(MAR 10)
USA Boxing’s bright future was on
display this afternoon at the 2014 Youth Continental
Championships in Quito, Ecuador. Team USA won seven gold and
three silver medals in today’s final round action at the Julio
Cesar Hidalgo Coliseum. The United States’ Caitlin
Orosco (Anaheim,
Calif.), Antonio
Vargas (Kissimmee,
Fla.), Jajaira
Gonzalez (Glendora,
Calif.), Martha
Fabela (Oakland,
Calif.), Charles
Conwell (Cleveland,
Ohio), Matthew
Mollet (Port
Orchard, Wash.), and Darmani
Rock (Philadelphia,
Pa.) all took 2014 Youth Continental Championships titles in
Ecuador.
Two female junior world
champions, Orosco and Gonzalez, added youth continental
championships to their ever-growing resumes in Sunday’s final
round action. Orosco battled Argentina’s Alyelen
Espinosa in
the flyweight championship bout, winning a unanimous decision
victory in her first international youth bout. Gonzalez claimed
a unanimous decision in her championship bout on Sunday as well.
She defeated the Dominican Republic’s Dalin
Carderon in
lightweight action to take the gold medal.
In men’s flyweight action, Vargas
won a second straight unanimous decision victory in his
championship bout with Juan
Camacho of
Puerto Rico. The win gives the 2013 USA Boxing youth national
champion another international gold medal following success in
last year’s action.
Team USA took both the male and
female middleweight titles with unanimous decision wins from
Conwell and Fabela. The 2014 Youth Continental Championships
were the first major international event for both boxers but
that didn’t deter either from taking the top spot on the medal
podium. Conwell closed his run to gold with a 3-0 victory over
host nation boxer Ariel
Ruiz of
Ecuador in final round action while Fabela defeated Ecuador’s Alexandra
Oviedo.
The United States swept both
heavyweight bouts as well with final round victories from
heavyweight Mollet and super heavyweight Rock. Mollet won a 3-0
victory over Ecuador’s David
Loor in
his international debut to take heavyweight gold. Rock bounced
back from a recent international loss in Russia with a 3-0 win
in his super heavyweight showdown with Argentina’s Kevin
Espinola.
Light flyweight Nico
Hernandez (Wichita,
Kansas) dropped a 3-0 decision to host nation boxer Carlos
Chusin of
Ecuador in their final round contest on Sunday. In the light
welterweight division, Mexico’s William
Zepeda took
a 2-1 split decision over the United States’ Jonathan
Navarro (Los
Angeles, Calif.). Light heavyweight Bobby
Harris (Worcester,
Mass.) fell by unanimous decision to Ecuador’s Edrick
Chala in
his first international contest. All three U.S. boxers took home
silver medals from the 2014 Youth Continental Championships.
In addition to the final round
competitors, bantamweight Carlos
Balderas (Santa
Maria, Calif.) and lightweight Isidro
Ochoa (Fresno,
Calif.) each claimed bronze medals in Ecuador. Twelve of the 13
U.S. competitors won medals in the even, giving the United
States the team trophy in the key continental event.
Coaches Ed
Rivas (Abilene,
Texas), Jacob
Najar (Indio,
Calif.) and Willie
Moses (Newark,
N.J.) led the United States squad in Quito with Dr.
John Drye (Plains,
Mont.) serving as the team physician.
U.S. Final Round Results
108 lbs/male: Carlos Chusin, ECU,
dec. Nico
Hernandez, Wichita, Kansas/USA,
2-1
112 lbs/female: Caitlin
Orosco, Anaheim, Calif./USA dec.
Alyelen Espinosa ARG, 3-0
114 lbs/male: Antonio
Vargas, Kissimmee, Fla./USA dec.
Juan Camacho PUR, 3-0
132 lbs/female: Jajaira
Gonzalez, Glendora, Calif./USA dec.
Dalin Carderon, DOM, 3-0
141 lbs/male: William Zepeda, MEX,
dec. Jonathan
Navarro, Los Angeles, Calif./USA, 2-1
165 lbs/female: Martha
Fabela, Oakland, Calif./USA dec.
Alexandra Oviedo, ECU, 3-0
165 lbs/male: Charles
Conwell, Cleveland, Ohio/USA dec.
Ariel Ruiz ECU, 3-0
178 lbs/male: Edrick Chala, ECU,
dec. Bobby
Harris, Worcester, Mass./USA, 3-0
201 lbs/male: Matthew
Mollet, Port
Orchard, Wash./USA,
dec David Loor, ECU, 3-0
201+ lbs/male: Darmani
Rock, Philadelphia, Pa./USA dec
Kervin Espinola, ARG, 3-0
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