On Wednesday night DiBella Entertainment, Broadway Boxing presented an exciting night of boxing at BB King Blues Club in Manhattan.

Gabriel Bracero vs Hector Alatorre – Light-welterweight

The main event of the night was crowd favorite Gabriel Bracero (12-0) of Brooklyn, NY, who scored an eight round unanimous decision over tough Hector Alatorre (16-11) of Tulare, CA, this was a Light-welterweight bout. “Tito”, as Bracero is known, brought his usual all action style to the ring and landed with various combination shots throughout the fight, including a good number of right hands which seemed to catch Alatorre`s attention. The rugged Alatorre gave a good account of himself and both fighters showed the marks of a tough battle, with Bracero cut to the left eye, caused by a head butt and Alatorre a nasty gash on the left side of his head.

All three judges scored the fight 80-72 to Bracero  (13-0) and Alatorre drops to 16-12.

Javier Fortuna vs Victor Valenzuela – Super -featherweight

The most exciting fight of the night which didn’t even make it out of the first round was between explosive punching Dominican Republic native Javier Fortuna (12-0) and Victor Valenzuela (8-ll0) of Passaic, NJ at Super-featherweight. From the bell both fighters came out blasting, throwing bombs to the pleasure of the crowd. Southpaw Fortuna managed to back Valenzuela up against the ropes and landed a right hook which had Valenzuela out cold on his feet, Fortuna then followed up with a powerful left hook and Valenzuela crashED to the canvas. Referee Arthur Mercante Jr immediately waved the fight off at 1:10 of the first round.Fortuna now marches to 13-0 and Valenzuela falls to 8-1.

Tor Hamer vs Demetrice King – Heavyweight

In a heavyweight contest, New York’s Tor Hamer (12-1) scored a systematic eight round unanimous decision over game trial horse Demetrice King (14-19) of Flint, MI. Hamer boxed and moved well during the bout, using his jab to set up a variety of combinations. In round three, Hamer appeared to hurt King against the ropes but was unable to get the stoppage. At the end of the contest Kings swollen face showed the amount of punishment he took throughout.

All three judges scored the fight 80-72 to Hamer, now 13-1.

Sonya Lamonakis vs Tiffany Woodard – Heavyweight

New York’s Sonya Lamonakis (2-0) by way of Greece returned to BB Kings once again to excite her fans with a six round unanimous decision over Tiffany Woodward (3-3) of Wilson, North Carolina. Woodard came out boxing and landed some clean jab right hands on the face of Lamonakis, however, it was the overall strength and harder shots of Lamonakis which proved the difference between the two fighters. Woodard was not at all fazed by the stronger Lamonakis and gave all she could to the final bell with some great exchanges and inside work by both. Judges  scored the fight 58-56, and Mc 58-57. Lamonakis now improves to 3-0 and Woodard falls to 3-4.

Alex Perez vs Doel Carrasquillo – Welterweight

Southpaw Alex “The Brick City Bullet” Perez (12-0) of Newark, New Jersey made a hard fought and very entertaining debut under DiBella Entertainment with an eight round unanimous decision over extremely tough and durable Doel Carrasquillo (14-16-1) of Lancaster PA. Perez came out throwing some heavy artillery, landing with numerous straight rights, left hands and hooks. Carrasquillo kept walking forward with a very high guard, soaking up everything Perez had to offer. On many occasions Carrasquillo seemed to mock Perez by lowering his hands and taking deep breathes. This continued up until round five when Perez seemed tired from his own constant movement and the heavy punches he had been throwing. Carrasquillo still marching forward took advantage of the tired Perez and caught him flush with a left hook, Perez went down but arose at around seven and finished the round. From round six onwards Perez regrouped and boxed his way to the final bell. Judges scored the fight 72-78 73-78. Perez now improves to 13-0 and Carrasquillo drops to 14-17-1.

