On Monday night, Dahnke Ballroom hosted the quarterfinals of the 95th annual Bengal Bouts. Here’s how each of the contests in Ring A played out.
Thomas “Slim” Etchart def. Matty “Amore” Kavanaugh
The opening round of the 95th annual Bengal Bouts quarterfinal round took place in Ring A. Kavanaugh attacked the body aggressively early and stayed on the front foot early. Etchart used his multiple-inch height advantage to put together a few counters late in the round. Kavanaugh continued to pressure in round two with a focus on attacking the body. His pace did not slow in round three, but Etchart managed to string together several blows, never letting his opponent get too close. Despite Kavanaugh’s consistent intensity, Etchart remained poised and utilized his reach to secure the victory by split decision.
Emiliano “Sleeping Brute” Gomez def. Noah “The Rocket” Crockett
Gomez and Crockett came out the gates throwing with very little regard for human life. Several massive blows were traded with very few blocks held. The round ended after a massive headshot from Gomez before the bell. The pace slowed down in round two as both fighters tired. Gomez wasted very little energy between periodic attacks to the body. Crockett leaned in on the attack early in round three, sensing an opportunity. Gomez held strong, though, and responded with several counters of his own. His early aggression and strategic pacing throughout earned him a victory by unanimous decision.
Richie “The Don” Mistichelli def. Bruce “Bulldog” Alvarez
Mistichelli blitzed Alvarez early in round one, but the first-year more than held his own. A combination of adept head dodges and swift counterpunches put him in front early as he weathered the storm of strikes. Alvarez lost his footing early in round two and ate a couple of massive blows from Mistichelli, who dominated the frame. Round three would define the fight, and both fighters knew it. Despite running nearly empty, they unloaded haymakers. In the end, Mistichelli’s relentless attack was far too much for the depleted Alvarez, who wore down after his strong opening round. The junior left with a unanimous decision victory.
Charlie “Pride of the Palisades” Collins def. Smith “Ranger” McGruder
McGruder and Collins fearlessly attacked in round one, trading several violent strikes. They both took serious punishment in the round, placing them on even ground after the break. Collins got on the front foot, forcing McGruder into the corner early. While the sophomore was able to connect on a few counters, Collins controlled the pace throughout round two. The third round was the highlight of the fight. Both fighters left everything in the ring, but Collins did enough in the end for the split decision victory.
Joshua “Mighty Mouse” Rivadeneira def. Nathan “Fourks” McLeod
The two fighters took defensive approaches in round one, only trading a few blows between closely guarded exchanges. Rivadeneira started to put together several combos in round two, but visibly tired as the round progressed, taking some hits from McLeod on the counter. Both fought their most aggressive round in the final frame, running on fumes by the end. McLeod’s conservative approach would cost him in the end, as the first-year Rivadeneira did enough for the split decision win.
Michael “Crispy Chicken” Rauch def. Robert “The Turkish Mindset” Bektas
The senior vice president of Bengal Bouts, Michael Rauch was sharp in round one, connecting on multiple jabs to the body of Bektas. The junior had a strong showing in round two, however, finding Rauch’s body with several sharp combos. Rauch responded late in the round, pushing Bektas into the corner and setting up an exciting finale. Despite clear fatigue, Rauch was poised, using his reach to pepper the body of Bektas and avoid counters in the process. Bektas became even more worn as a result, as the vice president would outlast him en route to a unanimous decision victory.
Creed “Apollo” Leathers def. Joshua “The Tomato” Schlemmer
Fighting an uphill battle against men’s boxing club president Creed Leathers, the freshman from Pittsburgh held his own. With both fighters energized by raucous supporters, Schlemmer took the upper hand late in the second round before Leathers dealt a series of heavy shots to start the third. As the final 10 seconds arrived, Leathers connected three more times, prevailing by unanimous decision.
Matt “Double Tap” Flowers def. Dylan “Cha Cha” Cha
Neither fighter gained much separation throughout the bout, but a consistent start and a push to the ropes late in the second round put Flowers in the driver’s seat. Despite Cha landing a powerful lefty hook in the final round, Flowers held on and emerged victorious by split decision.
Gavin “The Beard” Carr def. Griffin “The Gladiator” Capece
As the second consecutive upperclassman bout wore on, an exhausted Capece couldn’t muster much attacking strength. Carr did, going right after his opponent and succeeding on a pair of lefty swings in the third round. The victory ultimately went to the bearded one by unanimous decision.
