Bengal Bouts — 140-Pounds: Freshman firepower: Liva defeats senior Hool
By: CHRIS FEDERICO
Sports Writer
Usually in Bengal Bouts, the more experienced fighter has the upper hand, especially when one is a senior and one is a freshman. But in the most competitive fight of the night in the 140-pound weight class, freshman Edward "Money" Liva overcame senior Kevin "I pity the" Hool in a tight split decision.
Both fighters had quick hands and moved around well in the ring, and the first round was pretty even as the fighters felt out each other's styles.
In the second round, Hool came out of the corner strong, but the younger Liva was able to effectively counter and hold off the senior with a steady diet of jabs and rights.
In the final round, Liva's punches began to show some effect as Hool started to bleed from the nose, and the senior was sent to the corner by the referee to stop the bleeding.
When Hool came out of the corner, Liva quickly hit him with three more solid combinations to secure the victory.
Marks def. Connor
In the opening fight of the night, junior Chip Marks outlasted freshman Matt Connor to win by unanimous decision. The pair of first-year fighters slugged it out through three rounds, but Marks appeared to have the upper hand through the bout.
The difference came in the third and final round as the freshman Connor appeared to run out of gas and Marks was able to take the upper hand. With the stronger set of legs, Marks was able to land more punches and sway the judges.
Davidson def. Welsh
The fight between senior Stephen Davidson and junior Matt Welsh began with both fighters throwing a lot of punches and not landing very many. The fighters didn't appear to bother too much with blocking, as both fighters employed an early strategy of throwing a bevy of punches.
In the second round, Davidson tried to used his height advantage and reach to keep the shorter Welsh at bay. But the smaller boxer fought hard to get inside and take away Davidson's advantage, and he even got Davidson stuck in the corner for a couple of combinations.
In the final round, Welsh again appeared to be able to outmuscle Davidson on the inside and take away a close victory. But the early efforts of Davidson were too strong, and the senior won in a split decision.
Pfizenmayer def. Velez
Junior Mark Pfizenmayer from Stanford Hall and sophomore Adrian Velez from Keenan Hall waged the war of the conjoined dorms in the last fight of the preliminary rounds for the 140-pound class. The elder Pfizenmayer's more aggressive strategy helped him earn the unanimous decision.
After a tentative first round, Pfizenmayer began to settle in during the second round and overpower Velez. Pfizenmayer used some long jabs and right hand combos to stay on top of Velez.
Pfizenmayer made his strongest statement for victory in the third when he got Velez trapped in the corner and threw a barrage of punches that had the sophomore stuck in a defensive position.
All Sports Stories for Friday, February 21, 2003
