2008 Junior Olympic National Championships

Thirty-Eight Boxers Advance to Final Round Action At the Junior Olympics

(MARQUETTE, MICH.) - Thirty-eight boxers punched their tickets for the final round on Thursday at the 2008 Junior Olympic National Championships in Marquette, Mich. Semifinal action was contested in weight classes ranging from 95 pounds through the super heavyweight division of 201 plus pounds at the Superior Dome.

Michael Norato (Pacoima, Calif.) was the first boxer to claim a spot in the championship bout, stopping James Hernandez (Fresno, Calif.) in the second round of their semifinal bout. He moved out to a 15-point lead at the 1:42 mark of the round to earn the stoppage victory. Norato will face Joshua Jones (Philadelphia, Pa.) in the championship bout. Jones won a 21-15 decision over Richard Hernandez (El Campo, Texas) to advance on to final round competition.

Anthony Tulley (Akron, Ohio) and Zebastyan Ulloa (Lawndale, Calif.) both earned final round berths after semifinal victories by both boxers. Tulley claimed a 19-12 victory over Mark Hernandez (Fresno, Calif.) in their semifinal clash to earn a berth in final round action while Ulloa's victory came in a slightly closer bout. He won a 20-17 decision over Alan Burns (St. Louis, Mo.) to move on to the finals.

A third straight California boxer advanced to the finals in the light flyweight division as Edwin Sandoval (Bakersfield, Calif.) moved on to championship day with a 17-15 victory over Alejandro Hernandez (Fresno, Calif.) . Sandoval will face Anthony Burgin (Philadelphia, Pa.) in the light flyweight title bout. Burgin moved on with a 9-4 win over Nick Jefferson (Tacoma, Wash.) in their semifinal match-up.

Defending champion Cassandra Mendoza (Greeley, Colo.) became the first female boxer to move on to the final round. Mendoza defeated Vanessa Espinoza (Fort Worth, Texas), 23-13 in their semifinal match-up to move on to the championship bout for the second straight year. Mendoza will face Jessica Barron in the light flyweight final.

Once again, it was the Philadelphia and California moving on to the championship bout in the flyweight division. Carlos Chavez (N. Hollywood, Fla.) represented his state well in his semifinal bout with Ray Ximenez (Dallas, Texas). Chavez recorded a 17-8 decision over Ximenez to advance to the final round. He will take on Miguel Cartegena (Philadelphia, Pa.) in the championship bout. Cartegena grabbed a 28-13 victory over Luis Ambrosio (Fresno, Calif.) to move on to the final round.

Reigning champion Luis Cortez (Las Vegas, Nev.) advanced to his second straight Junior Olympic final with a semifinal victory in the light bantamweight division. Cortez pulled out a 9-6 decision over Jeremy Longoria (Corpus Christi, Texas) to move on to the final round where he will face Antonio McGruder (Suitland, Md.). McGruder won an 18-12 decision over Manuel Avila (Fairfield, Calif.) in their semifinal contest to claim a berth in the championship bout.

Jose Ramirez (Avenal, Calif.) pulled out a tiebreaker victory in his bantamweight semifinal contest with Jesus Magdaleno (Las Vegas, Nev.). The bout was close throughout and when the final bell sounded, the two were deadlocked at 11. Yet Ramirez was crowned the winner based upon his 28-26 total punch count edge. Ramirez will challenge Ricky Rodriguez (Evans, Colo.) in final round action. Rodriguez won a 19-10 victory over Brandon Davis (St. Louis, Mo.) in semifinal action to move on to the finals. He will aim to become the second national champion in his family in 2008 as older brother Robert, claimed the featherweight title at the 2008 U.S. Future Stars National Championship.

In women's bantamweight action, Sau Chazzette (Kihei, Hawaii) moved on to championship day with an 11-6 victory over Michelle Rodriguez (Ft. Worth, Texas) in semifinal round competition. She will battle Serina Aguilar in the championship bout on Friday.

Two featherweight boxers put on impressive performances in the semifinal round to advance on to the championship bout. Joel Diaz (Palmdale, Calif.) poured it on his in his semifinal contest with Antoine Douglas (Washington, DC), giving him multiple standing eight counts before the bout was halted in the second round. Diaz will face Eric De Leon (Lincoln Park, Mich.) in the featherweight final. De Leon won a convincing 25-5 decision over Damon Allen (Philadelphia, Pa.) to move on to the championship bout.