Steven Martinez vs David Lopez – Light-middleweight

Steven Martinez (6-0) of the Bronx, New York had won all of his previous six fights by KO, however, he was extended for the first time in his young career when he won a six round unanimous decision over the crafty and durable David Lopez (3-2-3) of Caldwell, ID. Martinez came out holding the center of the ring throwing an abundant number of left and right hooks to the body of Lopez, which had him clinging on. This pretty much continued up until the end of round five, although round six saw the southpaw Lopez come out firing, throwing clusters of shots to the predictable Martinez having some success. Martinez fought fire with fire and retaliated back with his own shots which brought an end to a decent contest. All three judges scored the fight 55-59 to Martinez. Martinez now goes to 7-0 and Lopez to 3-3-3.

Delen Parsley vs Eberto Medina – Light-middleweight

Delen Parsley (3-0) of Brooklyn, NY, scored a four round unanimous decision over rugged Eberto Medina (5-4) of Newark, NJ. The taller Parsley trying to establish his jab by using his height and reach advantage over his opponent, this was met by strong hooks from Medina as he waded forward under the reach of Parsley forcing him backwards. Parsley figured this out and worked to the body of Medina forcing him to spit/lose his mouth piece twice in the first round. Medina did have some success in the second round as he worked on the inside of Parsley. However, by round three Parsley had found his range and worked well behind the jab, also connecting with solid straight right hands as Medina jumped in. Parsley hurt and staggered Medina into the corner at the end of the fourth and looked on the verge of a stoppage, but Medina hung on and made it to the bell. All three judges scored the fight 39-37 to Parsley. Parsley now improves to 4-0 and Medina falls to 5-5.

Angel Gonzalez vs Borngod Washington – Light-heavyweight

Angel Gonzalez (1-2) of Yonkers, NY, disposed of Borngod Washington (0-6) in 43 seconds of the first round. Washington came out swinging for the fences, hitting and backing up Gonzalez. Gonzalez furiously retaliated with a series of wild punches, he then backed Washington up against the ropes and landed a left hook which sent Borngod numb on the ropes, forcing referee Arthur Mercante Jr to stop the contest. Gonzalez moves to 2-2 and Washington sinks to 0-7.

Jenkins finished just two rebounds short of a double-double while sophomore guard Nathaniel Lester (Brooklyn, NY) and senior forward Darren Townes (New York, NY) added 11 and 10 points, respectively, to give the Pride three double-figure scorers. Lester added 10 rebounds for his second career double-double, while Townes added a season-high four blocked shots to go with his season-high 10 points.

Hofstra won its second game in a row and recorded its sixth victory in the last eight games to improve to 16-9 and 8-6 against the CAA. Gerald Lee poured in a game-high 20 points for ODU but couldn’t prevent the Monarchs from dropping to 15-9 and 8-6 in conference play, tying it with the Pride.

Senior guard Zygis Sestokas (Vilnius, Lithuania) added nine points on 3-6 shooting from beyond the arc, giving him 101 career three-pointers, making him only the 15th player in school history to make 100. Sophomore forward Greg Washington (Centereach, NY) added three blocked shots to give him 100 in that category, one of only four players to reach that milestone. As a team, Hofstra blocked 13 shots, one shy of the school record set on two occasions (1999-2000 against New Mexico State and 2005-06 against Towson).

The Pride never trailed in the game, as Townes hit a pair of shots in the opening minutes to stake Hofstra to an early 9-3 lead. Hofstra led by as many as 10 points in the first half at 20-10 on a Jenkins jumper before settling for a 28-19 lead at the break after Townes converted on a put-back with 49 seconds left.

Old Dominion got as close as four points (38-34) in the second half on a fast-break lay-up from Keyon Carter with 14:20 left in the game. Sestokas answered with his third three-pointer coming out of a time-out to stretch the lead back up to seven. The Monarchs came within six points on six different occasions in the last 10 minutes, but could get no closer. Jenkins answered twice with the lead down to six in the final five minutes, and senior forward Arminas Urbutis (Kaunas, Lithuania) knocked down a fadeaway with the shot clock expiring and 1:28 left on the clock to push Hofstra’s lead to 55-47.

