Harris Tops Pasley in NY!


The fight poster for Boxing 360’s promotional debut featured Ronson Frank, Amanda Serrano, Lennox Allen and Tommy Rainone. Frank spent the evening as a spectator. The other three weren’t on hand and had fights fall out for various reasons.

In the case of Frank, a counter punching light heavyweight, his opponent Anthony Ferrante scaled in at 180 lbs; 4 over the contracted limit. According to the Brooklyn based prospect, his attempts to make the fight happen were unsuccessful.

“Initially, we offered him the fight at 178 lbs, but he refused and wanted the fight 175 lbs,” stated Frank. “We agreed (to fight at) 176 lbs, I made the weight and he came in at 180 lbs. He refused to try and make the weight and only when I threatened to walk out he made a half a** effort (when he re weighed in) and lost two ounces. We tried to renegotiate so (Ferrante) could weigh in (on fight night) at 182 but he took off and left town.”

But as they say, the show must go on.

Although there were only four bouts last night at the upscale Plattduetsche Park Restaurant in Franklin Square, New York, props must go out to Director Bob Duffy for salvaging the card from getting TKO’ed. In addition, this writer can claim to have seen one of the most interesting but yet embarrassing knockouts in history (more on that later).

In the evening’s main event, dynamite fisted cruiserweight Josh “The Juice” Harris overcame a slow start to defeat gritty Kamarah Pasley. Harris was making his debut under the Boxing 360 banner and struggled to let his hands go on a consistent basis during the first few rounds as Pasley was the busier fighter.

Harris picked up the pace in the fifth round, landing a number of vicious hooks to the head while Pasley picked his spots with jabs and right hands. With his confidence beginning to grow, Harris decked Pasley with an enormous right hook that looked as if it were going to end the night in the sixth. Pasley, who hit the canvas like a fighter who wasn’t going to recover, impressively made it back to his feet en route to being saved by the bell seconds later. Harris continued to throw hard hooks at his game opponent during the next two rounds en route to taking a competitive decision.

Scores were 76-75 twice and 78-73. 15rounds scored the contest 77-74 for Harris.

“I should have been a bit calmer in the ring,” said Harris, who spent most of the eight rounds working off of hard hooks. “I made a few mistakes and am going to work on putting together combinations (in future bouts).”

Harris of Providence, RI by way of Youngstown, OH, improves to 7-3-1 with 5 KO’s. Pasley, who hails from the fighting city of Philadelphia, PA, is now 5-5 (2 KO’s).

The co-featured bout of the evening pitted unbeaten welterweight Issouf Kinda against tougher than advertised Noel Garcia in an eight round affair.

Kinda, a rangy boxer with a good jab and respectable straight right hand, controlled the action and buzzed Garcia on a few occasions. Garcia had minor success in close quarters, but was unable to land the more telling blows. The Springfield, MA based fighter started to tire in the fifth round, where he lost a point for holding and hitting. Kinda dominated the next stanza and a stoppage appeared likely; this was until a grotesque headbutt in the seventh caused blood to stream from Garcia’s left eye, halting the contest one round early.

All three judges and 15rounds awarded Kinda the bout via technical decision by the score of 70-62.

Kinda, of New York via West Africa, is a perfect 9-0 with 4 wins by knockout. Garcia, who is trained by boxing lifer and former title contender John “Iceman Scully” returns to Springfield, MA 2-6-1 (1 KO).

Junior welterweight Mike Brooks of Freeport, NY upped his record to 2-0 (1 KO) following a one sided UD over Toledo, OH’s Calvin Pritchard. The crowd favorite controlled the action from bell to bell, outworking his taller opponent with a strong body attack in close range.

All three judges scored the bout 39-37.

Brooks is now 2-0 (1 KO). Pritchard slides to 0-2-2.

Newark, NJ junior middleweight Thomas Baldwin improved to 2-0-1 (1 KO) after scoring an embarrassing third round knockout of Rameil Shelton. Baldwin beat his opponent to the punch during the first two rounds, which led up to one of the most humorous endings ever.

In the third, Shelton literally turned away from Baldwin to shout an expletive at a ringside heckler. His moronic decision to let the crowd get in his head was a major no no. Before he could continue his verbal assault, Baldwin shut his lights out with a huge right hand.

Time of stoppage was 1:50.

“I was completely in shock (to see him do that),” Baldwin said after his victory. “Of course I was going to take advantage, but it was only a matter of time (until the fight ended) anyways.”

