Kansas City, Mo. — On Saturday, Sept. 12, Invicta Fighting Championships hosted Invicta FC 14: Evinger vs. Kianzad from the Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Mo. The event streamed live and exclusively on UFC Fight Pass at 8 p.m. ET.
In the night’s main event, bantamweight champion Tonya Evinger made Sweden’s Pannie Kianzad pay for missing weight, handing her the first defeat of her career. Evinger closed the distance and took Kianzad to the ground right off the bat. She scored with punches and elbows before taking her back. Evinger looked for a rear-naked choke, but then transitioned to an armbar attempt as the first round ended. Round two opened with Evinger dropping Kianzad with a right hand. She followed her to the ground and bloodied the nose of Kianzad with punches and elbows. Evinger was relentless with her attack from the top position, earning the second-round stoppage.
Utah’s DeAnna Bennett remained undefeated after a grueling, three-round war with former strawweight champion Katja Kankaanpää. Bennett used her length and size in the opening round, forcing the Finnish fighter to counter. However, Kankaanpää began to come forward more as the round progressed. Round two saw more clinch work and Bennett repeatedly threatened with guillotine choke attempts. The second round closed with Kankaanpää in a deep choke, but the bell saved her. The final frame clearly belonged to Kankaanpää, who put Bennett on her back and controlled her throughout the round. It wasn’t enough though, as the judges at cageside rewarded Bennett for her efforts in the early rounds.
Veteran Roxanne Modafferi used her experience edge to best promotional newcomer Mariana Morais. Modafferi scored with punches on the feet, but when she took Morais to the ground, she really poured it on. She passed to mount with ease and rained punches and elbows. It was more of the same in round two, as Modafferi simply outclassed the Brazilian. Round three saw Modafferi earn a takedown, but Morais countered with a guillotine attempt. Modafferi calmly escaped and then continued her onslaught, forcing referee John McCarthy to halt the fight and put the veteran back in the win column.
Andrea Lee rebounded from the first loss of her career to score a third-round armbar finish of Rachael Ostovich. Lee’s striking prowess was display throughout the first round, as she peppered Ostovich with kicks and punches to the body. Lee nearly secured a rear-naked choke as the first stanza closed, but Ostovich was saved by the bell. Ostovich found her range early in round two, but Lee dropped her with a stiff left hand. Lee mounted the Hawaiian and pounded away, but the bell sounded once again. The final round was all Lee, who battered Ostovich with knees and then took her back on the ground. Just as the fight was about to go the distance, Lee transitioned for an armbar and Ostovich verbally submitted with just two seconds left.
Belgium’s Cindy Dandois spoiled the Invicta debut of Australia’s Megan Anderson, submitting her via triangle choke in round two of their featherweight bout. Anderson connected with a right hand that prompted Dandois to take the fight to the ground. She threatened with an armbar and then transitioned to a mounted triangle, but Anderson was able to survive the round. When the fight hit the ground again in round two, Dandois again locked in the triangle choke and forced Anderson to submit.
Two-time national wrestling champion Sharon Jacobson continued to make her mark on the strawweight division, becoming the first to defeat Jamie Moyle. Moyle attacked with kicks early to slow Jacobson’s advance, but it didn’t last long as Jacobson flurried forward and pinned Moyle to the cage. The pair traded knees and elbows from the clinch, but Jacobson was able to slam Moyle to the canvas on multiple occasions. The hard-fought battle went the distance with Jacobson earning a unanimous decision victory.
Atomweight Jinh Yu Frey used a striking advantage to outwork Liz McCarthy and take home a unanimous decision win. Frey mixed in a variety of kicks to complement her punches. She also scored with takedowns in each of the first two rounds to keep McCarthy guessing. McCarthy never stopped coming forward, but Frey’s movement and footwork were the difference on the scorecards.
J.J. Aldrich gave late-replacement opponent Rosa Acevedo a rude welcome to the Invicta cage, scoring a violent, first-round knockout. Aldrich landed with her hands early, but it was a knee to the liver that stunned Acevedo along the fence. A pair of follow-up punches and Acevedo was out for good.
Flyweight Aspen Ladd built upon her impressive debut earlier this year with a dominant win over Amanda Bobby Cooper. The pair spent the majority of the first round in the clinch before Ladd took the fight to the mat. Ladd again scored a takedown in round two and unleashed a violent barrage that bloodied Cooper. She then transitioned to an armbar and coerced a tap.
The night kicked off with a pair of debuting lightweights as Felicia Spencer battered Rachel Wiley to earn a first-round TKO. Spencer took Wiley to the mat early and battered her with elbows, forcing the referee to intervene.
OFFICIAL RESULTS
Tonya Evinger def. Pannie Kianzad by TKO (strikes). Round 2, 3:34
DeAnna Bennett def. Katja Kankaanpää by unanimous decision (29-28 x3)
Roxanne Modafferi def. Mariana Morais by TKO (strikes). Round 3, 4:40
Andrea Lee def. Rachael Ostovich by verbal submission (armbar). Round 3, 4:58
Cindy Dandois def. Megan Anderson by submission (triangle choke). Round 2, 2:41
Sharon Jacobson def. Jamie Moyle by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Jinh Yu Frey def. Liz McCarthy by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
J.J. Aldrich def. Rosa Acevedo by knockout (knee and punches). Round 1, 2:24
Aspen Ladd def. Amanda Bobby Cooper by submission (armbar). Round 2, 4:42
Felicia Spencer def. Rachel Wiley by TKO (strikes). Round 1, 3:32
About Invicta FC:
Invicta Fighting Championships is a world championship, all-pro mixed martial arts (MMA) fight series dedicated to providing female athletes with a major platform to hone their skills on a consistent basis. Founded in 2012 by longtime MMA executive Shannon Knapp, Invicta is committed to pioneering the future growth of women’s MMA by promoting the best possible match-ups between female competitors and identifying and developing future superstars of the sport. For more information, visit InvictaFC.com, follow Invicta on Twitter (@InvictaFights) and like Invicta on Facebook (Facebook.com/InvictaFights).