Hofstra out-rebounded Old Dominion 48-39 on the day in a battle between the top two rebounding teams in the CAA. Old Dominion came into the game first in the league with a +6.9 rebounding margin, while Hofstra was second at +6.1. Hofstra also improved its league-leading field goal percentage defense by holding the Monarchs to just 27.5 percent shooting on the day (19-69). Carter had 15 points for Old Dominion off the bench to support Lee’s 20-point effort, and Darius James added eight, but the rest of the Monarch team combined for only eight points on 2-28 shooting from the floor.

The Pride will next be in action when it travels to Delaware on Saturday for a 4 p.m. contest, which will be televised locally on MSG+ Network.

With the win, the Pride improves to 15-9 overall and 7-6 in the CAA, while also improving to 10-2 this season in games decided by five points or less. Towson slips to 8-17 overall and 3-10 in league play.

Washington capped a flurry under the basket that featured two Pride offensive rebounds before he made a high-arching jumper from the left wing to hand Hofstra a 70-68 lead. Junior guard Josh Thornton hit four three-pointers for Towson and was 4-9 from the field, but his potential game-tying 20-foot shot near the arc fell short of the rim and went out-of-bounds with an even two seconds left on the clock, preserving the Hofstra victory.

Sophomore guard Nathaniel Lester (Brooklyn, NY) scored five straight points to break a tie late in the second half and put Hofstra ahead 66-61. Lester had all but two of his career-high 21 points in the second half. Charles Jenkins (Queens, NY) added a game-high 24 points in just

27 minutes after picking up his fourth foul early in the second half, and Arminas Urbutis (Kaunas, Lithuania) scored a career-high 10 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for his first double-double.

Junior Hairston scored a team-high 23 points for Towson, including a three-pointer that tied it at 68 with 1:11 left before Washington’s go-ahead basket. The Pride, which trailed by as much as 12 points in the contest, opened up a late lead when Lester scored five straight points to break a 61-all tie with 3:15 remaining. Lester earned a lay-up coming out of a time-out, Urbutis grabbed a key defensive rebound on Towson’s next possession to lock up his double-double. Senior guard Zygis Sestokas (Vilnius, Lithuania) then hit Lester with a crisp pass and Lester drew a foul on David Brewster while hitting the shot in the paint. Lester completed the three-point play with a free throw, building a 66-61 lead with 2:26 left.

Sestokas earlier hit a three-pointer, the 98th in his career, for a

60-57 Hofstra lead and provided tight defense on Thornton’s tying shot with two seconds left. With Jenkins on the bench after picking up his fourth foul nearly four minutes into the second half, the Pride surged in front when Lester hit a three-pointer in front of Hofstra’s bench for a 50-49 lead with 10:41 left, the Pride’s first lead since 2-0.

Lester then forced a Towson timeout after hitting another three from the opposite wing just 2:03 later to put the Pride up 53-51 after Troy Franklin put the Tigers back ahead. Lester added another jumper and a lay-in off a drive, giving him eight points in less than three minutes.

Hofstra fell behind as much as 12 points in the first half before Jenkins initiated the comeback. Jenkins produced nearly half of the Pride’s offense, scoring 16 points on 6-11 shooting to cut Towson’s lead to 35-31 at the break. Urbutis also reached his career high of 10 points in the first half alone, eclipsing his previous best of nine points, which he had accomplished six times.

Towson forged a 10-1 run midway through to build an 18-7 lead with

10:35 remaining. Rocky Coleman hit a three-pointer with a defender in his face and Robert Nwankwo followed a Tigers defensive stop with a two-handed put-back dunk for the 11-point edge.

