Saturday, April 15
Charlotte, NC
1:00 pm MT
Air Force Academy
at
National Championships
Photo by: Justin Pacheco
Air Force Men Win 20th NCBA National Title
4/16/2023 8:26:00 AM | Boxing
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Backed by four individual champions, the Air Force men's boxing team captured its 20th team title at the National Collegiate Boxing Association (NCBA) National Championships, which concluded last night (April 15) in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Claiming the program's first NCBA title since 2012, the Falcons have now captured 20 titles in the last 41 tournaments (1980, 1981, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1994, 1995, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2012, 2023) and placed within the nation's top two a total of 37 times.
Senior Walker Morris and junior Victor Benitez successfully defended their NCBA titles during the final two bouts of the night. Morris took down Army West Point's Matthew Beason before the final bell, as he forced the referee to call the 195-pound final in the third round – marking the third-straight night he secured a victory in less than six minutes. Benitez repeated as the heavyweight champion after earning a split decision over Navy's Ethan Stern - a 3-2 victory that secured the team title for Air Force. The Falcons other two national champions – sophomore Luke Kohout and junior Jacob Mendoza – won their first NCBA titles by unanimous decisions over contenders from Navy. Kohout earned a 5-0 victory over Nick Smith in the 147-pound championship, while Mendoza swept the judges' votes in his 175-pound title fight with EJ Higgins.
The men's four gold medals are the most since 2012.
Overall the men accumulated eight NCBA All-America honors over the weekend. In addition to the four national champions, junior Leo Camacho garnered a silver medal on Saturday following his 125-pound championship fight, while sophomore Andrew Lu (119 pounds), senior Tyler Dalzell (156 pounds) and Angelo Ganac (185 pounds) earned bronze medals following Friday's semifinal round.
On the women's side, Air Force finished third in the team standings – equaling their highest national finish.
The team's program-high six NCBA All-Americans included an Academy-best three women – freshman Madigan Starr (119 pounds), junior Mack Lucas (147 pounds) and senior Allyah Marlett (165 pounds) – who claimed silver medals on Saturday following their championship bouts. The lineup of medalists also includes three bronze medal semifinalists – freshman Ale Tirado-Elias (125 pounds), freshman Chinonye Mbanugo (132 pounds) and senior Hannah Schuster (156 pounds) – who competed on Friday.
CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS
(w) 119-lbs.: Sharnae Harmon (Army West Point) dec. Madigan Starr (Air Force), 5-0
(m) 125-lbs.: Brett Rosoff-Verbit (Penn State) dec. Leo Camacho (Air Force), 5-0
(m) 147-lbs.: Luke Kohout (Air Force) dec. Nick Smith (Navy), 5-0
(w) 147-lbs.: Gabrielle Nelson (Army West Point) dec. Mack Lucas (Air Force), 5-0
(w) 165-lbs.: Jordan Barnhart (Navy) dec. Allyah Marlett (Air Force), 3-2
(m) 175-lbs.: Jacob Mendoza (Air Force) dec. EJ Hagins (Navy), 5-0
(m) 195-lbs.: Walker Morris (Air Force) rsc-3 Matthew Beason (Army West Point)
(m) HYWT: Victor Benitez (Air Force) dec. Ethan Stern (Navy), 3-2
Claiming the program's first NCBA title since 2012, the Falcons have now captured 20 titles in the last 41 tournaments (1980, 1981, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1994, 1995, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2012, 2023) and placed within the nation's top two a total of 37 times.
Senior Walker Morris and junior Victor Benitez successfully defended their NCBA titles during the final two bouts of the night. Morris took down Army West Point's Matthew Beason before the final bell, as he forced the referee to call the 195-pound final in the third round – marking the third-straight night he secured a victory in less than six minutes. Benitez repeated as the heavyweight champion after earning a split decision over Navy's Ethan Stern - a 3-2 victory that secured the team title for Air Force. The Falcons other two national champions – sophomore Luke Kohout and junior Jacob Mendoza – won their first NCBA titles by unanimous decisions over contenders from Navy. Kohout earned a 5-0 victory over Nick Smith in the 147-pound championship, while Mendoza swept the judges' votes in his 175-pound title fight with EJ Higgins.
The men's four gold medals are the most since 2012.
Overall the men accumulated eight NCBA All-America honors over the weekend. In addition to the four national champions, junior Leo Camacho garnered a silver medal on Saturday following his 125-pound championship fight, while sophomore Andrew Lu (119 pounds), senior Tyler Dalzell (156 pounds) and Angelo Ganac (185 pounds) earned bronze medals following Friday's semifinal round.
On the women's side, Air Force finished third in the team standings – equaling their highest national finish.
The team's program-high six NCBA All-Americans included an Academy-best three women – freshman Madigan Starr (119 pounds), junior Mack Lucas (147 pounds) and senior Allyah Marlett (165 pounds) – who claimed silver medals on Saturday following their championship bouts. The lineup of medalists also includes three bronze medal semifinalists – freshman Ale Tirado-Elias (125 pounds), freshman Chinonye Mbanugo (132 pounds) and senior Hannah Schuster (156 pounds) – who competed on Friday.
CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS
(w) 119-lbs.: Sharnae Harmon (Army West Point) dec. Madigan Starr (Air Force), 5-0
(m) 125-lbs.: Brett Rosoff-Verbit (Penn State) dec. Leo Camacho (Air Force), 5-0
(m) 147-lbs.: Luke Kohout (Air Force) dec. Nick Smith (Navy), 5-0
(w) 147-lbs.: Gabrielle Nelson (Army West Point) dec. Mack Lucas (Air Force), 5-0
(w) 165-lbs.: Jordan Barnhart (Navy) dec. Allyah Marlett (Air Force), 3-2
(m) 175-lbs.: Jacob Mendoza (Air Force) dec. EJ Hagins (Navy), 5-0
(m) 195-lbs.: Walker Morris (Air Force) rsc-3 Matthew Beason (Army West Point)
(m) HYWT: Victor Benitez (Air Force) dec. Ethan Stern (Navy), 3-2
Players Mentioned
HYWT
/ Boxing
125 lbs.
/ Boxing
147 lbs.
/ Boxing
195 lbs.
/ Boxing
156 lbs.
/ Boxing
125 lbs.
/ Boxing
156 lbs.
/ Boxing
165 lbs.
/ Boxing
132 lbs.
/ Boxing
185 lbs.
/ Boxing
185 lbs.
/ Boxing
147 lbs.
/ Boxing
112 lbs.
/ Boxing
125 lbs.
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