Archive for Short Track
GLORY GOES TO GRANT IN SUMAR SILVER CROWN SCORE
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The United States Auto Club.
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Contact: Richie Murray - USAC Media / richie@usacracing.com
Justin Grant captured Sunday's 'Sumar Classic' victory at the Terre Haute (Ind.) Action Track. (Ryan Sellers Photo)
GLORY GOES TO GRANT IN SUMAR SILVER CROWN SCORE
By: Richie Murray - USAC Media
Terre Haute, Indiana.........Speed has never been an issue for Justin Grant when it comes to USAC Silver Crown racing at the Terre Haute Action Track.
Two years ago, the Ione, California driver set quick time and was dominant for the first 93 laps of the 100-lap event. But, it was just a slight mishap with seven laps remaining that cost him a shot at victory.
Fast forward to 2018 and a couple more years of experience under the belt, on a similar track surface he faced back then, Grant was determined to not let the past repeat itself on his way to Sunday night's "Sumar Classic" victory.
"You have to keep your eye on the rubber or have your spotter keeping an eye on the rubber for you," Grant detailed. "A couple years ago here, I was just concentrating on what I was doing, banging the fence and running as hard as I could. As I've gotten more comfortable in the Crown cars, I worry as much, or more, about what other guys are doing behind me and make sure to get to the rubber before somebody drives by."
At the drop of the green, Jerry Coons, Jr. was the dominant figure, climbing to the top spot from his outside front row starting position to lead the first 10 circuits before 2016 "Sumar" winner C.J. Leary went topside to ride by the USAC Triple Crown champ on the lap 11 restart.
Leary rode into the western Indiana sunset with the advantage until lap 36 when Grant caught Leary in lapped traffic and outlasted him down the back straightaway in a side-by-side battle similar to the duels at the adjacent Action Dragway before sliding back up to the berm where he would stand pat until nearly three-quarters of the event were in the books.
On lap 70, Shane Cottle dueled with Grant as the two swapped the top spot four times over the span of a lap and a half. Cottle was credited with leading the lap before each exchanged their race-leading surge. Grant made the ultimate, lasting move, ducking down to the inside of Cottle off turn two to recapture the lead.
"(Shane) and I were both running hard," Grant recalled. "He was on a harder compound tire than I was, so he could abuse his car a bit more. I was trying to keep my track position, but not burn my tire up doing it. Right before he slid past me and got into Kody, the team made the call that we needed to let him go because we weren't going to make it to the end racing like that."
By lap 77, Swanson, the 2014 "Sumar" winner who was relegated to the 18th starting position following an engine change prior to qualifying, was in position to pounce for the lead, ringing around the outside of both Cottle and Grant in a single move between turns three and four.
On the 84th lap, the now third-running Cottle took a chance on a two-for-one deal entering the third turn. In one fell swoop, Cottle breezed by Grant on the inside, then pulled along the inside of Swanson on the inner guardrail. The two touched wheels, sending both into 360-degree spin-cycles. Cottle's race came to an end backwards near the outside wall while Swanson managed to continue, albeit with a flat left rear tire, forcing him to make a pit stop for new rubber and restart from the tail of the field.
'My spotter, Chris (Wheeler), let me know that Swanson was back to P2 and that, whatever we had left, we needed to use it now. We saved everything as best we could up to that point. When he gave me the call, that's when we went.' - Justin Grant (Gene Crucean Photo)
Once racing resumed, Grant set off toward a comfortable margin with a lead of nearly three seconds while Swanson mounted a valiant charge to the front, threading the needle to slip past Tyler Courtney with seven laps to go for third in turn three, then motoring past Leary with an outside pass a lap later. With Swanson's charge, the message was sent forth to Grant that this was no time to dawdle, this was 'go time.'
"My spotter, Chris (Wheeler), let me know that Swanson was back to P2 and that, whatever we had left, we needed to use it now," Grant exclaimed. "We saved everything as best we could up to that point. When he gave me the call, that's when we went."
It's a chess game trying to save, yet be fast throughout a 100-lap race on the dirt that, on this day, included variables such as the sun setting early on in the race and the ever-changing track conditions throughout the event.
"On a rubber down racetrack, you're slowing yourself down to not kill the tires," Grant continued. "If you wear a tire out, you won't make it to the end. You're trying to go as fast as you can without using the tire up. You have to get yourself to the end, then you can go as fast as you can. You hope you have enough tire left to run the last ten (laps) hard and not have a whole lot of concern with it."
The interval between Grant and Swanson was rapidly closing in the final laps as lapped traffic loomed. It's one thing to navigate your way through gridlock with ease and another to catch them at exactly the right spot without interruption to your rhythm, which Grant executed with the precision of an X-Acto knife as he encountered the lapped cars of Neil Shepherd and Mike Haggenbottom in turn one.
"You have to catch them right," Grant said point blank. "You don't want to waste any time and you can't let them break your momentum because somebody like Kody behind you will capitalize. You try to get through them as fast as you can and not let them break your stride and hope the guys behind you get caught up a little bit with them."
"I figured if I got caught behind them in (turns) one and two, I was going to be pretty well toast or, at least, allow Kody a good shot at it," Grant admitted. "I knew I needed to get by them there. I wasn't real sure where they were going to go, though. I thought about splitting them and staying in the rubber, but the inside car kind of moved up a little bit. Fortunately, I had enough of a run to where I was able to get down in the dust and get by them."
Grant flawlessly finished out the final lap to take his second career Silver Crown win by 1.33 seconds over KSE Racing Products Hard Charger Kody Swanson and pole sitter Tyler Courtney, who charged all the way from 22nd after an early race spin. Chris Windom was fourth after jumping into Bill Rose's car following mechanical trouble in his regular Gene Nolen Racing ride while Leary rounded out the top-five.
Grant continued the streak of a new "Sumar Classic" winner each year since 1999 with the victory and assumes the series point lead, holding the tiebreaker over Swanson heading into Friday's Hemelgarn Racing/Super Fitness "Rollie Beale Classic."
Contingency award winners Sunday night at the Terre Haute Action Track included Kody Swanson (KSE Racing Products Hard Charger), Kyle Robbins (Wilwood Brakes 13th Place Finisher) and Chris Windom (Roger & Barb Tapy 13th Fastest Qualifier).
