(JUNE 3)
Team USA closed it’s four-event
international swing with four gold, two silver and three bronze
medals as well as the first place team trophy at the Cheo Aponte
Tournament in Caguas City, Puerto Rico on Saturday.
Light flyweight
Leroy Davila
(New Brunswick, N.J.) had to wait
until Saturday’s final round to compete for the first time in
Puerto Rico, but the delay didn’t hurt his performance in the
championship bout. Davila won a unanimous decision over Puerto
Rico’s
Jose Mercedes
to claim the first gold medal of
the night for his U.S. squad. The medal is Davila’s second in
2013 international action after a silver medal at the
Independence Cup.
Flyweight
Virginia Fuchs
(Kemah, Texas) once again ensured
that her bout didn’t go to the judges. The 2013 USA Boxing
National Championships silver medalist challenged Puerto Rico’s
own
Naihomy Vasquez,
but the home crowd couldn’t help
their boxer combat Fuchs’ onslaught. Vasquez’s corner threw in
the towel midway through the third round of action, giving Fuchs
the retirement victory and her first international gold medal.
Reigning World Champion
Tiara Brown
(Fort Myers, Fla.) and Pan
American Games champion and host nation boxer
Kiria Tapia
faced off in a highly-anticipated
battle in the women’s lightweight championship bout. Brown was
hoping to celebrate her 25th
birthday with a gold medal but it was the Puerto Rican boxer who
pulled out a split decision by a 2-1 margin.
Flyweight
Shawn Simpson
(Chicago, Ill.) faced off in an
action packed contest with 2012 Puerto Rican Olympian and Pan
American Games bronze medalist
Jantony Ortiz.
Simpson dropped a 3-0 decision to Ortiz to claim the silver
medal, his second international podium finish of 2013.
In light welterweight action,
Jose Alday
(Odessa, Texas) fell just short
of gold in his championship bout with the Dominican Republic’s
Carlos Adame.
Alday dropped a split decision to
Adame in their final round showdown to claim a silver medal in
his first international competition.
Welterweight
Jamontay Clark
(Cincinnati, Ohio) closed his
impressive week of boxing with a victory in Saturday’s
championship bout. He claimed his fourth consecutive victory of
the tournament, taking a 3-0 decision over
Raul Sanchez
of the Dominican Republic to win
his first international gold medal.
Heavyweight
Michael Hilton
(Trenton, N.J.) didn’t enjoy the
same success in his final round contest. He fell to Chile’s
Miguel Veliz
by a split decision in the
championship bout. He will return to the United States with a
silver medal in his first international event.
Super heavyweight
Cam F. Awesome
(Lenexa, Kansas) continued his
2013 winning streak with a gold medal victory in the final bout
of the 2013 Cheo Aponte tournament. Awesome defeated 2011 Pan
American Games bronze medalist by a 3-0 margin to win the United
States’ fourth gold medal of the event. It follows Awesome’s
gold medal victories in the 2013 USA Boxing National
Championships and National Golden Gloves.
USA Boxing International Teaching
Coach
Pedro Roque
(Colorado Springs, Colo.),
Kevin Benford
(Cincinnati, Ohio) and
Steve Rivera
(Somerset, N.J.) are leading the
United States team in Puerto Rico with
Dr. Nicholas Piantanida
(Colorado Springs, Colo.) joining
the squad as the Team Physician.
The U.S. competitors will now
prepare for Olympic Cup action in Puerto Rico, which will begin
on Monday.
U.S. Results
108 lbs/male:
Leroy Davila, New Brunswick,
N.J./USA
dec. Jose Mercedes, PUR, 3-0
112 lbs/female:
Virginia Fuchs, Kemah, Texas/USA
won on retirement over Naihomy
Vasquez, PUR, RET-3
114 lbs/male: Jantony Ortiz, PUR,
dec.
Shawn Simpson, Chicago, Ill./USA,
3-0
132 lbs/female: Kiria Tapia, PUR,
dec.
Tiara Brown, Fort Myers, Fla./USA,
2-1
141 lbs: Carlos Adame, DOM, dec.
Jose Alday, Odessa, Texas/USA,
2-1
152 lbs:
Jamontay Clark, Cincinnati,
Ohio/USA
dec. Raul Sanchez, DOM
201 lbs: Miguel Veliz, CHI, dec.
Michael Hilton, Trenton,
N.J./USA,
2-1
201+ lbs:
Cam F. Awesome, Lenexa,
Kansas/USA
dec. Gerardo Bisbal, PUR, 3-0
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