Bravo scores unanimous decision with experience
By KEVIN BERCHOU AND PAUL CAMARATA
Sports Writers
St. Edward's Hall senior Derrick Bravo knew experience would play a significant role in his bout with freshman Mike Feduska. His prediction came true as he scored a unanimous decision over his inexperienced foe.
Bravo combined his experience with a quick jab and powerful left hook to carefully pick apart Feduska. Holding Feduska at bay for much of the fight, Bravo picked his spots with precision.
Lance Hendron, a junior from Las Vegas, gambled a bit in gaining a unanimous verdict over Sung Hoon Kim. Coming out hard in the first round, Hendron set the early pace then held on in the later rounds for a relatively easy win.
In other 125-pound action, Jason McMahon defeated Mark Burdick when the referee brought the fight to an early end 1:05 into the third round.
135-pounds
In perhaps the most thrilling match of the afternoon, off-campus senior Matt Fumagalli nipped Zahm Hall sophomore Luke Dillon in the narrowest of split decisions.
After a stunning early-round loss last year, Fumagalli is back this year looking to recapture the glory of his sophomore year when he took home a title. Dillon, supported by a rowdy contingent of fellow Zahm residents, almost sent the senior co-captain home early again.
In a fight that turned into a brutal slugfest, the opponents used aggressive strategies trying to win the decision. Fumagalli, having the longer reach, dictated the pace for much of the fight, coming fiercely at Dillon, who stood his ground and fired right back.
After making an impressive run to the finals as a freshman last year, Tony Hallowell is back this year, intent on winning a title. Sunday afternoon he took his first step toward doing that, dominating Jon Valenzuela in a unanimous decision.
Strongest in the second round, Hallowell battered the first-year boxer from Dillon before the referee stepped in to administer a standing 8-count.
Sophomore T.J. D'Agostino earned the right to lock horns with Hallowell after notching a TKO victory over junior Chris Hoffman.
Fumagalli will next tangle with fellow off-campus student, senior Rich Redina who earned a unanimous decision in his bout with Jacob Cusack.
145-pounds
O'Neill Hall freshman Sam Fuller might still be a bit dazed, but he'll live with it.
After being knocked down — but not out — in the opening round of his match with Alumni's Jon Pribaz, Fuller rallied to win a split decision with a fierce third-round flurry over a fellow southpaw.
Summoning the last of his energies, he outgunned Pribaz, who had the fight won in the third.
Senior Jemar Tisby, fighting with a severe reach disadvantage, overcame his short stature to stand tall in a unanimous decision over Sorin freshman Ryan Rodgers.
Throwing a myriad of combinations, Tisby worked to offset Rodger's reach, a tactic that demonstrated an advantage he did have — experience.
In battles of freshmen, Nathan Lohmayer outdueled Andy Callan in a split decision, while Andrew Harms bested Keough's Timothy Huml.
Though Harms was impressive, he feels his best fights are ahead of him.
155-pounds
Brock Heckmann began his quest for a second consecutive Bengal Bouts title in the preliminaries Friday night by scoring a unanimous decision over Dan McCoy. Throughout, Heckmann used a quick left jab and threw smooth overhand rights. With straight punches and fluid footwork, Heckmann maintained tight control of the ring space against McCoy, and then again on Sunday versus Mike McCabe.
McCabe had strong technique on Friday night, using his entire lower body to pack power into his punches. It was enough to defeat Paul Robinson in a unanimous decision in the preliminaries, but fell short against Heckmann. Against McCabe, Heckmann dictated the tempo of the fighting to move on to the semifinals.
Wednesday night, he'll take on Chris Pettit, who used the same formula for success in both of his early round fights. Mixing an aggressive left hand with his ability to move in and out of space, Pettit won a unanimous decision in the preliminary round against Andy Baum. On Sunday, Pettit again utilized his strong left hook to win another unanimous decision over sophomore Julian DeVoe.
A long jab and combinations of punches helped DeVoe win a split decision over freshman Colin Kerrigan on Friday night, but against Pettit he could never establish a rhythm.
In the lower half of the 155-pound bracket, Siegfried sophomore John Nowak won two unanimous decisions over the weekend to advance to the semifinals. A southpaw and the second seed, Nowak established a sturdy posture against senior Mike Messina on Friday night, enabling him to keep landing his left hand. Nowak's third round combinations clinched the victory, and he picked up with the same intensity on Sunday against freshman Jesse Shallcross.
After his preliminary opponent defaulted, Shallcross fought with resolve in his first ever Bengal Bout on Sunday. But Nowak used his left to cause three standing 8-counts during the fight, and will now fight Mike Melby on Wednesday night.
A junior from Dillon Hall, Melby advanced to the quarterfinals after scoring a technical knockout over sophomore Chris Henry on Friday night. Melby stayed aggressive by fighting from the center of the ring and controlling the angles of his attacks. He started snapping a long and steady jab shortly after the Henry fight began and kept working the punch until he had won his second fight, a unanimous decision in the quarterfinals over sophomore Brandon Gasser.
In the preliminaries Gasser used an active step and a series of combinations to win a unanimous decision over sophomore Christopher Solis. It was not enough on Sunday, however, as Gasser was forced to fight uphill against Melby's long reach.
160-pounds
Top-seeded Chris Kitalong opened the action in the 160-pound division on Friday night by showing off his fiery speed and agility against Ethan McKinney. Kitalong's bouncing feet, hair trigger attacks and huge right hook helped him dominate the first round. It was a left hook that dazed McKinney and prompted the referee to stop the contest 18 seconds into the second round.
Showing similar skills on Sunday, Kitalong advanced to the semifinals after a unanimous decision over freshman Mike Panzica. After using his jab to earn a split decision in an evenly fought preliminary bout versus Galen Loughrey, Panzica was unable to deter the unflappable Kitalong in the quarterfinals.
Next for Kitalong is relentless third year law student John Murphy, who brawled his way into the semifinals with two decisions over the weekend. Shorter than both of his first two opponents and less than a technician in the ring, Murphy used a dogged, bullrushing style to keep his opponents off balance.
It earned him a unanimous decision over senior Dan Probst in the preliminaries, and then helped Murphy outlast junior Jason Voss for a split decision on Sunday.
Voss, owner of a powerful left hook and polished footwork, won a convincing unanimous decision over sophomore Dusty Segretto on Friday night. Against Murphy, however, he could never maintain the strategic distance and angles that worked so well in the preliminaries and lost on the judges' cards by failing to win a narrow battle inside.
Hometown sophomore Pat Dillon is the second seed in the 160-pound weight class, and fought as such in two unanimous decisions that moved him to the semifinals. On Friday night he was undaunted by the reach advantage and straight punching of sophomore Brent Burish. Dillon's strong right hand got faster as the fight went on, causing a standing eight count in the third round en route to the victory.
In the quarterfinals, Dillon faced Matt McDonald, a junior who scored a split decision in the preliminaries over Pat Hobbins. Dillon combined his quick feet and flurries of punches to gain control in the first round against McDonald. After getting a standing 8-count in the first round, McDonald came out fighting in the second and remained aggressive for the remainder of the fight, but never had enough to slow Dillon, whose unrelenting combinations attacked both the head and body in the third round.
Freshman Mark DeSplinter, the youngest 160-pound semifinalist, will challenge Dillon on Wednesday night. In his first ever Bengal Bout, the tenacious DeSplinter used repeated combinations in a unanimous decision over senior Eric Saul. On Sunday, DeSplinter showed his stamina by outlasting sophomore John Enterline for a split decision victory.
All Sports Stories for Monday, February 25, 2002
