(FEB 14)
(COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO.) - Five
American boxers will compete for gold today at the Independence
Cup in Santiago, Dominican Republic. For the second straight
day, all of the American boxers competing in tournament action
won their bouts, marking nine consecutive victories for the U.S.
squad. Male lightweight Genaro
Gamez (San
Diego, Calif.), female lightweight Queen
Underwood (Seattle,
Wash.), male light welterweight Abraham
Nova (Albany,
N.Y.), male heavyweight Sardius
Simmons (Flint,
Mich.), and male super heavyweight Cam
F. Awesome (Lenexa,
Kansas) will all box in final round competition today in
Santiago.
Underwood’s semifinal bout
offered the 2012 Olympian the opportunity to avenge a semifinal
loss to Pan American Games champion Kiria
Tapia of
Puerto Rico in the 2013 event. After falling by one point in
last year’s tournament, she took a 2-0 victory over Tapia in
their semifinal rematch. Underwood’s win earned her a berth in
her first Independence Cup final where she will face Aline
Santana of
Brazil for lightweight gold.
USA Boxing’s men put on an
impressive showing in their semifinal contests as well.
Following a rest day, Gamez returned to action with his third
straight victory. Gamez defeated host nation boxer Luis
Salazar of
the Dominican Republic by a 2-1 margin to advance to the gold
medal bout. He will take on Mexico’s Lindolfo
Delgado Garza in
tonight’s championship round competition.
In light welterweight action,
Nova continued his tournament winning streak in his semifinal
bout with the Dominican Republic’s Wascar
Ramiez.
The newly crowned national champion took a 2-1 win over Ramiez
to claim a spot in final round action. Nova will battle a second
straight host nation boxer in the light welterweight final as he
faces off with Jackson
Martinez.
Simmons was the third U.S. boxer
to advance to the finals in his first major international
competition. A teammate of 2012 Olympic gold medalist Claressa
Shields,
Simmons won a 2-1 decision over Brandon
Olvera of
Mexico to earn a berth in tonight’s final round action. He will
challenge Ecuador’s Julio
Castillo for
Independence Cup gold tonight.
Awesome enjoyed great
international success in 2013 and he’s continuing his winning
ways in 2014 in the Dominican Republic. The American super
heavyweight won a unanimous decision over Edgar
Alberto Ramirez Vargas of
Mexico in semifinal action to advance to championship night.
Awesome will look to add another international gold medal to his
resume when he takes on Jonathan
Gonzalez this
evening.
Coaches Enrique
Cedeno (Milwaukee,
Wis.), Jason
Crutchfield (Flint,
Mich.) and Luis
Gamez (San
Diego, Calif.) are leading the squad in Santiago with Dr.
Robin Goodfellow (Albion,
Mich.) serving as the Team Physician at her second straight
Independence Cup.
U.S. Results
132 lbs/female: Queen
Underwood, Seattle, Wash./USA dec.
Kiria Tapia, PUR, 2-0
132 lbs/male: Genaro
Gamez, San Diego, Calif./USA dec.
Luis Salazar, DOM, 2-1
141 lbs/male: Abraham
Nova, Albany, N.Y./USA dec.
Wascar Ramiez, DOM, 201
201 lbs/male: Sardius
Simmons, Flint, Mich./USA dec.
Brandon Olvera Hernandez, MEX, 2-1
201+ lbs/male: Cam
F. Awesome, Lenexa, Kansas dec.
Edgar Alberto Ramirez Vargas, MEX, 3-0
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