Luke “The Longhorn” Williams def. Ben “Thunderjaw” McVeigh
Boxing with the home-ring advantage as a South Bend native, McVeigh traded blows with Williams early on. Williams, however, had enough in store to control the final round and catch McVeigh with a couple of follow-up hooks. He walked away as the winner by split decision.
Jackson “Amo” Amorosa def. Colby “Goldilocks” Whitehouse
Green jackets decorated the crowd as Whitehouse and Amorosa, each of Dillon Hall, squared off in the 167-pound bout. Amorosa had his counterpart overwhelmed, particularly during a second round in which he unleashed nearly non-stop blows. The trend continued into the final round, as Amorosa nearly fell down from pursuing his opening ambush so vehemently. He’d stand up as the victor by unanimous decision.
Jack “Addy” Regan def. William “Blanco” White
In one of the night’s most physically dissimilar bouts, the stocky White opposed the lanky Regan in a senior-freshman contest. Though Regan would power through a bloody nose and a surge from White down the stretch, his body of work to start, which included a couple of potent right-handed uppercuts in the second round, got him the win by unanimous decision.
Brendan “Classic” McGinn def. Patrick “Dr. Evil” Doyle
The physical bout between Pennsylvanians once again brought a nosebleed to the gold corner. McGinn controlled the battle throughout, finding several connections in tight and going on to win by unanimous decision.
Matt “Two Cup” Turzai def. Sebastian “Smack” Makhlouf
Dominant from the start, Turzai had all the right moves in round one, moving swiftly with Makhlouf’s swings and dealing successful responses. He would open the next two rounds by sending his opponent to the floor in the second and leaning him over the ropes in the final, emerging as the obvious victor by unanimous decision.
Andrew “Molotov” Molinsky def. Sam “The Hammer” Hemmersmeier
Molinsky had his way throughout the all-underclassman bout, as the sophomore pushed his first-year counterpart back with repeated attacking bursts. Though Hemmersmeier found some success late in rounds, forcing a count in the first, Molinsky sealed the deal with a powerful shot that brought on another count midway through round three. “Molotov” would emerge victorious by unanimous decision.
Jake “Your Friendly Neighborhood” Loughran def. Riley “The Punisher” Carlin
Loughran was none too friendly to Carlin in this clash of sophomores, landing major hooks in the first and third rounds. He also forced a count in each of those rounds and finished the fight by knocking a piece of debris off Carlin’s red mask. A unanimous decision awarded Loughran the victory.
Charlie “Chili” Schmidt def. Steven “Showtime” Vanden Noven
A senior from Morrissey Manor, Schmidt used a series of right-handed uppercuts to get a leg up on his opponent. And although the pace of the bout slowed in round two, Schmidt’s did not. With Vanden Noven bleeding significantly from the nose, the bouts finished early with Schmidt the winner by unanimous decision.
Michael “Honeybadger” Heffernan def. Jacob “The Illest” Cruz
Crowd noise drowned out each breath of these two Pennsylvanian foes, who each brought fervent supporters to the bout. Heffernan controlled the fight early with a firm and steady left hand, but Cruz rallied with an immediate drive to the ropes that started round three. However, Heffernan overcame the move and finished strong, capturing the victory by split decision.
Isaac “Chris P.” Culp def. Finn “Finn Mahoney” Mahoney
Culp was crisp in his performance in the 37th quarterfinal bout, never giving Mahoney much of a chance to go on the offensive. He finally did in the waning moments of the final round, but it was too little, too late at that point. Culp ignited his Fisher Hall compatriots, winning by unanimous decision.
Seth “D.” Pickford def. Jake “Chillah” Smalley
Pickford opened the heavyweight bout with the attitude of a raging bull, cornering Smalley and tagging him with a few vicious rights. Though Smalley briefly capitalized on a tiring Pickford in the second round, the senior eventually answered each pushback. He’d go on to win by split decision.
Mark “Mark Onders” Onders def. Varun “Signapore Slinger” Taneja
The final bout featured two competitors from near and far. Onders, a native of Cleveland, battled the Singapore-based Taneja into a pause in the action, hitting him hard early in the fight. The night’s last result went the way of Onders by referee-stopped decision.
