Bengal Bouts Kick Off February 25
Irish boxing event celebrates 70th year.

Feb. 10, 2000

NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Seven returning champions headline the list of 150 boxers slated to compete in the 70th annual version of the Bengal Mission Bouts, the University of Notre Dame’s yearly club boxing tournament.

Tickets are now on sale for all four rounds of the Bengal Bouts. Preliminary bouts are set for 7:00 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 25 — with quarterfinal bouts slated for 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 27, semifinals at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 29, and the finals at 8:00 p.m. on Friday, March 3.

The preliminary, quarterfinal and semifinal bouts are scheduled for the Joyce Center Fieldhouse (enter Gate 3 of the north dome), while the finals will be held in the Joyce Center Arena (enter Gate 10 of the south dome).

The returning champions include Jason McMahon, a sophomore from Las Vegas, Nev., Sean Nowak, a law student from Erie, Pa., Tom Biolchini, a senior from Tulsa, Okla., Mike Romanchek, a senior from Colorado Springs, Colo., Peter Ryan, a junior from Muskegon, Mich., J.R. Mellin, a senior from Concord, Calif., and Mike Maguire, a senior from Tampa. Fla. Boxing team captains Biolchini, Romanchek and Ryan all are seeking their third consecutive titles.

Local boxers expected to compete include Josh Thompson, a junior from Granger, Don Penn, a senior from Mishawaka, Ben Dillon, a sophomore from Granger, Mike Hammes, a senior from Mishawaka, and Bill Ponko, a sophomore from Mishawaka.

Ringside reserved seats are $8 for the quarterfinals and semifinals, and $15 (center), $12 (side) and $10 (corner) for the finals. There’s a $2 discount on ringside seats for groups of 10 or more. Advance general admission seats are $5 for quarterfinals and semifinals, $7 for the finals. Three-session general admission season tickets are $10 for students 16 and under and $12 for adults. General admission at the gate for students 16 and under is $2 for the quarterfinals and semifinals and $3 for the finals. There is no admission charge for the preliminary bouts on Feb. 25.

Tickets are available at the Joyce Center ticket window (on second floor, enter Gate 1 or 2) or by phone using VISA or Mastercard by calling 219-631-7356. There is a $5 service charge for phone orders.

The Bengal Bouts, conducted since 1930 and now under the auspices of the Rec-Sports Department, benefit the Holy Cross Missions in Bangladesh. Last year’s Bouts raised a record $51,000 and also featured record attendance figures. Former Bengal Bouter Terry Johnson, a 74 graduate, serves as head coach and promoter.

For more information, contact Joshua Thompson at (219) 634-2318 or Brian Hobbins at (219) 634-3346.