Daddy in the Sunday Telegram

Sunday, February 11, 2007
Six pack for Garcia, Gonzalez

Rivera ready to go...Pro debut for Nevsky...

BUD BARTH’S BOXING NOTES

Bud Barth
hbarth@telegram.com


Jonathan Gomez, Michael Rodriguez, Edwin Rodriguez, Josean Torres, Jackson Lowbridge and William Mosley will fight for New England Golden Gloves titles next week in Lowell.

For the first time ever, trainers Carlos Garcia and Rocky Gonzalez will have a shot at bringing home six New England Golden Gloves titles next week in Lowell.

Fighters in six weight classes from the Boys & Girls Club of Worcester, led by defending national Golden Gloves middleweight champion Edwin Rodriguez, will be taking part in the New England Golden Gloves Tournament of Champions on Tuesday and Wednesday, Feb. 20 and 21, at the Lowell Memorial Auditorium.

Garcia said it’s the first time he and Gonzalez have had six fighters in the tournament; the most previously was four. All six advanced by winning local titles last week in Lowell.

At stake next week, besides New England titles, are berths in the National Golden Gloves tournament from April 30 to May 5 in Chattanooga, Tenn. And fighters who make it to the quarterfinals there automatically earn spots in the U.S. Olympic Team Trials, set for August at a site to be announced.

The 2008 Olympics will be held in Beijing, China. The first step in that quest begins next week.

Here’s a look at the six fighters from Worcester, trained and coached by Garcia and Gonzalez, who will fight in the semifinals on Feb. 20 and, if they win, in the New England finals the following night:

•Jonathan Gomez, 17 years old, 141 pounds — A three-time New England Junior Olympics champion.

•Michael Rodriguez, 18, 152 pounds — A three-time New England Junior Olympics champion and winner of the USA Boxing New England title in 2005, he’ll probably have to get past Demetrius Andrade of Providence, the No. 1-ranked amateur in the country according to USA Boxing. “Michael’s going to give it his best shot,” Gonzalez said. “He’s a man now, so I don’t have to baby him anymore,” Garcia said of Rodriguez. “When he was 14 or 15, I had to baby him.”

•Edwin Rodriguez, 21, 165 pounds — A two-time national middleweight amateur champion, Rodriguez (no relation to Michael) needs no introduction. He won the USA Boxing national title in 2005, took the Golden Gloves national crown in 2006, and has won the New England title three consecutive years. He’s got a real shot at making the Olympic team in 2008.

•Josean Torres, 19, 178 pounds — Won the Police Athletic League national championship in 2002 as a 14-year-old.

•Jackson Lowbridge, 26, 201 pounds — An officer at the Worcester County Jail, he’s a past winner of the New England Golden Gloves novice title. “I’m very high on this guy,” Garcia said. “This is a real good chance for him to be famous right away.”

•William Mosley, 30, super heavyweight — A Worcester police officer, Mosley won the Rocky Marciano Tournament about four years ago, according to Garcia, and is one of the three local favorites to capture a title next week, Lowbridge and Edwin Rodriguez being the others.

“I’m very happy with this group,” Garcia said. “I think they’ve got the discipline to go and give me what I want, win or lose, which is 100 percent. If they give me that, I’ll be happy.”

Garcia has another fighter, 39-year-old Joseph F. Riley, another officer at the Worcester Jail, who will be going after a New England Golden Gloves masters division title on Friday in Lowell.