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With family members from Ogden cheering him on at the Salt Palace Convention Center, Diego Alvarez did something on Tuesday night that no other Utahn was able to do.
The 17-year-old boxer won a bout at the Golden Gloves National Tournament of Champions, defeating Paul Jerry of Washington, D.C., 5-0 in a first-round matchup in the 114-pound weight division.
Salt Lake City's Bladimir Estrada also stepped into the ring for the first time in the tournament, but was not as successful. The 18-year-old honors student at West High lost 5-0 to a tough Texan, Rafael Medina, at 152 lbs.
Alvarez will return on Wednesday night for a second-round bout, while Estrada's amateur career is likely over. The recipient of the Rocky Mountain franchise's Youth Development Scholarship, worth $1,500, will attend Salt Lake Community College next fall and turn pro soon.
"You win some and you lose some," said Estrada, who fell in a first-round bout at nationals for the second-straight year. "You can't win them all."
Estrada started well, and seemed to have won the first round, or at least fought Medina evenly. But the Texan got stronger as the bout wore on, while Estrada ran out of gas.
"I was never hurt or anything; he never caught me with anything solid," Estrada said. "I just wasn't as aggressive as I wanted to be. I was a little tired, a little fatigued … I didn't fight like I usually fight, but oh well."
Estrada was dealing with a sore arm when he won the Rocky Mountain regional last month in Sandy, but said that wasn't a factor on Tuesday.
"I just lost," he said. "No excuses."
As for Alvarez, who attends Two Rivers High in Ogden, he stayed aggressive all three rounds to win his nationals debut. Alvarez, who was trained by Lalo Lopez, said he has been boxing since he was 9 years old and has an 83-12 career record.
"I just threw punches the whole way through, stayed aggressive from the start to the finish," he said.
Alvarez's father, Marco, got him into boxing at a young age for self-defense reasons and the years of hard work has paid off, the teenager said.
"I'm going to try to win this," he said. "I think I got a shot."
Another Rocky Mountain boxer, Tanner Cobbs of Montana, lost a tough decision to Shawn McCalman of the Colorado-New Mexico franchise.
It was a good night for Texas, the defending team champion. Not only did the Lone Star state take the Medina-Estrada bout, it got a TKO when Gregory Dismukes floored Curtis Iverson of Chicago and the referee eventually stopped the contest.
The bout of the night was staged between James Evans Jr. of Toledo and Michael Ream of Florida at 201+ lbs. In a duel that featured three standing eight counts, two on Ream and one on Evans, the Ohioan took a 4-1 decision.
Boxing resumes on Wednesday at 6 p.m., and the event runs through Saturday. The championship bouts in all 10 weight divisions are on Saturday at 7 p.m.
Twitter: @drewjay —
Golden Gloves Boxing
National Tournament of Champions
At Salt Palace Convention Center, SLC
Tuesday's Highlights
• Ogden's Diego Alvarez, 17, took a 5-0 win over Paul Jerry of Washington, D.C. at 114 lbs.
• West High senior Bladimir Estrada lost 5-0 to Rafael Medina of Texas at 152 lbs.
• Boxing resumes Wednesday night at 6 p.m. at the Salt Palace Convention Center
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More online
Find full results by match at > sltrib.com/sports National Golden Gloves
Tournament of Champions
Tuesday's Results
114 lbs.
Aaron Morales, Kansas-Oklahoma, def. Ivan Vareia, California
Timothy Jarman, St. Louis, def. Chayanne Rivera, New York Metro
James Aquino, New England, def. Kenyon Sessioms, New Jersey
Diego Alvarez, Rocky Mountain (Ogden, Utah) def. Paul Jerry, Washington D.C.
Fernando Martinez, Nevada, def. Jovionte Gaddy, Toledo
Tommy Robinson, Detroit, def. Guillermo Guiterrez, Texas
132 lbs.
Yousif Shieh, Chicago, def. Geizwa Hobbs, Upper Midwest
Gerffred Olingou, Buffalo, def. Justin Roman, Florida
Desmond Jarmon, Cincinnati, def. Eric Diaz, Nevada
Brannon Terry, Mid-South, def. Efren Villalobos, Colorado-New Mexico
Rocco Salimbene, New Jersey, def. Roberto Hernandez Jr., Michigan
Maliek Montgomery, Knoxville, def. Rouj Talat, Omaha
Jevon Thompson, Toledo, def. Mitchell LeConte, Iowa
Cortez Todd, Detroit, def. Omar Gallegos, Rocky Mountain (Idaho)
Victor Bravo, Kansas-Oklahoma, def. Cortez Todd, Detroit
Dan Abram, Kansas City, def. Tate Sturgeon, Indiana
152 lbs.
Javaune James, Florida, def. Andres Borrego, Colorado-New Mexico
Terrance Coleman, Omaha, def. Ryan Savage, Upper Midwest
Christopher Kimble, Chicago, def. Tracy McGruder, Buffalo
Morris Young Jr., Michigan, def. Oscar Mendoza, California
Rafael Medina, Texas, def. Bladimir Estrada, Rocky Mountain (SLC)
Ray Barlow, Washington, def. Erique Davis, Detroit
Marcus Davidson, Kansas City, def. Dairyon Snowden, Cincinnati
Anthony Laureano, New England, def. Robert Terry, New Jersey
178 lbs.
Tusond Jewell, Detroit, def. Jeramiah Nguyen, St. Louis
Elvis Figueroa, New England, def. Hakim Lopez, Knoxville
Shawn McCalman, Colorado-New Mexico, def. Tanner Cobbs, Rocky Mountain (Montana)
Atif Oberlton, Pennsylvania, def. David McGordon, Indiana
Leo Medel, Upper Midwest, def. Joey Isaac, Cincinnati
Antwon Jones, Toledo, def. Genc Pilana, Washington, D.C.
Edel Gomez, Omaha, def. Patrick Aristhene, New York Metro
Julien March, Florida, def. Thomas Hughes, Chicago
Anthony Lerma-Reulas, Wisconsin, def. Arshion Wade, Mid-South
Lawrence King Jr., Buffalo, def. Vincent Baccus, Kansas-Oklahoma
Cruse Stewart, Iowa, def. Kyle Brooks, Nevada
201+ lbs.
Gregory Dismukes, Texas, def. Curtis Iverson, Chicago
James Evans Jr., Toledo, def. Michael Ream, Florida
Cameron Glenn, Michigan, def. Colton Warner, Upper Midwest
Cortez Dunston, Washington D.C., def. Jordon Roussos, Pennsylvania
Derek Starling, New Jersey, def. Jeremy Broncho, Rocky Mountain (Idaho)
Ivan Thomas, Cincinnati, def. Raymond Brent, Omaha