Shelton heads back to Providence, RI at 0-2 following the humiliating defeat.

Boxing 360’s next card is slated for November.

EDUCATION LASTS; 1927 PULASKI ACADEMY GRADS WILL BE AMONG THOSE AT ALUMNI BANQUET.(Neighbors Oswego)

The Post-Standard (Syracuse, NY) June 20, 2002 Byline: Fred A. Mohr Staff writer Their smooth, open faces peer out of the Crimson and Blue, the Pulaski Academy yearbook. web site pulaski high school

Golden Lynn and Mildred Olmstead were the associate editors. Ella Calkins was a Lincoln Essay Medal winner and appeared in two plays. Orla Rood was senior class secretary. Melba Rogers was in a play, “Kyan’s Proposal.” A poem next to Frances Nichols’ photo described her as “small of stature and quiet by nature.” The six are all that remain of the 24 members of the Class of 1927 at Pulaski Academy, when kindergarten through 12 grades were housed in a two-story brick building on South Jefferson Street that now houses a heating, plumbing and electrical contractor.

Three – Golden Lynn McChesney, 92; Ella Calkins Webb, 91; and Mildred Olmstead Drake, 93 – say they’ll carry on a 75-year tradition June 29 when they attend the 113th annual Pulaski High School alumni reunion.

A broken leg will keep Melba Rogers Van Arsdale, 93, home in Central Square. Assorted ailments make it unlikely that Orla Rood Skinner, 92, will attend. Nichols, 95, who taught elementary school in Pulaski for 30 years, also said she will not attend.

“It’s a time for our little group to get together,” said McChesney, who along with Skinner lives at Springbrook Apartments, a senior citizens complex in Pulaski. “We’ll tell a lot of the same stories.” “And see who’s gotten another hearing aid,” added Drake. That brought a laugh from four of the group, who gathered recently at Springbrook to talk about life as schoolgirls in the 1920s.

Just getting to school was a challenge in the days before big yellow buses.

Webb, a long-time Sunday school teacher and organist at Fernwood Baptist Church, recalled getting up at daybreak to catch a train at Daysville, near Selkirk Shores, to get to school.

“You had to get there by 7:19 or you were out of luck,” she recalled.

Others walked. McChesney lived near Port Ontario and faced a 3 1/2 -mile hike along the Salmon River, “unless I could get a ride on Mr. Litz’s milk truck,” she said. in our site pulaski high school

Skinner said she sometimes caught a ride with a third-grade teacher, or took a train from her home near Richland to Pulaski.

All laughed when asked about snow days.

“Dear me, no,” said Drake. “We were snowed in all winter, but you just went to school anyway.” All agreed that discipline was paramount, as was the emphasis on what are now called the core subjects: math, English, social studies and science.

“Our principal, Mr. Irving Gladstone, was very formal,” said McChesney. “When he passed you in the hall, he always addressed you as Miss or Mr.” All four agreed that a return to basics in education would help today’s students.

“They teach too many subjects,” Webb said. “We should get back to the four Rs.” But then as now, the Class of 1927 found time for fun and mischief.

Drake recalled a day when the strict Principal Gladstone was absent from school.

“The boys in study hall hung toilet paper and drew mustaches” on busts of famous men on the classroom shelves, recalled Drake. All agreed that none of the girls were involved in the escapade.

Webb and Drake also fondly recalled a senior class trip to an amusement park at Longbranch Park in Liverpool. The ride park closed in 1938.

“I remember Mrs. Sharp, she was the class adviser, she just screamed all the while she was riding the Ferris wheel,” Webb said.

Webb, Drake and McChesney said they were looking forward to next week’s reunion.

“We’re going to keep going just as long as we’re able,” said Webb.

Pulaski alumni dinner Pulaski high school graduates who have not made reservations for the June 29 alumni reunion dinner and would still like to attend can call Patricia Ingraham at 387-3777. Dinner starts at 5:30 p.m. Tickets are $12 per person.

For more on the Pulaski Academy Class of ’27 – Page 4 Broken leg sidelines active ’27 grad – Page 4 CAPTION(S):

PHOTO Dennis Nett/Staff photographer GRADUATES OF the Pulaski Academy class of 1927 are among those who gather every year for an alumni reunion. This year marks their 75th anniversary. Pictured are (from left) Mildred Drake, Golden McChesney, Orla Skinner and Ella Webb. They say some of their male classmates are to blame for the toilet paper and mustaches that ended up on busts of famous men in their classrooms one day when the principal was absent.