The Backstreet Boxing Club in Carencro recently competed in the 2015 Louisiana Golden Glove Championship.  They won 13 of their fights through three days of competition making this the first time a team has remained undefeated in the history of the Golden Gloves state tournament.

Eight fighters from the club defeated their opponents while five were unopposed.  Shelton Leblanc, club owner and coach is a retired boxer.  He juggles a full time job on top of training his team and is proud of what Backstreet has accomplished. “We also had three outstanding boxers in their division age brackets, Timmy Melancon, Kaylyn Alfred and Trayvon, one of my younger kids.”

Kaylyn Alfred, who earned Outstanding Boxer Honors in the Open Division last weekend, says going undefeated is huge for their club. “That’s the biggest tournament in Louisiana, period. So to go undefeated, first time in history you know that’s big. It’s like making the Dean’s list in college.”

But for LeBlanc and Trainer Damion Arceneaux, it’s not just about boxing, but teaching kids to be better outside of the ring too.

Arceneaux says, “They actually put their fate in our hands…we expect them to take care of their school business, take care of the business at the house as far as chores and other duties and respect their parents and their elders and if they don’t there’s consequences.”

The Backstreet Boxing Club will compete in the Regional Golden Gloves tournament April 9th – 11th in Little Rock, Arkansas.  Fighters age 17 and older who qualify at regionals are eligible to compete in the National Golden Gloves tournament in May.