Kenny Lally has fought his way on to Boxing Canada's B-team.
The 20-year-old from Prince George guaranteed his spot on the team Wednesday night in Halifax, where he scored a 4-3 win over Marc-Andre Gauthier of Quebec at the final team selections tournament.
Lally finished the three-round fight with a powerful left hook that caught Gauthier on the chin and buckled his knees, which drew an eight-count, and Gauthier was unable to score again leading into the final bell.
"It was a very low-scoring fight and no matter what he threw he couldn't get the points," said Bob Pegues, Lally's Inner City Boxing Club coach.
The long-term implications are great for Lally, and could possibly lead to a berth on the Commonwealth Games in October in New Delhi, India.
"Any time (Canadian champion) Joey Laviolette doesn't go internationally, Kenny will go, and Joey travelled only twice last year," Pegues said.
"Now we'll look at getting Kenny carded. We still want to go to the Commonwealth Games. That's still our goal."
Laviolette, the 23-year-old from Nova Scotia, ended Lally's 15-bout win streak in the senior national championships in January in Ste. Hyacinthe, Que., and went on to win the 54kg gold medal.
"We didn't anticipate Kenny losing to Joey, we thought he'd be on the A-team," said Pegues.
"That's his 17th fight and his only loss in those 17 fights was to Joey last month, so he's pretty pumped. We need lots of international experience for Kenny to qualify for the 2012 Olympics and we're still in the game, that's for sure."
Lally is slated to fight Laviolette as part of the headline bout at the B.C. Emerald Gloves championships set for March 13 at the Northern Sport Centre.
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