HISTORY OF
WOMEN'S BOXING

February 28, 2002 - Baltimore, Maryland
Before a banquet crowd in The International Room of The Baltimore Wyndham Hotel, Isra "Raging Beauty" Girgrah won a ten-round split decision and retained her UBA Junior lightweight belt over a very game and gracious Tracy "The Lady" Byrd. After a rather even two rounds of competitive action, Girgrah opened things up a little when she landed a good right on Byrd that dropped her to the canvas.  However,  the Byrd, who proved to be a tough opponent got up to take a standing eight count. From then on, though, it seemed to this observer that Byrd got rather busy the rest of the fight, pressing most of the action by trying to bang with Girgrah from the inside while Girgrah was boxing her way through the fight with rather clean shots from the outside. Byrd did some roughing up of Girgrah from the inside and managed to rock Girgrah with a few rights of her own, but never managed to knock Girgrah to the canvas. The scorecards were 97-92, 92-96, & 97-92 in favor of Girgrah. The judges were not all looking at the same fight.  This one had rematch written all over it. Girgrah improved her record to 19-3-2 (9KO), and Byrd dropped to 12-4-0 (4KO).

February 28, 2002 - Leon County Civic Center, Tallahassee, Florida USA
Welterweights Sharice Gray had a four-round majority decision over Tinitia Austin. Gray improved her record to 2-3-0 (1KO), and Austin dropped to 3-2-0.

February 28, 2002 -Hollywood Park Casino, in Inglewood, California
Marsha Valley, 165,  won a unanimous six-round decision over Shirvelle Williams, 159. Valley backed Williams up in the fight, and Williams would tire out at times toward the end of some of the rounds.  Valley improved her record to 9-5-4, and Williams experienced her first loss and is now 4-1-0.  

February 23, 2002 - Germany
Nadja Loritz won a close points decision against Krisztina Belinszky of Hungary after their 10 rounds Junior Flyweight bout. Two judges gave the fight to Loritz 97-95 and 96-94, while the 3rd judge called it a 95-95 draw. There were
some booing from the fans when the result was announced, which indicates that it was a possible home town decision. Loritz moved her record to 8-0-2 (5KO), and Belinszky fell to 0-2-2 (0KO).

February 23, 2002 - Milan, Italy
Stefania Bianchini, Italy, defeated Mariana Pampuk, Hungary, in a four-round bout.

February 23, 2002, Neu-Isenburg, Germany  Nathalie Meiss, Denmark, defeated Agnesa Vidova in a four-round decision on points.

February 23, 2002 -Arena Mexíco 
Light flyweights Delia Lopez defeated Andrea "Nen" Benitez with a unanimous decision. Delia improves her record to 2-0-1, Benitez fell to 4-1-1.

February 23, 2002 -Bally's - Atlantic City
Alicia "Slick" Ashley, 125,  fought Kelsey Jeffries, 125,  in a close 10-round split decision, for the vacant IWBF Featherweight title.   According to news sources, Ashley remained the busier fighter in the 10-rounder. In the second round, Jeffries floored Ashley with a stiff left hand where Ashley took a brief count.  The was a rematch for the two where Ashley had won the first time around. Emil Conforti scored it 96-94 and Melvina Lathan 96-93 all for Alicia; Henry Grant had it 97-93 for Kelsey. Ashley improved her record to 7-3-1, and Jeffries is now 11-7-1 (1KO). These two women boxers are exceptional fighters. Jeffries a real "warrior" steps in the ring whenever a fight is offered. (That is probably why she is called Road Warrior!) She just fought on February 2, 2002, and fought Corinne "Goose" Van Ryckdegroot, a very tough matchup, just three months prior to that she fought Laura Serrano and also fought Iwona Guzoswka in Iwona’s hometown of Poland. Ashley will also step up to any boxer take all comers. She had JUST had a fight last month on January 13, 2002, against Layla McCarter in Las Vegas where she had a six-round draw. These boxers are the women that will pave the road for this sport. They just go in and "do it."

