On Monday night, Dahnke Ballroom hosted the quarterfinals of the 95th annual Bengal Bouts. Here’s how each of the contests in Ring B played out.
Patrick “The Farmer” Fitzgerald def. Ryan “McLaine” McEllen
In Ring B’s first round of the evening, McEllen and Fitzgerald traded some heavy shots to the head. Round two saw another hotly contested trade-off between the two fighters, who both tired as the round progressed. Now running on fumes, both fighters emptied the tank in round three, their technique breaking down with each passing second. In the end, Fitzgerald landed enough hits to emerge with the split decision victory.
Will “Socal” Brady vs. Ryan “Ginger” Hays
Brady and Hays were cagy in round one. Both took conservative approaches to the round but were able to land some blows when they increased their pressure. Round two had early fireworks. Brady found success in the round, even forcing a fall from Hays before the bell. Hays was not deterred in round three, however. He connected on several headshots but continued to take punishment from Brady’s counters. Both fighters were reduced to a zombie’s pace in the final moments as they mustered their final swings. Despite a valiant response from Hays after his second-round stumble, Brady took the split decision win.
Ben “Thimbus” Werner def. Sebastian “Super” Villa
Werner attacked with wide-ranging hooks early, but both took defensive approaches to a tight first round. Villa’s unorthodox stance, leaning towards his opponent, was successful on defense, but lacked the pairing of attacking punches. That changed in round three at the urging of his coaches, who repeated exclamations of “push forward!” and “keep throwing!” In doing so, however, Werner was afforded the opportunity to return punishment and take the split decision win.
Erick “Wutang Warrior” Valdez def. Charlie “Uplift Mofo Party Plan” Griffin
Valdez was in full control in round one, stringing together clean combinations to the head of Griffin. The second round took a similar tune, with Valdez staying poised on the offensive, leaving Griffin struggling for a response. He had more to give in round three, but ultimately tired from enduring the multitude of blows. Valdez’s impressive performance earned him a victory by unanimous decision.
Brooks “BMC” McConnell def. Manny “Arch” Nuñez
McConnell’s enormous connection early in round one set the tone. Nuñez survived the ref’s count but continued to suffer from the ensuing attacks. In round two, Nuñez was made to survive another count after McConnell’s massive right caught him once again. The senior continued to rain fire, leaving Nuñez hanging on for dear life entering the final frame. He showed fight in round three, but could not do enough to stop McConnell from taking home the unanimous decision victory.
Sebastian “The Portuguese Stallion” Pires def. Yanni “Quadzilla” Vu
The two Californian seniors opened the bout on the aggressive, as Pires pummeled Vu in the opening seconds before Vu responded, getting Pires turned around. Their pace would slow into the final two rounds before Pires took over the fight by taking Vu to the ropes in the final minute. Pires claimed the victory by split decision.
Matt “Moo Moo Meadows” Kirkham def. Stephen “The Chef” Giovacco
Fatigue took its toll on both boxers, especially late in the rounds. However, the Palo Alto, California, native out of the blue corner had more left in the tank, pushing Giovacco to the ropes midway through round three. Perhaps inspired by his cow-costumed fans, Kirkham captured the win by unanimous decision.
Zachary “Obi” Egan def. JM “El Gringo” Sauerbrey
After a fairly balanced start to the all-sophomore bout, Egan took over down the stretch putting Sauerbrey on the defensive. In the last seconds of the final round, Sauerbrey faded and needed multiple stoppages, leading to a unanimous-decision victory for Egan.
Ryan “The Prophet” Moses def. Robbie “Lobster” Donahue
Moses must have received some sort of covenant on his way into the final round. Though the first part of the bout played out evenly, “The Prophet” went on the offensive down the stretch, landing a handful of key shots in the center of the right. As a result, he finished as the victor by split decision.
Caz “Manian Devil” Kotsen def. Michael “Mozzarell” Giovacco
In this showdown of New Jersey natives, Kotsen got better as the bout moved along. By the time the final round wrapped up, he had Giovacco moving all about the ring on defense, peppering his opponent in an act of in-state superiority. A unanimous decision would confirm the victory for Kotsen.
Henry “Goldilocks” Phillips def. Br. John “The Monk” Santa Ana
In a contest between a sophomore and graduate student, the younger Phillips had his way for the vast majority of the bout. He was especially dominant in the second round, landing a couple of stout lefties over the top. Phillips would continue his all-out attack into the final round, landing punches in almost every which way en route to a unanimous-decision victory.
Jack “Reacher” Helzner def. Max “Sweet Tooth” Lowery
This bout featured perhaps the most exciting first round of the night, as Helzner and Lowery went relentlessly flying around the ring to start. However, as his supporters raucously rained down chants of “Helzner! Helzner!,” the man from the blue corner turned the wild bout in his favor. He’d finish the winner by unanimous decision.
John “Sugar J” Christoforetti def. John Austin “ Old Dominion” Hatch
In this contest between natives of the DMV, “Sugar J” had himself a sweet performance. Consistent throughout all three rounds, the Washington, D.C., product dispatched his foe from Arlington, Virginia, winning by unanimous decision.
Owen “Chami-Man” Serkes def. Charlie “Tubs” Gussen
Despite stumbling early, Serkes gave Gussen all he could handle, taking him to the ropes with a relentless attack in round two. His success continued into round three as Gussen struggled to keep his hands up, resulting in a count midway through the final round. The Long Islander from Siegfried Hall picked up the victory by unanimous decision.
Kyle “The Sheriff” Macker def. Collins “CTrain” Trainor
With a noisy and ruthless pack of supporters behind him “The Sheriff” laid down the law and left his opponent in a tough spot. A timeout for injury stopped the second round and brought the bout to an end after two rounds, as Macker walked away with a victory by unanimous decision.
Max Soyster “Soyster” Heinz def. Luke “Lights Out” Simard
Thumping his adversary with a litany of right-handed swings, Heinz had Simard bloodied before the first round concluded. He would continue to attack with a massive success rate as cleanups continued between rounds in Simard’s corner. Heinz captured the victory by unanimous decision.
Michael “Deagle” Nilsen def. Kolbe “The Cheese” Schlosser
Neither fighter gained much of an advantage in the first round, as both were content to defend well and enter the second round even. However, Nilsen made his move to start round two, taking a few shots at Schlosser’s gut. The man in blue found additional success up high in the final round, securing a win by unanimous decision.
Samuel “Sam I Am” Hatch def. Emerson “Scrappy” Carella
Hatch controlled the bout early on, but Carella turned the momentum around with a surge midway through the second round. Despite the latter corner’s pleas for an uppercut or two, Carella never found one, continuing to throw hooks at his opponent. Hatch’s good start held up, as he won by split decision.
Tommy “T-Rex” Santarelli def. Jakob “Rooster” Kotz
Santarelli thrived throughout this battle of first-years, forcing counts on Kotz at some point in all three rounds. After struggling with his balance early on, Kotz went into an injury stoppage late in round two, and Santarelli emerged victorious by unanimous decision.
William “B.O.A” Johnson def. Mark “Red Hulk” Hennin
Although Hennin moved into the driver’s seat first in round two, his didn’t stay there long. Johnson, the younger fighter in the ring by two class years, took over to end the second and intensified his attack into the third. Using a lethal combination of straight lefts and righty uppercuts, “B.O.A.” took the victory by unanimous decision.
