2009 Washington DC Regional Golden Gloves

[Gary Digital Williams]

Here's my report on the Regional Golden Gloves championship that matched the best from DC/Maryland against Virginia/North Carolina last night in Waldorf, MD:

There will be seven Beltway amateurs that will make the trip to Salt Lake City, UT and next month's National Golden Gloves Tournament of Champions by virtue of their victories tonight during the Regional Golden Gloves Championships at the Waldorf Jaycees Community Center in Waldorf, MD.

In the 152-pound championship, David Grayton of DC won a tough decision over Moshea Aleem of Richmond, VA in what many considered the bout of the night. Both young men traded very well and often during this bout. Grayton won the Truman E. Tuttle Memorial Award as the Outstanding Boxer of the tournament.

Suitland, MD's Antonio Magruder captured the 119-pound title by RSC-1 over Keenan Williams of Virginia Beach, VA. Magruder was extremely sharp with his shots during this contest.

White Marsh, MD's Travis Peterkin won the 165-pound championship by decision over Lamar Russ of Fayetteville, NC. Peterkin got off to a slow start but picked up the pace in the second and third rounds to win the title. Former WBO Heavyweight champion and 1988 Olympic Gold Medalist "Merciless" Ray Mercer worked Russ's corner.

Delmar, MD's Alexis Guerrero won the 201-pound title by decision over Bryant Tune of the United States Marine Corps (USMC)/Camp Lejeune, NC. Guerrero was extremely sharp in this bout, repeatedly beating Tune to the punch.

Three other Beltway Boxers won championships by walkover: Erick Cruz of DC (112 pounds), Landover, MD's Kevin Rivers (125 pounds) and Thomas Williams of Fort Washington, MD (178 pounds).

Three boxers from the Virginia/North Carolina region will head to the Nationals. Willie Jones of Burlington, NC provided the highlight of the night in the 141-pound championship using one devastating left hook to stop Marlon Bolen of Bowie, MD in the first round. Jones's punch sent Bolen crashing to the canvas in the first minute of the round.

In the 132-pound title bout, Todd Dekinderen of the USMC survived the loss of two points to defeat Elvis Medrano of DC by decision. Dekinderen had two points taken away for hitting behind the head. Medrano lost a point for holding.

In the 201+-pound contest Jerry Forrest of Newport News, VA won by decision over Ron Gamble of Laurel, MD in a really spirited bout.

The National Golden Gloves Tournament of Champions will take place May 3-10 in Salt Lake City, UT.

In the Novice Division Championships, Beltway Boxers took eight of the nine championships. Here are the results:

119 pounds: Edgar Llivichuzhca (Dundalk, MD) defeated Frazier Hunter (Richmond, VA)

125 pounds: Paul Jerry (Hillcrest Heights, MD) defeated Magdiel Matias (USMC/Camp Lejeune). This was a highly controversial decision.

132 pounds: Seth Billups (Washington, DC) defeated Elias Sanchez (USMC/Camp Lejeune)

141 pounds: Chris Hernandez (Largo, MD) defeated Kirabel Tegbaru (Springfield, VA) This was the best bout of the novice division.

152 pounds: Marques Taylor (Temple Hills, MD) won by walkover versus Ricky Blake (Norfolk, VA)

165 pounds: Reginald Lucas (Baltimore, MD) defeated Jorge Valencia (USMC/Camp Lejeune)

178 pounds: Manuel Ramos (Leesburg, VA) won by walkover versus Antwan Ward (Newport News, VA)

201 pounds: Ben July (Suitland, MD) won by walkover versus Anthony Aguilar (Norfolk, VA)

201+ pounds: Dennis Benson (Norfolk, VA) RSC-2 over Antonio Williams (Washington, DC)

[Dennis]

Your 132# champ, Todd DeKinderen, used to box in Michigan. I remember watching him box in the junior ranks and a year or two in the open division before he went ino the military.