JACKSONVILLE - With an explosive second round knockout and a dominant three round decision, Fleming Island High's Will Stephens and Clay High's Shelby Griffis, both Jacksonville area firefighters, won their respective bouts in an impressive fashion to fuel a 6-5 match win for the Jacksonville area firefighters at the 26th annual Guns and Hoses Boxing Tournament.

The event, held last Saturday at the University of North Florida, featured 11 boxing matches that pitted area firefighters (IAFF-International Association of Firefighters) against area police officers (FOP-Fraternal Order of People) in three one-round bouts.

"Best feeling in the world right now to come in against a much bigger looking opponent and have a game plan that gets the win," said Stephens, who was a state champion weightlifter for Fleming Island High School and a standout football wide receiver. "I knew he would try and overwhelm me from the top because he was taller, but I just counted his punches and measured my attack."

For Stephens, who came in match seven with his firefighters behind 4-2, his knockout nearly took the roof off the UNF gym when the near capacity crowd roared to his fast-paced, hard-hitting attack.

"When I hit him just before the final punch, a right uppercut, I felt the crowd energy that was telling me I was hitting him and making him hurt," Stephens said. "The final punch was a solid combination that I caught him kind of backing up. I dropped him."

Stephens' win fueled a series of exciting firefighter finishes, with the eighth match bringing even more crowd reaction as former Blue Devils softball and golf ace Shelby Griffis was in to take on her first match ever as a boxer.

"I've been in pressure situations in my athletic career at Clay High and even after in my own things that I have tried, but the lights, the crowd and the size of the arena was a little daunting," said Griffis, who has been a firefighter engineer in Jacksonville for the last five years. "Coach (Ike Davis) got me focused when I was stepping up into the ring and told me to just keep my hands up and keep jabbing. We have had a good two months of training for this and all of a sudden it was here."

Griffis' opponent, also a novice boxer, came in tight and attempted to bully Griffis around the ring —forcing tight clinches and plenty of outside taps while in close quarters.

"She hit me once right on the nose and another one on the side of my head," Griffis said. "I had to just keep my strategy in mind and kept my arms and legs moving to keep her from grabbing me."

In the end, after three rounds, Griffis exalted in her unanimous decision with a yelp at ringside and her enormous Guns of Hoses champion belt above her head.

"It was a little nerve wracking, but now I know what to expect when I come back next year," Griffis said. "Oh my God, it was amazing. I kind of knew I had it in me, but it was crazy out there."

For Davis, Griffis showed off her athletic ability and her mental toughness.

"She worked hard on the stamina, and it showed out there," Davis said. "First time out tough competitor, she did really well."

After the wins by Stephens and Griffis tied the match at 4-4, the firefighters continued to ride the momentum of the two wins to finish off the Fraternal Order of Police team with a 6-5 win and the trophy in hand.

"I was kind of frustrated about the previous matches and when I got in there, I knew I was going to get our team back in the hunt for the win," Stephens said. "People sometimes think boxing is a solo sport, but we fight as a team and Shelby worked her butt off to be ready and dominate her match."