Hofstra cut the deficit to four following Jenkins’ running jumper through the paint. Josh Thornton re-established a double-digit lead for the visitors minutes later, finishing a catch-and-shoot three-pointer off Brian Morris’s quick pass to cap an 8-0 run, building a 28-16 lead.

Jenkins scored Hofstra’s next seven points, including a lay-in off a loose ball in the paint while Urbutis chipped in six of his 10 points in the  final five minutes. The duo accounted for all but five of the Pride’s points before halftime.

Hofstra shot 53.8 percent in the second half (14-26) after shooting only 29.6 percent in the opening stanza (8-27). The Pride also outrebounded the Tigers 31-27 on the afternoon.

The Pride will be back in action Tuesday when it hosts CAA-rival Old Dominion in a game that will be televised nationally on ESPNU. Game time is scheduled for 7 p.m.

Sophomore guard Charles Jenkins (Queens, NY) had a career-high 33 points and Dennison (Long Island City, NY) scored all 10 of his in the second half and set up the winning points with his defense. Sophomore guard Nathaniel Lester (Brooklyn, NY) added a season-high 18 points.

With the win, Hofstra improves to 14-7 overall and 6-4 in the Colonial Athletic Association, while capturing its fourth straight victory. UNC Wilmington falls to 5-17 overall and 2-8 in the CAA with the loss.

Hofstra trailed by three points (78-75) with 1:34 to go after two foul shots from sophomore guard Chad Tomko, but Dennison came up with a key step-back jumper to cut the lead to 78-77 with 1:13 to go. UNC Wilmington guard Devon Moore then turned the ball over when he dribbled off his leg and Jenkins was fouled on a drive with 34 seconds left. He made one of two to tie the game, and UNC Wilmington took its final possession with the shot clock off.

The Seahawks called their final time out with 12 seconds left, but the Pride caught them off guard when they trapped sophomore guard Chad Tomko as he crossed midcourt. Tomko was hemmed in on the sideline and tried to throw a bounce pass to the middle of the floor, but Dennison read the play and stepped in for a steal. Dennison drove into the paint and collided with Tomko before ending up on the floor with the ball in his hands. Not knowing how much time was left, he tried to shoot while sitting on the ground underneath the basket and left the ball short, but Urbutis was trailing the play, grabbed the ball out of mid-air and hit an uncontested lay-up as the horn sounded to give the Pride another dramatic win.

Hofstra is now 9-1 this season in games decided by five points or less, including the last two which were decided in the final seconds. On Saturday, Hofstra defeated James Madison 69-68 on a five-foot jumper with 1.9 seconds left on the clock.

Neither team led by more than four points until 8:19 left in regulation, when junior guard Cornelius Vines (Syracuse, NY) hit a three-pointer from the left wing to put Hofstra ahead 67-61, capping off a 7-0 run. Dennison started the run with back-to-back baskets on drives into the paint. However, junior guard Montez Downey, who had all 17 of his points in the second half, hit a three-pointer and then made three foul shots after fouled in the act behind the arc to tie the score quickly back up at 67-67.

UNC Wilmington held a 41-38 lead at the half, as the Pride trailed at the half for the fourth straight game during its current four-game winning streak. Neither team led by more than four during the opening stanza, as Jenkins had 16 points on four three-pointers and four foul shots and UNC Wilmington guard Chad Tomko nearly matched him with 15 points.

Jenkins’ previous career high was 31 points, set earlier this season against East Tennessee State. Lester’s 18 points marked the second straight game he scored his season high, as he had 11 points in Saturday’s win over James Madison. His career high was 20 set last year against Stony Brook.

Hofstra will next be in action when it returns home to face VCU on Saturday at the Mack Sports Complex for a 12 p.m. contest, which will be sponsored by State Farm. Former Hofstra guard Craig “Speedy” Claxton will have his jersey number (#10) retired prior to the game, which will be televised locally on the MSG+ Network.