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USAC SILVER CROWN CHAMP CAR SERIES RACE RESULTS: April 29, 2018 - Terre Haute, Indiana - Terre Haute Action Track - "Sumar Classic"
QUALIFYING: 1. Tyler Courtney, 97, Lein-22.990; 2. Jerry Coons Jr., 20, Nolen-23.004; 3. Justin Grant, 91, Hemelgarn-23.068; 4. C.J. Leary, 30, Leary-23.359; 5. Brady Bacon, 6, Klatt-23.521; 6. Aaron Pierce, 26, Pierce-23.583; 7. Shane Cockrum, 71, Hardy-23.764; 8. Shane Cottle, 81, Williams-23.825; 9. Coleman Gulick, 114, Scorpion-23.844; 10. Jacob Wilson, 07, WBR-24.026; 11. Casey Shuman, 55, Bateman-24.167; 12. Johnny Petrozelle, 8, Cornell/Petrozelle-24.219; 13. Chris Windom, 17, Nolen-24.289; 14. Travis Welpott, 18, Welpott/Gorman-24.420; 15. Austin Mundie, 47, Butler-24.443; 16. Joss Moffatt, 32, Williams & Wright-24.516; 17. David Byrne, 40, Byrne-24.555; 18. Neil Shepherd, 04, Shepherd-24.611; 19. Kyle Robbins, 7, KR-24.919; 20. Joe Liguori, 4, Liguori-25.085; 21. Steve Buckwalter, 53, SET-25.192; 22. Austin Nemire, 16, Nemire/Lesko-25.384; 23. Mike Haggenbottom, 124, Haggenbottom-25.451; 24. Korey Weyant, 99, Weyant-25.460; 25. Chris Fetter, 89, Fetter-25.487; 26. Matt Goodnight, 39, Goodnight-25.597; 27. Chris Dyson, 9, Dyson-25.789; 28. Kody Swanson, 63, DePalma-NT; 29. Bill Rose, 66, Rose-NT.
QUALIFYING RACE: (15 laps, top-8 transfer) 1. David Byrne, 2. Kody Swanson, 3. Kyle Robbins, 4. Steve Buckwalter, 5. Joe Liguori, 6. Matt Goodnight,7. Neil Shepherd, 8. Mike Haggenbottom, 9. Austin Nemire, 10. Chris Dyson, 11. Korey Weyant, 12. Chris Fetter. NT
FEATURE: (100 laps - starting position in parentheses) 1. Justin Grant (3), 2. Kody Swanson (18), 3. Tyler Courtney (1), 4. Chris Windom (13), 5. C.J. Leary (4), 6. Shane Cockrum (7), 7. Jerry Coons Jr. (2), 8. Joe Liguori (21), 9. Johnny Petrozelle (12), 10. Neil Shepherd (23), 11. Mike Haggenbottom (24), 12. Austin Nemire (25), 13. Kyle Robbins (19), 14. Shane Cottle (8), 15. Jacob Wilson (10), 16. Casey Shuman (11), 17. Steve Buckwalter (20), 18. Aaron Pierce (6), 19. Travis Welpott (14), 20. David Byrne (17), 21. Joss Moffatt (16), 22. Matt Goodnight (22), 23. Coleman Gulick (9), 24. Austin Mundie (15), 25. Brady Bacon (5). NT
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FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-10 Coons, Laps 11-35 Leary, Laps 36-69 Grant, Lap 70 Cottle, Laps 71-76 Grant, Laps 77-83 Swanson, Laps 84-100 Grant.
KSE RACING PRODUCTS HARD CHARGER AWARD: Kody Swanson (18th to 2nd).
WILWOOD BRAKES 13TH PLACE FINISHER: Kyle Robbins
NEW USAC SILVER CROWN CHAMP CAR SERIES POINTS: 1-Grant-137, 2-Swanson-137, 3-Windom-110, 4-Coons-81, 5-Welpott-80, 6-Byrne-75, 7-Nemire-72, 8-Bobby Santos, 9-Pierce-70, 10-Goodnight-67.
NEXT USAC SILVER CROWN CHAMP CAR SERIES RACE: May 4 - Toledo, Ohio - Toledo Speedway - "Hemelgarn Racing/Super Fitness Rollie Beale Classic"
South Jersey Shootout
Posted by: | CommentsNEW EGYPT SPEEDWAY NEWS – APRIL 29, 2018
Posted by: | Comments
New Egypt Speedway
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New Egypt Speedway
Route 539, New Egypt, NJ
Track Phone: 609-758-1900
Website: www.newegyptspeedway.net
Facebook: www.facebook.com/newegyptspeedwayofficial
Twitter: www.twitter.com/nesspeedway
Contact: Mike Wisniewski - Wiz Motorsports Communications, 856-982-5137
COMING EVENTS:
Saturday, May 5, 2018 - Round of 24 for the May Modified Madness Series -
Modifieds, Larry's Hot Rods & Harley's Northeast Wingless Sprint Cars,
Hammer Sportsman, Crate Modifieds, 4-Cylinders and the Lyons
Construction/Metal Fab Rookie Sportsman
3:00 p.m. - Pit gates open
4:00 p.m. - Grandstand gates open
5:00 p.m. - Hot laps start
6:00 p.m. - Racing starts
Saturday, May 12, 2018 - Round of 12 for the May Modified Madness Series -
Modifieds, Sportsman, Mid Atlantic Sprint Car Series, Street Stocks and the
Lyons Construction/Metal Fab Rookie Sportsman
3:00 p.m. - Pit gates open
4:00 p.m. - Grandstand gates open
5:00 p.m. - Hot laps start
6:00 p.m. - Racing starts
RUTSKI AND VACLAVICEK SCORE WINS ON TWIN TWENTY NIGHT AT NEW EGYPT SPEEDWAY
New Egypt, NJ (April 29, 2018) - On Twin Twenty Night at New Egypt Speedway,
Rich Rutski and Kevin Vaclavicek each scored a Modified feature win. The
Crate Modified main event was won by Dan Fleming. Jon Meyer captured the
victory in the Street Stock race. The Lyons Construction/Metal Fab Rookie
Sportsman feature went to Bobby Holzwarth. Joe Garey, Sr. took top honors in
the 4-Cylinder contest.
