Coach Reginald Williams’ stable shows out
By Glenn McBrady
For the St. Louis American
Amateur boxers representing gyms from the city and county gathered at the Heart of St. Charles Banquet Center on a crisp autumn evening last Thursday to tune up for the busy local tournament schedule that coincides with the school year. It ended up being a showcase by a pair of gifted athletes from the Midwest Warriors Boxing Club, a talented family of fighters from North St. Louis led by Coach Reginald Williams.
Sixteen-year-old southpaw Versail Kennell kicked off the action with a strong showing against Kenny Garcia from Knuckles Gym. In the first round of their battle at 141 pounds, Kennell was looking to find a home for his fluid lead right hook. His 1,2, hook combinations in the waning moments of the opening frame were executed perfectly.
The game Garcia pressed on, walking through the hailstorm attack in the first and showing elusive upper body movement in the second. It was in that round that Kennell followed a swift jab with a hacking left hook to Garcia’s midsection. The durable, undaunted Garcia waved Kennell on, urging him to bring the fight forward.
In the third and final three-minute chapter, Kennell staged an effective body attack and continued to look for that home run lead right hand upstairs. When the numbers on the scorecards were crunched, Kennell walked away with a hard fought decision win.
The Warriors’ Lawrence Hughes stepped in next, his braids capped with weathered headgear adorned with cracked red, white and blue stars and stripes. Hughes mixed up his attack against Knuckles’ Chris Rapa well, refusing to focus solely on one target. He missed on the inside with a lead left uppercut stamped with bad intentions, but scored with a brisk 1,2 hook to the ribs.
Rapa countered Hughes’ wide power punches with longer, straighter 1,2’s, piling up points on the score sheets. After four back and forth rounds, Rapa emerged with the win, but Hughes proved he has the ability to go far on the local and national level.
I caught up with Coach Williams in the warm-up area underneath the main room, and I asked him about the talent he has been mining in his gym at 5039 Thekla.
In addition to Riverview Gardens High School students Versail and Travon Kennell, Williams has two of the region’s most outstanding female boxers in Dyenecha Robinson and Neavechie Patterson. Local amateur standout Louis Holloway Jr. also trains at the gym, and was competing last week in California at the PAL National Tournament.
Coach Williams told me that the plan for now is to continue traveling to tournaments and gaining recognition from those responsible for the national rankings at USA Boxing, with the ultimate goal of getting a Midwest Warrior into the Olympic Games. For now the team continues to train and support each other on the road, with each talented member trying to push towards greater heights.
STL’ newest boxing gym is born
Brian Shaw, son of longtime boxing coach Buddy Shaw, has teamed up with Wayne Johnson to open the Universal Boxing and Recreation Club on the lower level of the Lewis and Clark Tower at 367 and Chambers Road in Moline Acres.
I spoke with Shaw on Monday, one night before his appearance before the Moline Acres City Council. Shaw told me that the goal of the gym is to provide a place for kids to go after school, giving them a spot to spend their time without the distractions that can lead to trouble. In addition to the free boxing training for boys and girls, adults can join for a modest donation each week to help defray costs.
Shaw is a Harris-Stowe graduate and IT Specialist. For kids who aren’t drawn to the squared circle, there will be computer classes offered for those who are interested. For now, Shaw and Johnson are looking for help in the form of boxing equipment and workout attire.
The gym’s doors will open this week, with a weekday schedule of 3 to 8 pm. If you have any questions, you can contact Brian at (314) 255-8288 or Wayne at (314) 603-8751.
