Julian Gonzalez had to go to the judges for the second straight time.

The aggressive junior lightweight prospect relied on his power to develop an early lead en route to an eight-round, unanimous decision over Pittsburgh’s Johnny Spell. Judges John McKaie (78-74) Ron McNair (79-73) and Justin Rubenstein (78-73) all scored the all-Pennsylvania battle for Reading’s Gonzalez in the opener of a Showtime-televised ShoBox tripleheader Friday from Wind Creek Events Center in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

Gonzalez managed to time Spell’s bobbing and weaving late in round two. A right hand to the chin by the regional favorite opened the floodgates for a strong surge which forced Spell to repeatedly clinch. The Pittsburgh native survived the round but was forced to contend with blood from his nose.

The minute break between rounds didn’t help Spell fully recover. He was still on unsteady legs at the start of round three, while Gonzalez calmly stalked his opponent. Gonzalez landed short right hands on the inside and landed a more convincing shot midway through the round. Spell’s head snapped back as he once again clinched, all while unable to offer any offense in return.

Spell was stuck in survival mode for much of round four as well before he was finally able to briefly turn the tide at the start of the fifth. A stiff jab forced Gonzalez to stop punching for the first time in the fight and allowed Spell to set up his power shots. Spell continued to work behind the stick while Gonzalez was more selective with his punches, though able to land to the body.

Action slowed in round six, as both mostly fought from the outside. Spell continued to jab with confidence and was able to avoid most of the incoming. Gonzalez’s punch output dramatically decreased, as did his connect percentage. Spell slipped several right hands and left hooks, and landed a counter check hook while against the ropes.

Gonzalez found his range late in round seven, the first time either boxer went past that point in their respective pro careers. He went back to a purposeful jab to work his way inside and managed to rock Spell late In the frame. Despite the much-needed momentum shift to preserve his lead, Gonzalez was urged by his corner to keep his cool and fight smart in the final three rounds.

Neither fighter seemed able to take the lead in the eighth and final round. Spell used lateral movement to try and set up his punches but often came up empty. Gonzalez (11-0-1, 9KOs) was able to cut off the ring and land short shots on the inside but nothing of consequence.

It didn’t matter in the end, as he built an early enough lead to preserve his unbeaten record. However, it was his second straight distance fight after having scored knockouts in all nine previous wins.

Spell suffered his first defeat as he fell to 8-1 (4KOs).

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for krikya360.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox