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MILWAUKEE, Wisc. Amateur boxing fans on March 22, got a chance to
see what real women’s boxing is all about as Naquana “Ziggy” Smalls
and Caroline “Carrie” Barry ranked respectively number one and two
in the nation, battled to a win for Barry – Number Two over Number One.
The Duke Roufus Boxing Gym staged its second Rumble in the Rave tonight
with a somewhat reduced card from the one advertised, but the quality of
the bouts was generally good and the close to sold out crowd enjoyed the
action. The five women’s bouts that were anticipated dropped to three by
the opening bell but they were pretty solid boxing matches despite the
losing decisions for two of the three Wisconsin contestants.
Erin Riley, Roufus Boxing
and Kickboxing Gym, mixes it up with Anna Keiser of the Gust Gym in
Marshfield, during their 138-pound bout last Saturday evening at the Rave
in Milwaukee. Keiser handed Riley a defeat in Riley's debut match.
Nasheba Thomas, left,
attempted to wrap up Krista Savage last Saturday as the two boxed in an
amateur 138-pound bout. Savage took the decision over Thomas in a bout
that was frequently brought to a halt by Thomas' clinching
Krista Savage, Chippewa
Falls Boxing Club, got a respite from boxing Smalls this evening but she
faced a tough Nasheba Thomas of Titan Boxing Academy in Toledo,
Ohio, in a 138-pound match that Savage won on points. Savage found the
going not without difficulty as her opponent, who is ranked Number Five in
the country, put forth some good effort making the contest interesting but
Savage was the more accurate puncher. The Dairy state boxer was thwarted
as her opponent tied her up repeatedly with little or no admonishment from
the referee. Savage is the 2003 Wisconsin welterweight champ and has faced
Smalls several times this year alone without earning the nod. Thomas
provided good opposition, though, and the result in Savage’s favor had to
encourage her.
Erin Riley of the
Roufus gym, made her amateur boxing debut and could chalk it off as a
learning experience as she lost the decision. Riley kept moving back
almost continually, forced by a more aggressive boxer, Anna Keiser
of the Gust Gym in Marshfield, Wisc. The two boxed at 138 pounds. Riley
did answer some of Keiser’s attacks but did not sustain her offense and
was quickly out punched by her foe. The third round was the most active
with some good exchanges by both boxers but by then Riley seemed tired,
was dropping her guard and carrying her gloves low. Riley was introduced
to boxing last November at the Roufus gym and had been training hard for
her first match. She told WBAN that her grandfather boxed and her
admiration for him fostered her interest in the sport.
The men’s co-feature was a rather one-side affair with Brandy Moto
of the Mohican Boxing Club in Keshena, Wisc., taking three eight counts at
the hands of Jason Stroud, the 2002 middleweight Wisconsin champion
from the Roufus gym, in their 165-pound match.
The Smalls/Barry match was billed as the feature bout of the evening and
certainly stood up to that key position on the card.
Fast paced and lots of action was the
story when Smalls and Barry met in the windup match. A pumped up Barry
appeared to be significantly bigger than Smalls but the contest was close
for a time and included some furious action as Barry pressed Smalls
relentlessly. She had nothing to
lose and everything to gain going against the top ranked Smalls.
Barry got in some hard head shots sometimes sending Smalls reeling back
and trapping her several times where it appeared Smalls may have been hurt
near the end of Round 2. Frequent body shots from Barry with counters by
Smalls using some overhand rights to,d part of the story but when Smalls
got trapped in a corner early in Round 3 Barry’s attack went
unanswered. Smalls escaped that corner attack only to be snared in another
moments later where
she took a heavy pounding from Barry that appeared to hurt Smalls although
she did answer but without her usual speed and force.
Comments that Smalls may have run out of steam were not likely well
founded as she trains faithfully and consistently. Her father, Clement,
helps train his daughter and was a second in her corner Saturday when
Smalls regular coach, Willy Price, was unable to be in Milwaukee because
he was named head coach for the Region 6 men’s USA Boxing team at the
National Championships in Colorado Springs.
The Smalls/Barry match was easily the best bout of the night and was
Smalls first defeat. Smalls represented the United States in Ankara,
Turkey, last year on the championship women’s boxing team. Barry is the
National Golden Gloves women’s lightweight champion and ranked second in
the United States behind Smalls so winning the bout had some real
importance to both boxers.
Barry came bounding into the ring as she was introduced and bounced around
during the match displaying her high excitement for the contest. Her
elation was easily noticed when the winner was announced although the two
women boxers displayed great sportsmanship congratulating each other and
greeting all the corner workers with respect.
Although not a sell out crowd, most of the seats were filled other than
the $30 VIP seats which had a several occupants but not a seel out. Duke
Roufus, matchmaker for the program, and Scott Joffe, his partner and the
promoter, said they hoped to hold another amateur show in the fall. The
two also run kickboxing programs and will stage one at the same Rave
address June 21. Further information may be obtained about that show by
calling 414-319-1151.
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