"If you work hard and you train hard, you're not going to get hurt in the ring," Abbott said. "The more you sweat, the less you bleed."

Yes, this is a serious workout, crammed into another hectic day. Abbott works two jobs, at Sealaska Heritage Institute and the Valley Tesoro, and her 13-year-old daughter is hovering somewhere in the gym. Hasselquist, Marble and Day also carve out time from work and family life to train an average of three to five days a week.

"There's a lot more to boxing than people think," Hasselquist said. "You get addicted to it: the adrenaline and the competition and going out and proving how far you can push yourself."

Women started fighting in Juneau's monthly Roughhouse cards six years ago. Though there's still not enough fighters in similar weight classes for an end-of-season Southeast Showdown championship, there are about 10 to 15 boxers in the scene. That's comparable to Anchorage, and a little less than Ketchikan. Promoter Bob Haag hopes to organize two ladies' fights a month this year.

"Some of the best fights in Roughhouse that I've seen have been the women," Haag said. "Juneau has some really tough girls that will stay with the best in the state. I really believe that."

Michael Penn / Juneau Empire   GEARING UP: From left, Angela Day, Edna Abbott, Desiree Marble and Jamiann Hasselquist pose at the end of a workout at Pavitt's Health and Fitness in the Mendenhall Valley.

Female boxing was still a novelty when it started in Anchorage 10 years ago.

"I was very much against it myself, being raised in the early '50s and being a bit of the male chauvinist that I am," Haag said. "But I've watched it grow, and I really support it now."

Marjorie McKeown and Angela Decker's showdown in April 2000 at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Hall is believed to be the first female Roughhouse fight in Juneau.

Haag came to town and called up the KINY show "Problem Corner," seeking a female fighter to train. McKeown, a 39-year-old fitness instructor and mother of four, was the only woman to respond.

Michael Penn / Juneau Empire   PUNCHING BAG: Angela Day trains at Pavitt's Health and Fitness for the 2006-2007 Roughhouse Boxing season.

"He tried to talk me out of it," McKeown said. "He didn't think I was that kind of person. He said, 'Oh, you must have had a lot of brothers.' I said, 'No, I'm an only child.' He said, 'Oh you must have been in a lot of bar fights.' I said, 'No, I've never been in a fight before.'"

McKeown talked Haag into training her and dominated the fight.

"That lady took to boxing like a duck to water," Haag said.

"It was surreal and empowering," McKeown said. "I thought, 'Wow, if I can do this, I might be able to do anything.' Still today, people say, 'Aren't you the boxing lady?' It's notoriety, not prestige, but it was an awesome experience."

McKeown and Decker opened the doors. Missy Fronimos beat Desiree Evans in November 2000. Abbott and Hasselquist started in 2001.

Michael Penn / Juneau Empire   PUNCHING BAG: Edna Abbott trains at Pavitt's Health and Fitness for the 2006-2007 Roughhouse Boxing season.

With 14 fights, Hasselquist is the most experienced female boxer in Juneau. She learned how to box when she was 13. David Garcia and Joe Decker taught her the basics after she was hassled by a few girls at the teen center. Her husband, Rooney, boxes as well. They married in the ring, Dec. 9, 2005, at Marlintini's Lounge.

Wasilla's Jennifer "Spitfire" Wallace, a 5-foot-5, 130-pound fighter with a 15-4 record with two knockouts, is the most experienced female boxer in the Anchorage scene. She started fighting in 2001, in part to control her anger. Wallace lost her first fight on a decision, but took her second with a unanimous verdict. She's also served as a ring girl in Juneau.

"It's two different atmospheres," she said of the difference between fighting and being a ring girl. "You're a tough girl, and then you're sissy la-la. I was actually embarrassed that my friend up here, my promoter, found out about it. I have an image to uphold."

This season will include the much-anticipated rematch between Hasselquist and Wallace. The two met in February at Marlintini's. Hasselquist knocked Wallace to the canvas in the first round. But Hasselquist was forced to withdraw, when she twisted her knee with 30 seconds left in the third and final round.

Michael Penn / Juneau Empire   PUNCHING BAG: Desiree Marble trains at Pavitt's Health and Fitness for the 2006-2007 Roughhouse Boxing season.

Marble (3-1), a mother of two, has resumed training after having a baby on Aug. 25 by Caesarean section.

"After this kid, I thought I wasn't going to fight anymore. But I already have a fight lined up this year," she said. "I can't stay out of the ring."

Marble has been in the Roughhouse scene for four years, and doubles as a ring girl. Minutes after her only loss, she put on a bikini and strolled around the ring.

"I'm not going to let any (loss) get me down like that," she said.

Day has been fighting since she was 9, when she moved from Seattle to Juneau.

"My mom came to my classroom, and all of our white friends didn't like us anymore because my mom was full-blooded Tlingit," Day said. "From then on, there were fights all the time."

"I've only lost two street fights, and that was because I was jumped from behind," Day said. "Other than that, any face-to-face fight, one-on-one, I've never lost."

Day began Roughhouse boxing when a challenger believed she made a derogatory remark about her cousin. The challenger was wrong, and Day won by decision. In her second fight, she stopped her opponent 37 seconds into the bout, then won a third and fourth on points. She's currently recovering from a broken arm.

"I'm pretty friendly; I don't have any enemies," Day said. "I've got a better reputation now, because I won't fight on the streets anymore. I'm a foster parent, and I just want to stay out of trouble."

Abbott, a left-hander, a ring girl and a former street fighter, started boxing when she was challenged by her rival, Amanda Harding.

"Everywhere I go, somebody is like, 'Aren't you that boxer girl?'" Abbott said. "They picture this big, tough girl. I'm 120, and I have long, brown hair. They don't see a broken nose and a black eye."

In May, Abbott faced Wasilla's Taffy Fox, the best in Anchorage in her weight division. Abbott fended off Fox's jabs but lost on points, raising the possibility of a future rematch.

"I've been in a lot of street fights and I'm not proud of it," Abbott said. "I've learned that people are out there to get you, and I hope to teach my daughter that you can walk away and be a bigger person, rather than make a mistake and choose the wrong route.