Two women's featherweight semifinal bouts were contested on Thursday afternoon and it was Karla Herrera (Los Angeles, Calif.) and Tanayris Negron (Orlando, Fla.) moving on to the final round. Herrera claimed a 26-20 decision over Selina Barrios (San Antonio, Texas) in their semifinal match-up while Negron won a low-scoring 3-1 affair over Helena de la Cruz (Waianae, Hawaii) to grab the second spot.

A second bout went to a tiebreaker in the lightweight division. For the second straight day, Brian Nichols' (Brandon, Miss.) bout went down to the wire, but this time, it was Manuel Rojas (Dallas, Texas) winning the decision. The bout went down to the wire with the score changing often in the fourth round and ending in a 23-23 tie. Rojas won the decision on his 52-44 total punch count edge. Michael Finney (Smiths, Ga.) enjoyed an easier afternoon in his bout with Sultahn Staton (Philadelphia, Pa.), stopping Staton in the second round of their bout.

In women's lightweight action, Valerie Farley (Port Huron, Mich.) and Asia Stevenson advanced to the championship bout with semifinal wins. Farley earned a 9-2 decision over Jasmine Acevedo (Beeville, Texas) in the semifinal contest to move on in the tournament. Stevenson won her spot with a 16-8 decision over LaTeisha Darden (Wilmington, N.C.) to join Farley in the final round.

A third defending champion moved on to the championship round in the light welterweight division. Zeddie Adams (Cleveland, Ohio) claimed his third victory of the tournament in a match-up with George Rincon (Carrollton, Texas). Adams won a 14-6 decision over Rincon to move on to his second straight championship bout. Adams will face Julius Butler (St. Louis, Mo.) in the final round. Butler won a 7-1 decision over Misael Andrade (Smiths, Ga.) to move on to title night.

Sharline Mendez (Reading, Pa.) won the lone women's welterweight bout, earning a 12-9 victory over Diona Wigang (Lexington, Ky.) to advance to the championship bout. She will battle Amounix Stamps in championship round action.

On the men's side, Pedro Sosa (Bronx, N.Y.) and Juan Betancourt (Phoenix, Ariz.) will face off in the welterweight championship bout. Sosa continued his strong boxing in his semifinal match-up with a game Chris Warden (Lusby, Md.), winning a 20-10 decision. Betancourt battled in a lower-scoring bout, taking a 6-3 decision over Eric Flores (Inglewood, Calif.).

In light middleweight action, Eddie Gomez (Bronx, N.Y.) and Corey Walker (St. Peters, Mo.) both enjoyed successful semifinal bouts to claim berths in the final round. Gomez won a 10-1 decision over John Barnett (Cleveland, Ohio) while Walker advanced with a 13-10 victory over John Zabala (Wheat Ridge, Colo.).

Donald Anderson (Columbus, Ohio) claimed a convincing win in his semifinal bout with Tracy Rollins (Homewood, Ill.). Anderson won an 18-4 decision over Rollins to draw a championship bout with Izaak Cardona (Colorado Springs, Colo.). Cardona pulled out an 8-8 tiebreaker victory over Daquan Arnett (Orlando, Fla.) on his 16-15 total punch count edge to move on to the finals.

Faleauto Manutulila (Honolulu, Hawaii) put on a show in his semifinal bout with Jonny Vargas (Milwaukee, Wis.). Mautulila put on the pressure early, stopping Vargas at the :57 mark of the first round. He will face Otis Brown (St. Louis, Mo.) in the championship bout, following Brown's 10-5 win over Blayton Watson (Johnson City, Tenn.).

Joshua Temple (St. Louis, Mo.) won a stoppage victory in his bout as well, but it came in the final second of the bout as Temple defeated Lamar Richards (Philadelphia, Pa.) at the 1:59 mark of the third round. Temple will take on Mike Russell (Petaluma, Calif.) in the championship bout. Russell won a 12-3 victory over Frank Avalos (El Paso, Texas) to join Temple in the finals.

The final three bouts of the semifinal round all ended in stoppages with heavyweight Michael Stillabower (Colubmbia, Ind.) and Garret Simon (Pullayup, Wash.) both stopping their opponents en route to the finals. Stillabower stopped Kyle Burgett (Columbus, Ohio) in the third round of their bout while Temple stopped Lamar Richards (Philadelphia, Pa.).

Super heavyweight Daniel Smith (Garden City, Mich.) recorded the final victory, stopping Orlando Olmeda (Corpus Christi, Texas) in the first round of their super heavyweight contest. He will take on Tino Dominguez in the championship bout.

Final round competition will begin at 11 a.m. EST on Friday at the Superior Dome in Marquette, Mich.