Vassar Stays Unbeaten, Leads Lilac City Sweep Draine, Welliver Also Triumph For Spokane-Based Boxing Club

In a show of strength by the Lilac City Boxing Club, three Spokane fighters earned victories Wednesday night in the Coeur d’Alene Tribal Bingo Casino.

In the main event, Paris Alexander of San Francisco dominated Steve Valdez of Denver in a 10-round lightweight bout. Alexander (25-12) earned a unanimous decision.

The early part of the card was highlighted by unbeaten cruiserweight Frank Vassar’s unanimous decision over Tex Miles of Tacoma.

Vassar, now 8-0, was cut over his left eye when he was butted in the first round. Despite limited vision, he controlled the rest of the fight.

Vassar’s win was the last of three wins for Lilac City fighters.

Earlier in the card, Spokane’s Para Draine won her professional debut by unanimous decision over Delores Lira of Boise, and Rick Welliver defeated Shawn Elliot of Portland in a four-rounder.

In the semi-main, light heavyweight Charles Oliver earned a technical knockout over Richard Green of Tulsa after 1:41 of the fifth round. Draine, a Rogers High graduate, used effective rights to the head to keep Lira on the defensive.

“It was hard not to be nervous,” Draine said. “I’d like to finish better next time and keep improving.”

Welliver’s fight opened the six-bout card. The Spokane cruiserweight controlled the fight, cutting Elliot in the second round.

Welliver said he felt confident, despite a temperature of 101. The victory was his sixth, along with one defeat and a draw, in seven fights.

Vassar said the three victories were another important step in the Lilac City club’s improvement.

“We’ve worked hard to build the club up for years,” Vassar said. “We’ve got a lot of support and we hope to continue improving.”

Casino officials estimated attendance at 1,600.