Monaghan wins big at MSG bout

Long Beach's own pro boxer Seanie Monaghan continued his winning streak at Saturday night's light heavyweight bout at Madison Square Garden, where he defeated Roger Cantrell in what the boxing press described as the first serious test of his career.

Monaghan, who won the WBC Continental Americas Light Heavyweight title in June, remains undefeated at 17-0. Saturday's win, according to the NY Daily News, came after the eighth round when the judges gave him favorable scores of 77-75, 78-74, 79-73 for a unanimous decision.

The NY Daily News reports that Monaghan had to deal with a nasty cut over his left eye, a large welt under his right eye and a 6-foot-1 opponent who came into the fight weighing more than 184 pounds, exceeding the light-heavyweight limit of 175. Cantrell slipped to 15-3 with the loss.

Saturday’s fight took place on the undercard of the main event between Mikey Garcia and WBO featherweight champion Orlando Salido.

“That guy is a big boy,” Monaghan said of Cantrell in the NY Daily News. “He came in overweight. That was a pretty even fight. (The score of) 79-73 was a little high. It was a close fight. I wonder how much he weighed tonight.”

As always, Monaghan had hundreds of cheering "Team Monaghan" fans from Long Beach in his corner.

"The love and energy you guys all give has me at a loss for words," Monaghan said in a Facebook post after the win. "When I'm 100-years-old I'll still remember the way this feels. I love you all, thank you so much."