After three attempts, the first 20-lap Modified feature began with Dominick
Buffalino taking command over Jeff Bubori and Rich Rutski. With six circuits
in the books, Buffalino was running strong with Rutski advancing into second
and Ryan Krachun running in third. On the eighth circuit, Buffalino, who had
a full straightaway advantage over the field, pulled into the infield and
retired from the race with a mechanical issue. Rutski, a teammate of
Buffalino, became the new leader with Krachun taking over second and Danny
Bouc moving into third place. Three laps later, Krachun was closing in on
Rutski when the yellow flag waved for a spinning Kevin Vaclavicek. On the
ensuing restart, Rutski held off a challenge for the lead with Ryan Godown
charging into second and John McClelland taking over third. With two
additional cautions and resumptions in the final six laps, Rutski held off
additional threats to his lead and raced home to his second career win in
the Modified ranks. The runner-up spot went to McClelland. With Krachun
taking third, Godown slipped back in the final tours to finish in fourth.
Jimmy Horton completed the top five.
As the top twelve finishers in the first contest were inverted, the second
20-lap feature got underway with second place starting Chad Barney grabbing
the lead. Jeff Bubori and Kevin Vaclavicek were next in line. With three
circuits in the books, Vaclavicek advanced past Bubori and began to track
down Barney. On the fourth lap, Vaclavicek sped past Barney to become the
new leader. Once in front, Vaclavicek began to pull away from the field. On
the eighth circuit, Vaclavicek's sizeable advantage was lost as Barney, who
had lost second place to Bubori, spun while running in third place. After a
few unsuccessful tries, green flag racing returned with Vaclavicek
maintaining his position, Ryan Godown in second and Matt Stangle in third.
At the halfway point, Stangle drove by Godown to take over the runner-up
spot. Over the final half of the affair, Vaclavicek drove flawlessly as he
logged his first career Modified feature victory. Second place went to
Stangle. Godown completed the race in third with John McClelland taking
fourth and Jimmy Horton was fifth. The Modified heat winners were Rich
Rutski, Blaine Bracelin and Dominick Buffalino.
In the 20-lap Crate Modified main event, Dan Fleming took the lead from
Robbie Dunn on the eleventh tour and paced the field the rest of the way.
The win was Fleming's second career checkered flag in the division. Kyle
Kania's last lap charge past John Aumick earned him a second place finish.
With Aumick in third, eleventh place starting Ryan Simmons was fourth. After
starting in tenth, Johnny Bangs completed the race in fifth. John Aumick and
John Criscione were victorious in the Crate Modified qualifying races.
Jon Meyer slipped beneath Lee Allen in the first corner of the last circuit
to take the victory in the 15-lap Street Stock contest. Meyer, who was
running in second when he was involved in an incident on the eighth
revolution, was able to roar back through the field to collect his third
career victory. Billy Wroble slipped by Allen on the final lap as well to
take second place. With Allen finishing third, Jim Avery was fourth and
Jerry Stanzione was fifth.
After taking the lead on lap five from Matt Miller, Bobby Holzwarth held off
Sam Martz, Jr. in the final three tours to win his first Lyons
Construction/Metal Fab Rookie Sportsman feature. The second place finish by
Martz was his third consecutive in three events. Miller, who led the opening
five circuits, came home in third. Kevin Borden, Jr. and Erich Conk
completed the top five.
Joe Garey, Sr. led every step of the way to gain the checkered flag in the
10-lap race for the 4-Cylinders. Justin Dunn, Scott Miller, Scott Dunn and
Joe Garey, Jr. followed the victor across the finish line.
The May Modified Madness Series gets underway on Saturday, May 5 at New
Egypt Speedway with the round of 24. This unique four race series features
the top-24 in the Modified point standings competing in a bracket style
elimination tournament. The Modifieds will be joined by the Larry's Hot Rods
& Harley's Northeast Wingless Sprint Cars, Hammer Sportsman, Crate
Modifieds, 4-Cylinders and the Lyons Construction/Metal Fab Rookie
Sportsman. Competitors may begin to enter the pits at 3:00 p.m. and the
grandstand gates open at 4:00 p.m. Hot laps get underway at 5:00 p.m. with
racing starting at 6:00 p.m. Admission to the grandstand is $20 for adults,
$18 for seniors 65 and older, $10 for teens 12-15, $10 for military personal
and their spouses with ID, and Kids 11 & under are FREE. Pit admission is
$30 with a New Egypt Speedway license and $40 with no license.
New Egypt Speedway is located on Route 539 just minutes from Six Flags Great
Adventure and the New Jersey Turnpike. A racy 7/16-mile D-shaped dirt
oval, New Egypt Speedway serves Garden State race fans with some of the best
competition in the country. New Egypt's state-of-the-art facilities feature
daylight-quality lighting and excellent sightlines from any seat in the
house. The grandstands are fully wheelchair accessible with wide, clear,
and well-groomed walkways. Concession facilities serve up everything from
Jersey Burgers to ice cream treats at family-friendly prices.
For more information, visit online: www.newegyptspeedway.net, "Like" us on
Facebook at www.facebook.com/newegyptspeedwayofficial, or follow us on
Twitter @nesspeedway.
NEW EGYPT SPEEDWAY RESULTS - SATURDAY, APRIL 28, 2018
Modifieds
Heat 1 - 1. Rich Rutski 2. Davey Sammons 3. Brian Papiez 4. Billy Pauch, Jr.
5. PJ Oliver 6. JR Fulper
Heat 2 - 1. Blaine Bracelin 2. Kevin Vaclavicek 3. Steve Davis 4. Brandon
Grosso 5. Chad Barney 6. John McClelland
Heat 3 - 1. Dominick Buffalino 2. Danny Bouc 3. Ryan Godown 4. David VanHorn
5. Ryan Krachun 6. Jeff Bubori
DNQ: Dakota Kessler, Corey Holsten, Derek Krum
MODIFIEDS - 20 LAPS FEATURE #1
1. RICH RUTSKI 2. John McClelland 3. Ryan Krachun 4. Ryan Godown 5. Jimmy
Horton 6. Davey Sammons 7. Matt Stangle 8. Kevin Vaclavicek 9. PJ Oliver 10.