February 19-23, 2002 – San Antonio, Texas
The San Antonio Regional Golden Gloves Tournament - Amateurs
The amateur event was sponsored by the Boys & Girls Clubs of San Antonio. More than 130 boxers (male and female) from South Texas were entered. Many of the boxers were newcomers, making their amateur debuts in the sub-novice division. There was also an added division for novice who were boxers that had less than 10 bouts. In the women’s matches, Belinda Olivares, 17, a Golden Gloves National Champion and who has been boxing for five years took on Elizabeth Villarreal, 26, a full-time sales rep at USAA, with three children. Villarreal had been boxing for five months. Olivares defeated Villarreal by a 4-1 decision on (Thursday, February 21) Also, Valerie Campos TKO1 Marisa Jimenez;  At the finals, (Saturday, February 23) Rosa Lobo defeated Belinda Olivares and won the novice light-welterweight title; Anca Neager defeated Valerie Campos for the championship; and, Anju Reejhsinghani, stopped Viktoria Garza in the second round. *These are incomplete results at this time.  

February 22, 2002 – Budapest, Hungary
Blue Alligator Box Promotion
In a light-welterweight in a scheduled four-rounder, Kataline Csehi (or Scehi), Hungary, won by a unanimous decision over Gyongyi Szucs, Hungary; In a four-round lightweight bout, Réka Krempf, Hungary, won by a decision over Angela Nagy, Hungary; and in the four-round Flyweight bout, Kristina Poroszki, Hungary, had a draw with Viktoria Vargas, Hungary.

February 22, 2002 - Jerome Schottenstein Center, Columbus, Ohio
Vonda Ward, 13-0-0 (13 KO) remained undefeated when she stopped Gigi Jackson, 0-1-0, 1:48 seconds of the fourth round. Jackson was making her pro debut, and came from the amateurs. Ward outboxed Jackson throughout the four rounds of boxing, dropping Jackson 30 seconds into the first round. The Columbia Dispatch said that the fight was "perhaps the most entertaining fight of the nine held as part of ESPN’s Friday Night Fights." Jackson’s trainer, Mike Johnson, said that it was just "inexperience", and that when a boxer throws only one punch at a time,  a boxer is not going to beat a fighter like Ward. Before the fight there were some problems with the weight between Ward and Jackson. Ward initially came in at 179.5, and was asked to reweigh after putting some weight on. Jackson weighed in at 238 lbs., which was over what was anticipated that she would come in at. Ward did get her weight up to 185, and the fight was still a go--- Although, originally planned to be televised on ESPN2, it was apparently pulled off the televised segment of the fight. In the second women’s bout, Kelli Cofer, 128, also remained undefeated at 5-0-0 (1KO), when she went four rounds with Terry Blair, 126.5. Cofer easily won the fight by keeping control of the bout throughout the four rounds. 

