own.
Byrne turned it around, and gained control early in the second round. Currier was on defense much of the time and did not land as many punches as she had in the first round.
For the third round, the fighters traded blows for most of it. The slight upper hand seemed to be on Byrne's side. She threw a lot of solid punches and was backing Currier up against the ropes. This final round clinched it for Byrne, who won with a spilt decision from the judges.
Michelle "Michelle Michelle" Young def. Hannah "The Animal" Skinner
Junior Young took control of the bout early and did not relinquish it, earning herself the unanimous decision victory.
Putting senior Skinner on the defensive in the first round, Young was in attack mode early.
The second round was the same story as the first, with Young in control and connecting on numerous punches. At the end of the round, however, Skinner landed a solid one-two combination that could have been promising for her heading into the third round.
Skinner's final two punches did not develop into a comeback though, as Young was again in control at the start of the third. Both fighters seemed to be tiring at the end of the fight and were trading blows. It was not enough for Skinner though, as Young won in a unanimous decision.
Katie "Girl Cry" Mayka def. Jessica "Fists of Fury" Freeman.
The opening had the fighters going back and forth, a trend that would continue en route to a narrow split decision victory for senior Mayka.
At first, sophomore Freeman had Mayka against the ropes, but Mayka countered and did the same to Freeman. It was unclear who had the advantage.
Mayka came out stronger in the second round and seemed to have the slight upper-hand. Mayka was on the offensive much of the round landing many punches on Freeman. Freeman had a few good counters with some strong jabs.
Freeman started the third round strong with a flurry of punches. But Mayka countered stronger. She fought off Freeman's attack and went on one of her own. Mayka landed a devastating hit in the middle of the round, and Freeman had to be checked to continue. After the delay, Mayka closed with confidence, giving her the marginal split-decision victory.
Tori "I'll Make You Pay" White def. Ann "Fluffykins" Conover
Freshman White was white hot, as she came out aggressively in the first round and powered through to victory.
White's attack sent junior Conover blocking for most of the round. Conover took a lot of shots, which seemed to be taking a toll on the fighter.
In the second round, White continued with precision. A massive right hook from White gave Conover a bloody nose and almost knocked her backwards. The fight had to be paused briefly to see to Conover. Conover showed impressive resilience after the break, but White regained control again and had Conover's nose bloodied again by the end of the second round.
There was a long break to tend to Conover's nose but once under control the third round commenced. Again White bloodied Conover with powerful punches, causing another short break. Conover bravely kept fighting hard, but after the break White, for the fourth and last time, brought blood from Conover's nose and the match was called, giving White the victory.
Natty "Light on Her Feet' Baldasare def. Anna "The Maine-Iac" Carmack
The first round was senior Baldasare's, as she hit home on many of her strikes and set the tone for a unanimous decision victory.
Sophomore Carmack fought off the attacks well in the first, landing a few of her own, but Baldasare finished off the round with a flurry of punches.
The second was somewhat of a different story. Baldasare and Carmack traded blows, both getting in some hard hits.
Energy seemed to be the key factor in the third round. Baldasare still seemed to have something in the tank, while Carmack was running on empty. This allowed Baldasare to take control of the fight, landing punch after punch.
This last round seemed to clinch it for Baldasare, who won on a unanimous decision.
Gina "I'm Not Sorry" Rogari def. Jenny "Moves Like Jagger" Walsh
Sophomore Rogari was unapologetic in her approach as she took control in the first round and refused to relinquish it throughout the fight.
In the second round, sophomore Walsh had a stronger and more spirited attitude about her, landing more punches. These came on counters, however, because Rogari was still landing more punches and dictating the fight.
Again, Walsh built upon the success of her previous round in the third, getting in some solid hits, but it was still not enough to overthrow Rogari.
Rogari maintained command and finished strong, giving her the unanimous victory.
Contact Isaac Lorton at ilorton@nd.edu
By MIKE MONACO
Sports Writer
Emily "Shake N Bake" Baker def. Melinda "The Most Malicious" Macia
Both boxers came out swinging to the start the match, but Baker would ultimately gain an edge and take the unanimous decision victory.
Baker, a sophomore from Breen Phillips, initially had the upper hand. Macia, a junior from Pasquerilla East, was on her heels off the bat, but she managed to block many of Baker's best punches. There were no real lulls during the first round, and the first 90 seconds concluded with a back-and-forth exchange between the two women.