Jeff Bubori 11. Chad Barney 12. Jim Bobbitt 13. Blaine Bracelin 14. Danny
Bouc 15. Jack Swain 16. Brian Papiez 17. Bryan Kuhl 18. Dominick Buffalino
19. Mike Everett 20. JR Fulper 21. David VanHorn 22. Steve Davis 23. Billy
Pauch, Jr. 24. Brandon Grosso
MODIFIEDS - 20 LAPS FEATURE #2
1. KEVIN VACLAVICEK 2. Matt Stangle 3. Ryan Godown 4. John McClelland 5.
Jimmy Horton 6. David VanHorn 7. Rich Rutski 8. Billy Pauch, Jr. 9. Danny
Bouc 10. Brandon Grosso 11. Ryan Krachun 12. Jim Bobbitt 13. Jeff Bubori 14.
Brian Papiez 15. Davey Sammons 16. Bryan Kuhl 17. Chad Barney 18. PJ Oliver
19. Blaine Bracelin 20. Jack Swain 21. JR Fulper
DNS: Dominick Buffalino, Steve Davis, Mike Everett
Crate Modifieds
Heat 1 - 1. John Aumick 2. Dan Fleming 3. Steve Hicks 4. Kyle Kania 5.
Johnny Bangs 6. Jeremy Martino 7. Jordon Cox
Heat 2 - 1. John Criscione 2. Robby Dunn 3. Paul Hartwig 4. George Gareis,
Jr. 5. Ryan Simmons 6. Joe Toth 7. Eric Palmer
CRATE MODIFIEDS - 20 LAPS FEATURE
1. DAN FLEMING 2. Kyle Kania 3. John Aumick 4. Ryan Simmons 5. Johnny Bangs
6. John Criscione 7. George Gareis, Jr. 8. Steve Hicks 9. Jeremy Martino 10.
Eric Palmer 11. Aaron Weaver 12. Jordon Cox 13. Sam Martz, Jr. 14. Rob
Mancini 15. Glenn McIntyre 16. Tom Princiotta 17. Steve Desmelyk 18. Robby
Dunn 19. Paul Hartwig 20. Joe Toth 21. Kevin Borden, Jr. 22. Matt Miller 23.
Bobby Holzwarth 24. Paige Brown
STREET STOCKS - 15 LAPS FEATURE
1. JON MEYER 2. Billy Wroble 3. Lee Allen 4. Jimmy Avery 5. Jerry Stanzione
6. Marty Derr 7. Chris Felber 8. Ryan Freshneck 9. Spider Ensinger, Sr. 10.
Joe Reid 11. Mick Search 12. Brian Ludwig
DNS: Darren Cox
LYONS CONSTRUCTION/METAL FAB ROOKIE SPORTSMAN - 8 LAPS FEATURE
1. BOBBY HOLZWARTH 2. Sam Martz, Jr. 3. Matt Miller 4. Kevin Borden, Jr. 5.
Erich Conk 6. Paige Brown 7. Ryan Heim
4-CYLINDERS - 10 LAPS FEATURE
1. JOE GAREY, SR. 2. Justin Dunn 3. Scott Miller 4. Scott Dunn 5. Joe Garey,
Jr.
IT’S A TRI-STATE TRIUMPH FOR THOMAS AT THE SPRING SHOWDOWN
Posted by: | Comments- The United States Auto Club.
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Contact: Richie Murray - USAC Media / richie@usacracing.com
Kevin Thomas, Jr. captured his first win for the Dynamics, Inc. team Saturday night in the 'Spring Showdown' at Tri-State Speedway in Haubstadt, Indiana. (Dallas Breeze Photo)
IT'S A TRI-STATE TRIUMPH FOR THOMAS AT THE SPRING SHOWDOWN
By: Richie Murray - USAC Media
Haubstadt, Indiana.........Recently, it seems when the USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Cars come to Tri-State Speedway, Kevin Thomas, Jr. finds himself in the mix at the front.
On two occasions last year, he was involved in last lap battles on the quarter-mile paperclip - one of which went his way and one that did not.
On Saturday night, the wave went KTJ's way once again as he surged to the lead through the tight crevice between the outside wall and C.J. Leary's right-side wheels exiting turn four with four laps remaining to win the "Spring Showdown," co-sanctioned by the Midwest Sprint Car Series.
The Cullman, Alabama driver has found his groove in Haubstadt in recent times, winning his second consecutive USAC race there and fourth overall dating back to 2013. But it's more than just simply being fast at this tricky joint. So many things can occur in the snap of a finger. You have to be on your toes, yet you have to keep your cool to put yourself in a position to win, which Thomas has been a natural at when it comes to Tri-State Speedway.
"Sometimes it's hard for me to do, but you have to be as patient as possible here," Thomas admitted. "Even right there at the beginning, I fell back a little bit. You get to racing with others, you fall back and you're not on the aggressive side. I just started picking them off; (Justin) Grant and I had a good race midway through the feature. We're sliding each other back and forth and that's fun, but whenever you're doing that, people are steadily driving away. Once we got cleared, we kind of had the seas part for us."
From the start, though, it was Kody Swanson who controlled much of the first half of the event, leading the opening 12 laps as Leary frisked the three-time USAC Silver Crown champ repeatedly. Leary had the middle line working, poking ahead of Swanson momentarily on each end of the track, but not enough to complete the pass on Swanson who carried the high-side momentum downhill off turns two and four to maintain the advantage.
On the 13th lap, as the leaders were mired in heavy lapped traffic, Leary's tireless work paid off handsomely as he slid up across the nose of Swanson's ride off turn four to complete the pass and possess the lead.
Two laps later, Swanson and Friday night Bloomington winner Dave Darland were engaged in a grapple for second. The two banged wheels, allowing Thomas and Logan Seavey to be the beneficiaries as they capitalized and moved past both to rotate into the second and third positions, respectively.