February 22, 2002 - Montebello, California
In an action-filled, hard-fought 4-round match, Claudia Valenciana of Oxnard, Calif. defeated Mikee Stafford of Palmdale, Calif. by majority decision.  Although their technique needs polishing, the two strong, sturdy, impressively athletic women waged a strenuous battle. They fought with undeniable determination and force even when tied up, struggling hard to outmuscle and outpunish each other along the ropes.   Surprisingly confident and relaxed in only her second professional bout, Valenciana strode about the ring waiting for the introductions, saluting with her fist some well-wishers in the audience. Valenciana, who KO'd her first opponent in something like nine seconds in her debut, showed no nervousness or hesitation in her punches while setting the tone at once, attacking Stafford and forcing her to retreat while coming after her with big lefts and rights to the body and then fighting to avoid being tied up. After weathering the initial storm, Stafford eventually began finding the range, beating Valenciana to the punch with some hard jabs, and then in the 2nd round landing some big power punches of her own.  Stafford, however, was relying too much on single punches, a left jab here, a big right there, according to Victor Hernandez, who is now one of the most important trainers in womens' boxing (polishing the skills of top contenders like Wendy Rodriguez, Marsha Valley, and JoJo Wyman,among others). Although Hernandez felt that Stafford landed the harder power shots in the fight, the decision he thought was fair because while Stafford was throwing one punch, Valenciana was throwing two or three.  Although there were no knockdowns in the hard-hitting match, Stafford's nose was bloodied by round 3 and Valenciana began to appear winded, holding her sides during breaks when the referee separated the two women. Yet, remarkably, each time the action resumed she was equal to the demands on her, refusing to wilt and tenaciously matching strength with her more experienced rival.  Valenciana, a 3-time gold medalist at the Police Olympics and mother of a 3-year old, weighed in at 143 pounds. Stafford, a former track athlete, weighed in at 141.The judges scorecards:  39-37, 40-36 in favor of Valenciana, with one judge scoring it as a draw 38-38. Valenciana advances her record to  2-0-0 (1KO); Stafford drops to3-5-0 (0KO).  Craig Ogawa

February 22, 2002 -Boston, Massachusetts 
Wendy Sprowl won Terry Moss, of Miami Florida with a four-round unanimous decision. Moss was making her pro debut. Sprowl improved her record to 6-1-0 (2KO),  and Moss fell to 0-1-0.

February 17, 2002 - Las Vegas, Nevada
Lightweights (135 lb) Jessica Rakoczy defeated IFBA World Featherweight Champion Layla McCarter in a six-round unanimous decision.  Mary Ann Owen who covered the fight ringside said that McCarter kept her distance from Rakoczy, and that the exchanges of punches were fast and furious by both boxers.  Owen said, "Rakoczy controlled the pace of the fight, she threw some of the harder blows to McCarter's head."  Final scoring was  59-55, 59-55, 60-54. Rakoczy remains undefeated with 9-0-0 (2KO). McCarter fell to 9-6-3 (2KO).  

February 16, 2002 Vienna, Austria 
Super-Flyweight Diana Szilaggi, Hungary, TKO4  Anca Moise, Romania. Szilaggi improved her record to 3-1-0 (2KO). 

February 16, 2002 - Las Vegas, Nevada
On the "Everlast Heavyweight Explosion" card held at the Las Vegas Hilton, Vaia Zaganas, 105, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada, fought and won Diedre Hamaguchi, 103, in a four-round Strawweight bout.  Final judging was 40-36, 40-36, 39-37.  Zaganas moved her record to 3-1 (2KO), and Hamaguchi dropped to 0-2-1 (0KO).   

February 16, 2002 -Connecticut
Overmatched Pennsylvania Shakurah Witherspoon, who has a heart of a lion, but cannot seem to pull off many wins...Was stopped in the fourth round 1:30 pm by Lucia Rijker.  Witherspoon now has 27 losses to her record - Rijker remains undefeated 15-0-0 (14KO). Witherspoon fell to 9-27-1 (4KO).

February 15, 2002 -n Szekszárd, Hungary Featherweight Piroska Beki of Budapest, Hungary TKO1  Florina Platon of Cluj, Romania. Beki improved her record to 3-2 (1KO). 

February 11, 2002 - Budapest, Hungary
Jr. Bantamweight Krisztina Poropszki won a four-round decision over Eva Fenyvesi. Also, Jr. Lightweights Reka Kremke and Gyongyi Szucs had a four-round draw. 

February 11, 2002 - Spoleto, Italy
Maria Moroni TKO2 Angela Nagy.

February 9, 2002 - SAGE2000 Madrid, Spain
Silvia Leon, Spain KO1 Lenka Flakova, Eslovaquia, in a scheduled four-round welterweight bout. 