Round two was much of the same: aggressive fighting in which neither boxer held anything back. Baker forced Macia to retreat for much of the round.
All the aggressive fighting caught up to Baker and Macia as the match wore on. Toward the end of the third round, both boxers were noticeably fatigued. In the end, Baker won by unanimous decision.
Carleigh "the Homing Pigeon" Moore def. Jen "KO" Coe
In a matchup of experienced and skilled seniors, seniors Coe and Moore were neck-and-neck for most of the match. Both boxers had great support in the audience, providing an intense atmosphere for the bout.
The first round was remarkably even; neither boxer managed to get in more than one or two solid punches in a row before the other countered with force.
Round two began with both boxers aggressively throwing powerful punches. Neither held anything back. Moore connected on the first big punch of the second frame, but Coe managed to evade Moore's successive swings.
There were no slow moments in the pressure-packed third round as both seniors looked to empty their tanks. As the boxers tired, Moore managed to get some strong punches in.
Moore won by split decision.
Tegan Chapman def. Erin "Killer" Killmurray
Chapman won by default, as Killmurray was unable to fight due to a potential concussion.
Catherine "Dizzy" Gillespie def. Elizabeth "Dontcha Want Some" Moore
This battle of juniors began in cat-and-mouse fashion, with both boxers waiting for the right moment to exploit the opposition. Moore and illespie then alternated between connecting with jabs to the head and evading one another's punches.
The two juniors continued to be patient in the second round, taking their time and being less aggressive than other boxers throughout the night. There was no all-out swinging as neither boxer wanted to be left susceptible to counters.
The atmosphere changed in the final round though, as both Moore and Gillespie came out with a newfound ferociousness. Gillespie didn't seem to be fatigued as she got in a slew of solid punches on Moore. Towards the end of the round, Moore managed to land some jabs, but it was not enough as Gillespie won by split decision.
Cristina "Triple X" Couri def. Karina "Matadomer" Lizzi
The match began with both boxers channeling their intensity into non-stop punches. Senior Lizzi threw some jabs that junior Couri blocked well. Couri then countered and connected with some headshots to close out the first round.
Couri separated herself in the second stanza as she threw some potent hooks. The McGlinn junior then mixed it up and utilized an equally effective jab. Couri then got Lizzi on the ropes, where she continued to gain the upper hand. Both boxers tired toward the end of the round.
Lizzi came out aggressively to start the final round. She connected multiple times with jabs to the head. However, Couri stood strong and dished out some strong shots of her own. The two women were exhausted towards the end of a hard-fought match.
Couri ended up winning by unanimous decision.
Caroline "Balinese Blackout" Walsh def. Kara "NO FEAR" Scheer
The experience of both seniors was evident from the first bell in Sheer's unanimous decision victory.
Sheer and Walsh looked technically sound, agile and patient. The first round began uneventfully, with both boxers dodging punches well. Walsh then connected on some mammoth punches as the first 90 seconds came to a close.
Walsh continued the onslaught in round two, but she altered her approach and began utilizing the hook. Sheer certainly was not giving up, and she came back strong with a combination of punches that forced Walsh to retreat. As the seniors fatigued in the middle frame, they grew content to slow down and to be patient with their punches.
Sheer held nothing back in the final round, but Walsh patiently waited for opportunities to counter. Walsh was still punching hard as the clock ran down, as she went on to win by unanimous decision.
Contact Mike Monaco at jmonaco@nd.edu
By BRENDAN BELL
Sports Writer
Kaitlyn "The Bulldozer" Cole def. MJ "Dr. Evil" Durkin
In the last fight of the night, junior Cole beat fellow junior and captain Durkin in an exciting contest.
In first round, Cole landed a number of shots to Durkin's body and face. Durkin responded, using her long reach to her advantage. Cole continued to be aggressive and knocked Durkin down at the end of the round.
In the second, Cole continued to charge in despite Durkin's length, allowing her to land punches. Cole's attack proved too much, stunning Durkin and tiring her out with body shots.
In the final round, Durkin was nearly knocked down again, but stayed tough and responded with her own series of punches. The late rally wasn't enough, though, as Cole won by unanimous decision.
Contact Brendan Bell at bbell2@nd.edu