'I think it's beneficial as many times we've run here throughout the year because this track does different things,' Thomas said. 'Last year, we had a track similar to this and got really, really tight. We looked at our notebook, went back on that and freed our car up a little bit. Even though we were still tight, we were way freer than what we were.' (Ryan Sellers Photo)
"When Dave and Kody got together, they split wide open and we went through both of them and got to second," Thomas recalled. "Lapped traffic is a key here too. You can't miss a step. As soon as the leader gets clear, he's going to pick up the pace quite a bit. If you're stuck three or four cars back, you can end up about a straightaway behind. You have to watch yourself really closely there and you have to make stuff happen. Once we got to second, I had to be the aggressor. Running second for a while tonight allowed me to move around a little bit. Tonight was one of those nights when running second was better."
Leary was indeed clear on the restart with 12 laps remaining. With a clear track ahead and lapped cars separating he and second-running Thomas, the advantage was all his. Yet, Thomas made quick work, clearing the traffic, but still remained a second-and-a-half back from Leary.
Following a Donny Brackett back straightway spin with six laps remaining, Thomas threw a series of curveballs, sliders and spitballs at Leary to no avail as Leary clung to the spot by the quick of his nails until Aric Gentry's car went up in a ball of flame and smoke to bring out the final yellow with four laps to go, forcing one final restart. Thomas acted a student on the previous restart, taking notes for the final exam he would have one more opportunity to ace on the lap 27 restart.
"I was watching C.J. in front of me, seeing where I could gain ground and where I couldn't," Thomas said. "I could gain ground in (turns) one and two and I'd lose it all in (turns) three and four. We were pretty tight, so I just couldn't figure out how to get through three and four without the nose pushing a little bit. I just spent a few laps working on my line in that corner, and then once I figured it out, luckily, we had a caution."
With Leary maintaining his midline route, Thomas stuck his Dynamics, Inc./Mean Green - Jonathan Byrd/DRC/Speedway Chevy on the high-line and, at the exit of turn four, emerged with the lead, squeaking by Leary without much room to spare on either side. Thomas would pull away in the final laps to win his first race for the famed Hoffman team by just a tick under a full second over Leary, Seavey, Darland and Grant.
"We were able to put it up top there," Thomas explained. "There wasn't as much grip up there, but it was better for me because we were really tight. I got up there in the crumbs a little bit and freed the car up, but I was still able to keep my momentum going. I think that move is all it took right there because he was every bit as fast as us. I was talking to him right after the feature he said that one of the spokes on his steering wheel ended up breaking after contact with another driver. That's crazy to be able to do as good as he did with the equipment breaking like that."
One night following a disastrous slip from 6th to 19th place in just two corners after jumping the turn three curb during the feature at Bloomington, Thomas found his mojo once again, but this time he did it by doing things a bit differently, equaling the same result as his most recent Tri-State trip.
"I think it's beneficial as many times we've run here throughout the year because this track does different things," Thomas said. "Last year, we had a track similar to this and got really, really tight. We looked at our notebook, went back on that and freed our car up a little bit. Even though we were still tight, we were way freer than what we were. This place is small and tight, but if you can't keep your momentum up and can't keep the front wheels on the ground, it's a tough place to get around. Honestly, I still struggle with that until probably the last five laps of the feature. It was just a few little notes that helped us out tonight and a few little adjustments here and there. I'm just glad to bounce back after running off the track last night!"
Contingency award winners Saturday night at Tri-State Speedway included C.J. Leary (Simpson Race Products First Heat Winner), Chase Stockon (Competition Suspension, Inc. Second Heat Winner), Kevin Thomas, Jr. (Chalk Stix Third Heat Winner), Dave Darland (Indy Race Parts Fourth Heat Winner), Robert Ballou (KSE Racing Products Hard Charger), Kellen Conover (Saldana Racing Products First Non-Transfer), Brandon Mattox (Wilwood Brakes 13th Place Finisher) and Chris Windom (Roger & Barb Tapy 13th Fastest Qualifier).
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USAC AMSOIL SPRINT CAR NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP RACE RESULTS: April 28, 2018 - Haubstadt, Indiana - Tri-State Speedway (Co-Sanctioned by MSCS)
QUALIFICATIONS: 1. C.J. Leary, 30, Leary-13.252; 2. Logan Seavey, 5B, Briscoe-13.333; 3. Kevin Thomas, Jr., 69, Dynamics-13.385; 4. Dave Darland, 36D, Goodnight/Curb-Agajanian-13.552; 5. Kyle Cummins, 3c, EZR/Cummins-13.778; 6. Carson Short, 21, RCM-13.570; 7. Chad Boespflug, 98, NineEight-13.879; 8. Tyler Thomas, 17GP, Dutcher-14.068; 9. Donny Brackett, 4B, Brackett-14.077; 10. Justin Grant, 4, TOPP-14.086; 11. Kody Swanson, 3R, Rock Steady-14.131; 12. Chet Williams, 38, Fortune-14.143; 13. Chris Windom, 5, Baldwin-14.145; 14. Brian Wallace, 27, Wallace-14.253; 15. Brian Karraker, 23, Karraker-14.258; 16. Stephen Schnapf, 61m, Edwards-14.266; 17. Aric Gentry, 10, Gentry-14.267; 18. Chase Stockon, 32, 32 TBI-14.286; 19. Tyler Courtney, 7BC, Clauson Marshall Newman-14.292; 20. Isaac Chapple, 52, LNR/Chapple-14.355; 21. Stevie Sussex, 04, Burton-14.368; 22. Brady Bacon, 99, Bacon-14.423; 23. Joe Stornetta, 44, Pace-14.466; 24. Robert Ballou, 12, Ballou-14.474; 25. Brandon Mattox, 28, Mattox/Nigg-14.548; 26. James Lyerla, 11, JL-14.553; 27. Johnny Petrozelle, 59, Petrozelle-14.743; 28. Kellen Conover, 5K, Schmidt-14.796; 29. Collin Ambrose, 36, Ambrose-14.983; 30. Eric Perrott, 45, Perrott-20.727; 31. Jim Shelton, 41, Shelton-NT.