February 9, 2002 - Budapest, Hungary
Promoted by Blue Alligator Box Promotion
In a lightweight bout, Réka Krempf of Hungary had a four-round draw with Gyöngyi Szûcs.  In a second women's match, in the Super-flyweight division,  Krisztina Poropszki of Hungary won a four-round bout by Éva Fenyvesi of Hungary.

February 8, 2002 - At the Ritz Theatre, Raleigh, North Carolina
Christin Annie of Morgantown, West Virginia TKO4 (34 seconds) , Angela Knight of Wilson, North Carolina in a scheduled middleweight four round bout.  Annie who has also fought as an Amateur showed skill and promise, however Knight who showed a lot of heart, but little skill.   Knight who is very  tall (6'or 6'1") showed very little technique, and brawled with mostly chopping down punches.

February 8, 2002 - Budapest, Hungary
Viktoria Milo of Hungary won a four round decision over Mariana Pampuk. Milo is now 1-2-0 (0KO), and Pampuk dropped to 0-8-0 (0KO).

February 8, 2002 - Beaumont Club, Kansas City, Missouri
Angela Nealon making her pro debut stopped Tammy McGuire of Paris, Arkansas, by TKO in the 3rd round in a scheduled four rounder, in the lightweight division.  Nealon is now 1-0-0 (1KO), and McGuire fell to 0-3-0 (0KO). Also, Cathy Freeman  TKO2 Denise Mullins. Freeman improved her record to 6-0-0 (3KO), and Mullins fell to 1-1-0. 

February 8, 2002-  At the Pechanga Entertainment Center, in Temecula, CA
Olga Vlasova, 136, of Russia, remains undefeated at 4-0-0,after she wins by a six-round unanimous decision over Imelda Arias, 136.5, Juarez, Mexico.  Final scoring from all judges was 60-54.

February 7, 2002 - Southport Sharks Football Club on the Gold Coast - Australia
Former Olympic discus thrower Heavyweight Lisa Marie Vizaniari, 30, stopped Kelli Courtenay, 18, in the third round after her corner threw in the towel. Vizaniari remains undefeated with four wins. It was Courtenay’s first fight. Vizaniari hopes to be the first heavyweight women’s boxing champion in Australia in the near future. 

February 1, 2002 - Palace Indian Gaming Center,   Lemoore, California
Fresno's Jennifer Alcorn, 136, won a four-round unanimous decision over Shakurah Witherspoon, Williamsport, Pennsylvania, 134.5. Final scoring was 40-36 by all three judges.  Alcorn remained undefeated with a 12-0-0 (8KO) record, and Witherspoon fell to 9-26-1 (4KO).  According to news sources Alcorn came out very aggressively in the first round, and had Witherspoon back-peddling.  Witherspoon was able to effectively defend herself and get some good combinations in the later rounds. Milo F. Bryant - staff writer for the Sacramento Bee said the following (excerpt), "Alcorn easily won her 12th consecutive bout with a unanimous decision over Philadelphia's Carla Shakurah Witherspoon.  Unlike their November fight in Bakersfield, in which Witherspoon appeared to avoid Alcorn, the two started clashing moments after the bell.  Less than 20 seconds into the bout, Alcorn knocked Witherspoon into the ropes with a hard left. Alcorn proceeded to pound away at Witherspoon, who simply ducked her head for protection.  Alcorn threw so many punches she looked as though the sheer volume of the swings tired her.  Witherspoon knew how to hit, too. She caught Alcorn with a couple lefts and several rights that rocked the Fresno boxer's head." 

February 1, 2002-Oklahoma City, Oklahoma At the Coca Cola Center, another women’s matchup donned the main event! Sumya "The Island Girl" Anani, 143, fought a non-stop eight rounder against Britt VanBuskirk, 144, that had the crowd off their seats. Anani won the fight by a unanimous decision. Final scoring by all three judges was 80-72. Tony Holden of "Lets Get It On" Promotions said that he plans to try and have a women’s match on all of his cards. Anani required stitches over her right eye after the fight.