Carranza Wins by Unanimous Decision
Over LaVigne
by Ron Scarfone
July 2, 2024
(JULY 2) On Saturday, June
29th, at the Miccosukee Casino & Resort in Miami, Florida
Elia “Soul Snatcher” Carranza of Miami, Florida won a unanimous
decision over Kaitlin LaVigne of Overland Park, Kansas in a
six-round bout. Although it was classified as a
super welterweight fight, the boxers’ weights were not within
that weight class. Carranza weighed in at 157.2 pounds, which is
middleweight whereas LaVigne weighed in 162.4 pounds which is
super middleweight.
They
Carranza is a contender in the
super welterweight division with a rating of No. 9 by the
computerized ratings of the International Boxing Organization
(IBO). LaVigne is a contender in the super middleweight division
with a rating of No. 4 by the IBO.
The boxing event was promoted by Laura Ching of M&R Boxing
Promotions. In M&R’s previous event at the Miccosukee that took
place on April 27th, middleweight contenders female boxers
Olivia Curry (No. 9 IBO) and Melody Popravak (No. 10 IBO) fought
to a draw in a six-round bout.
LaVigne won against Popravak by
split decision in 2021 and lost by a unanimous decision to Curry
in 2022.
Video of the entire event was
uploaded to the YouTube account of M&R Boxing Promotions. The
time stamp for Carranza vs. LaVigne is 3:31:00.
International Women’s Boxing Hall of Famer Ann-Marie Saccurato
was one of the people in Carranza’s corner. Saccurato currently
works as a strength & conditioning coach and performance
specialist. Saccurato was a WBC lightweight champion during her
pro boxing career.
Carranza was a little more active than LaVigne in most of the rounds, although LaVigne was usually the
one moving forward. LaVigne had the weight advantage, but
Carranza was able to land more punches because of her hand speed
and she was also adept at evading punches.
The total scores of the judges were 60-54, 59-55, and 59-55 all
in favor of Carranza by unanimous decision. The second round was
probably the round that was scored in favor of LaVigne by two of
the judges. Carranza now has a record of 8-1, 2 KOs. LaVigne is
now 3-3-1, 1 KO. Carranza has a career in law enforcement in
Broward County, Florida. She is a deputy sheriff with Broward
Sheriff’s Office (BSO).