SIMPSON RACE PRODUCTS FIRST HEAT: (10 laps, top-4 transfer) 1. Leary, 2. Windom, 3. Gentry, 4. Sussex, 5. Cummins, 6. Mattox, 7. Ambrose, 8. Brackett. 2:20.97
COMPETITION SUSPENSION (CSI) SECOND HEAT: (10 laps, top-4 transfer) 1. Stockon, 2. Short, 3. Bacon, 4. Grant, 5. Seavey, 6. Lyerla, 7. Wallace, 8. Perrott. NT
CHALK STIX THIRD HEAT: (10 laps, top-4 transfer) 1. K. Thomas, 2. Courtney, 3. Swanson, 4. Stornetta, 5. Boespflug, 6. Karraker, 7. Petrozelle, 8. Shelton. NT
INDY RACE PARTS FOURTH HEAT: (10 laps, top-4 transfer) 1. Darland, 2. Ballou, 3. Schnapf, 4. Chapple, 5. Conover, 6. T. Thomas, 7. Williams. NT
SEMI: (12 laps, top-6 transfer) 1. Seavey, 2. Mattox, 3. Brackett, 4. Cummins, 5. Ambrose, 6. Karraker, 7. Conover, 8. Wallace, 9. Petrozelle, 10. T. Thomas, 11. Shelton, 12. Boespflug, 13. Perrott, 14. Lyerla. NT
FEATURE: (30 laps - starting positions in parentheses) 1. Kevin Thomas, Jr. (5), 2. C.J. Leary (6), 3. Logan Seavey (7), 4. Dave Darland (4), 5. Justin Grant (2), 6. Chris Windom (10), 7. Robert Ballou (20), 8. Kody Swanson (1), 9. Carson Short (3), 10. Chase Stockon (14), 11. Joe Stornetta (19), 12. Tyler Courtney (15), 13. Brandon Mattox (21), 14. Brady Bacon (18), 15. Donny Brackett (9), 16. Stephen Schnapf (12), 17. Isaac Chapple (16), 18. Kyle Cummins (8), 19. Collin Ambrose (22), 20. Aric Gentry (13), 21. Brian Karraker (11), 22. Tyler Thomas (23), 23. Stevie Sussex (17). NT
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**Williams flipped during the fourth heat. Cummins flipped on lap 7 of the feature.
FEATURE LAP LEADERS: Laps 1-12 Swanson, Laps 13-26 Leary, Laps 27-30 K. Thomas.
KSE RACING PRODUCTS HARD CHARGER: Robert Ballou (20th to 7th)
SALDANA RACING PRODUCTS FIRST NON-TRANSFER: Kellen Conover
WILWOOD BRAKES 13TH PLACE FINISHER: Brandon Mattox
ROGER & BARB TAPY 13TH FASTEST QUALIFIER: Chris Windom
NEW USAC AMSOIL SPRINT CAR NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS: 1-Windom-356, 2-K. Thomas-351, 3-Leary-328, 4-Courtney-306, 5-Darland-305, 6-Stockon-278, 7-Grant-273, 8-Seavey-271, 9-Ballou-266, 10-Boespflug-261.
NEXT USAC AMSOIL SPRINT CAR NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP RACE: May 5 - Plymouth, Indiana - Plymouth Speedway
Schatz Thrills Massive Crowd at Devil’s Bowl with Late Race Pass Worth $20,000
Posted by: | Comments
World of Outlaws
Contact: Anthony Corini
World of Outlaws PR
408-825-3360 | acorini@dirtcar.com
Please click here for the original World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series article
MESQUITE, TX – April 28, 2018 – “I heard Ted Johnson telling me to get my ass in gear,” an elated Donny Schatz said after making a late race pass on Brad Sweet to capture the finale of the Texas Outlaw Nationals at Devil’s Bowl Speedway. Sweet led the first 25 laps, but settled for second with Shane Stewart completing the podium.
For the second night in a row, Jason Johnson paced the field in Qualifying and won his heat race. Brad Sweet edged his boss Kasey Kahne to take the Craftsman Club Dash, earning the pole for the 30-lap Feature.
Sweet set a torrid pace as Schatz and Stewart waged war for the runner-up position. Schatz wrestled the runner-up position away from Stewart on the eighth circuit and set his eyes on the leader. The lone caution during the race flew on Lap 11 as Tucker Klaasmeyer lost the handle on his Keith Kunz No.67K.
Stewart edged in front of Schatz on the double-file restart, but Schatz re-gained control of second down the backstretch. Sweet continued to lead and navigated traffic at a quick pace, but Schatz stayed with the Grass Valley, CA native through traffic and began to close on the bottom side of the speedway.
Sweet, who won the Texas Outlaw Nationals last year, continued to pound the cushion as Schatz showed his nose underneath him. With anticipation building amongst the crowd, Schatz powered off of the bottom of turn four to take command of the top spot and never look back.
“What an awesome race track. They gave us a top and bottom, the bottom was tricky, but if it was easy, everyone would be doing it,” Schatz said. The win for Schatz was his fifth of the 2018 season and was worth $20,000 and the Ted Johnson Memorial trophy.
“Ted looked after his people, he had great relationships with his guys. He had a serious passion, not only for his guys, but for putting on a great race. I remember watching him bounce up and down because Steve [Kinser] and Sammy [Swindell] were putting on a show,” Schatz reminisced of the late great Johnson. “He was a race fan.”
Sweet settled for second and was in good spirits, but understandably disappointed as he was searching for the first win of the season. “That’s the difference between winning and losing and Donny’s the best at it. The race track was great, it slicked off with multiple grooves,” Sweet said.
Shane Stewart was pleased with his podium finish, “This is a special place for me. I have a lot of friends and family out here, so to finish on the podium is special. I wish we could have been fighting for the lead up there, it was a great race, I watched it.”
Logan Schuchart charged from 12th to finish fourth for his second consecutive top-five finish with crowd favorite Jason Johnson completing the top five. After changing motors after his Heat, David Gravel bounced back with the KSE Hard Charger award coming from 19th to complete the top ten.
The World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series heads to Missouri next for a date at Lake Ozark Speedway on Friday, May 4 before making its annual trip to the Salina Highbanks Saturday, May 5. If you can’t make it to the track, be sure to watch all the action LIVE on DIRTVision.com!
Feature (30 Laps): 1. 15-Donny Schatz [5][$20,000]; 2. 49-Brad Sweet [1][$6,000]; 3. 2-Shane Stewart [3][$3,750]; 4. 1S-Logan Schuchart [12][$3,250]; 5. 41-Jason Johnson [6][$2,750]; 6. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [7][$2,500]; 7. 11K-Kraig Kinser [11][$2,400]; 8. 9-Daryn Pittman [4][$2,300]; 9. 19-Brent Marks [13][$2,200]; 10. 5-David Gravel [19][$2,100]; 11. 1A-Jacob Allen [8][$1,700]; 12. 18-Ian Madsen [10][$1,400]; 13. 7S-Jason Sides [9][$1,300]; 14. 45-Paul McMahan [15][$1,200]; 15. 67-Ryan Robinson [18][$1,100]; 16. 4K-Kasey Kahne [2][$1,000]; 17. W20-Greg Wilson [14][$1,000]; 18. 67K-Tucker Klaasmeyer [17][$1,000]; 19. 12W-Dale Wester [22][$1,000]; 20. 17G-Channin Tankersley [20][$1,000]; 21. 13-Clyde Knipp [21][$1,000]; 22. 83-Cory Eliason [16][$1,000] Lap Leaders: Brad Sweet 1-25, Donny Schatz 26-30; KSE Hard Charger Award: 5-David Gravel[+9]
Qualifying 1. 41-Jason Johnson, 13.605; 2. 4K-Kasey Kahne, 13.728; 3. 2-Shane Stewart, 13.73; 4. 9-Daryn Pittman, 13.803; 5. 1A-Jacob Allen, 13.808; 6. 49-Brad Sweet, 13.81; 7. 18-Ian Madsen, 13.838; 8. 11K-Kraig Kinser, 13.922; 9. 7S-Jason Sides, 13.95; 10. 19-Brent Marks, 13.955; 11. 15-Donny Schatz, 13.974; 12. 1S-Logan Schuchart, 13.975; 13. 83-Cory Eliason, 14.012; 14. W20-Greg Wilson, 14.015; 15. 67-Ryan Robinson, 14.037; 16. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild, 14.048; 17. 67K-Tucker Klaasmeyer, 14.064; 18. 45-Paul McMahan, 14.09; 19. 5-David Gravel, 14.159; 20. 17G-Channin Tankersley, 14.474; 21. 13-Clyde Knipp, 14.674; 22. 12W-Dale Wester, 15.296
Heat #1 - (8 Laps) - Top 8 Transfer: 1. 41-Jason Johnson [1]; 2. 9-Daryn Pittman [2]; 3. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [6]; 4. 18-Ian Madsen [3]; 5. 19-Brent Marks [4]; 6. 83-Cory Eliason [5]; 7. 5-David Gravel [7]; 8. 12W-Dale Wester [8]
Heat #2 - (8 Laps) - Top 8 Transfer: 1. 4K-Kasey Kahne [1]; 2. 15-Donny Schatz [4]; 3. 1A-Jacob Allen [2]; 4. 11K-Kraig Kinser [3]; 5. W20-Greg Wilson [5]; 6. 67K-Tucker Klaasmeyer [6]; 7. 17G-Channin Tankersley [7]
Heat #3 - (8 Laps) - Top 8 Transfer: 1. 2-Shane Stewart [1]; 2. 49-Brad Sweet [2]; 3. 7S-Jason Sides [3]; 4. 1S-Logan Schuchart [4]; 5. 45-Paul McMahan [6]; 6. 67-Ryan Robinson [5]; 7. 13-Clyde Knipp [7]
Craftsman Club Dash (6 Laps): 1. 49-Brad Sweet [2]; 2. 4K-Kasey Kahne [1]; 3. 2-Shane Stewart [3]; 4. 9-Daryn Pittman [5]; 5. 15-Donny Schatz [4]; 6. 41-Jason Johnson [6]
American Sprint Car Series News
Posted by: | CommentsMark Smith Scores With ASCS Mid-South At Tennessee National Raceway
HOHENWALD, Tenn. (April 28, 2018) On the road to shake down his car before the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series presented by Sawblade.com heads for Pennsylvania, Mark Smith picked up a cool $2,000 at Tennessee National Raceway with the ASCS Mid-South Region on Saturday night.
The debut of the ASCS Mid-South Region at the Tennessee National Raceway, Smith worked through a Heat and Qualifier format to position the Optilumen LED Lighting No. M1 on the pole of the night's 25-lap feature event. Chased by Blake Hahn, the Griffith Truck and Equipment No. 52 grabbed the lead for a moment in the early laps, but would be shuffled back to second as the caution flew.
Unchallenged from there, Smith clicked off the 25th lap a half straightaway ahead of the field.
Blake Hahn would hold onto to finish second with Johnny Herrera moving to the final podium step after starting sixth. Moving up from 10th, Cody Gardner claimed fourth with Brian Bell scoring the Stealth Recovery Hard Charger of the Night with a run from 15th to fifth.
Harli White crossed sixth with Ernie Ainsworth seventh. Howard Moore, Justin Webb, and Curt Terrell made up the night's top-ten.
The ASCS Mid-South Region rolls again on Saturday, May 12 with the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series presented by Sawblade.com at I-30 Speedway in Little Rock, Ark.
For other news, notes, and information on the American Sprint Car Series, from the National Tour to any of the Regional Tours that make up the over 150 across the ASCS Nation in 2018, log onto www.ascsracing.com, follow on Facebook, on Instagram, and on Twitter (@LucasOilASCS).
Race Results:
ASCS Mid-South Region
Tennessee National Raceway - Hohenwald, Tenn.
Saturday, April 28, 2018
Car Count: 17
Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. M1-Mark Smith, [1]; 2. 40-Howard Moore, [4]; 3. 88R-Cody Gardner, [3]; 4. 21B-Brandon Hinkle, [2]; 5. 17W-Harli White, [7]; 6. (DNF) 15J-Jeremy Middleton, [6]; 7. (DNF) 23B-Brian Bell, [5]; 8. (DNF) 21K-Kevin Hinkle, [8]; 9. (DNF) 14B-Bo Barber, [9]
Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 52-Blake Hahn, [2]; 2. 84-Brandon Hanks, [3]; 3. 2H-Wally Henson, [1]; 4. 8Z-Zach Pringle, [6]; 5. 45X-Johnny Herrera, [5]; 6. 91A-Ernie Ainsworth, [4]; 7. 31W-Justin Webb, [7]; 8. 27-Curt Terrell, [8]
Qualifier 1 (8 Laps): 1. 15J-Jeremy Middleton, [1]; 2. M1-Mark Smith, [5]; 3. 52-Blake Hahn, [6]; 4. 8Z-Zach Pringle, [4]; 5. 21B-Brandon Hinkle, [2]; 6. 31W-Justin Webb, [7]; 7. 2H-Wally Henson, [3]; (DNS) 21K-Kevin Hinkle, ; (DNS) 14B-Bo Barber,
Qualifier 2 (8 Laps): 1. 17W-Harli White, [3]; 2. 45X-Johnny Herrera, [2]; 3. 91A-Ernie Ainsworth, [1]; 4. 40-Howard Moore, [6]; 5. 27-Curt Terrell, [8]; 6. 84-Brandon Hanks, [5]; 7. 88R-Cody Gardner, [4]; 8. (DNF) 23B-Brian Bell, [7]
A Feature (25 Laps): 1. M1-Mark Smith, [1]; 2. 52-Blake Hahn, [2]; 3. 45X-Johnny Herrera, [6]; 4. 88R-Cody Gardner, [10]; 5. 23B-Brian Bell, [15]; 6. 17W-Harli White, [3]; 7. 91A-Ernie Ainsworth, [8]; 8. 40-Howard Moore, [4]; 9. 31W-Justin Webb, [13]; 10. 27-Curt Terrell, [11]; 11. 2H-Wally Henson, [12]; 12. 15J-Jeremy Middleton, [14]; 13. 14B-Bo Barber, [17]; 14. 21K-Kevin Hinkle, [16]; 15. 21B-Brandon Hinkle, [9]; 16. 84-Brandon Hanks, [7]; 17. 8Z-Zach Pringle, [5]
POWRi Racing Results
Posted by: | CommentsKREISEL SCORES FIRST WAR WIN IN DOMINATING FASHION
INDIANAPOLIS, IN (April 28, 2018) - Riley Kreisel picked up his first POWRi Lucas Oil WAR Sprint League win Saturday night, April 28 at Lake Ozark Speedway in Eldon, Missouri in a dominating performance over Mario Clouser and JD Black.
Kreisel led all 25 laps banging the cushion around the top of the racetrack. The battle for the remaining top five was close and exciting, but Kreisel would run away with the race lead to take home $1,500 in winnings plus a $100 bonus for winning the dash. Quinton Benson who won the B-Main and successfully transferred into the A-Main would be the Indy Race Parts Hard Charger award winner after starting 17th and finishing 4th. Slater Helt, Mitch Wissmiller, and Mario Clouser were heat race winners.
The POWRi Lucas Oil WAR Sprint League is back in action next weekend for a doubleheader. Friday, May 4 at Valley Speedway followed by Saturday night, May 5 at Lucas Oil Speedway. Both nights will also have the POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget League on tap.
POWRi Lucas Oil WAR Sprint League 4/28/18 Lake Ozark Speedway - 27 cars
Hinchman Racewear Heat 1 - 8 laps
1. 22S-Slater Helt, Harrisonville, MO (4); 2. 16-Anthony Nicholson, Bartlett, TN (2); 3. 65-Chris Parkinson, Gladstone, MO (6); 4. 99-Korey Weyant, Springfield, IL (5); 5. 82-Vinny Ward, Springfield, IL (3); 6. 73-Samuel Wagner, Lone Jack, MO (1); 7. 15B-Quinton Benson, Emma, MO (7); 8. 11W-Wyatt Burks, Topeka, KS (8); 9. 55-Kenny Potter, Harrisonville, MO
Bell Racing USA Heat 2 - 8 laps
1. 1-Mitch Wissmiller, Saybrook, IL (4); 2. 56-Mitchell Davis, Auburn, IL (3); 3. 7R-JD Black, Grain Valley, MO (8); 4. 12-Wesley Smith, Nixa, MO (2); 5. 24H-Ty Hulsey, Owasso, OK (9); 6. 43-Frank Brown, Marshall, MO (1); 7. 2H-Luke Howard, Overland Park, KS (6); 8. 77-Jack Wagner, Lone Jack, MO (5); 9. 31-Dylan Kadous, Topeka, KS
Schure Built Suspension Heat 3 - 8 laps
1. 6-Mario Clouser, Auburn, IL (1); 2. 90-Riley Kreisel, Warsaw, MO (9); 3. 77K-Katlynn Leer, Moulton, IA (5); 4. 57-TJ Artz, Lincoln, NE (6); 5. 30-Ryan Kent, Blue Springs, MO (3); 6. 8-Jeff Wingate, Centertown, MO (2); 7. 24C-Craig Carroll, Collinsville, OK (7); 8. 41-Brad Wyatt, Kearney, MO (4); 9. 93-Steve Mahannah, Springfield, MO (8)
Wilwood Disc Brakes Dash - 6 laps
1. 90-Riley Kreisel (4); 2. 7R-JD Black (1); 3. 1-Mitch Wissmiller (2); 4. 22S-Slater Helt (3); 5. 6-Mario Clouser (6); 6. 65-Chris Parkinson (5)
B-Main - 12 laps
1. 15B-Quinton Benson (1); 2. 73-Samuel Wagner (3); 3. 43-Frank Brown (4); 4. 24C-Craig Carroll (2); 5. 11W-Wyatt Burks (6); 6. 41-Brad Wyatt (8); 7. 93-Steve Mahannah (10); 8. 55-Kenny Potter (9); 9. 2H-Luke Howard (5); 10. 77-Jack Wagner (7); 11. 31-Dylan Kadous (11)
POWRi Lucas Oil WAR Sprints A-Main - 25 laps
R-1. 90-Riley Kreisel (1); 2. 6-Mario Clouser (5); 3. 7R-JD Black (2); 4. 15B-Quinton Benson (17); 5. 65-Chris Parkinson (6); 6. 16-Anthony Nicholson (9); 7. 24H-Ty Hulsey (10); 8. 99-Korey Weyant (12); 9. 24C-Craig Carroll (20); 10. 22S-Slater Helt (4); 11. 12-Wesley Smith (13); 12. 56-Mitchell Davis; 13. 30-Ryan Kent (15); 14. 57-TJ Artz (11); 15. 82-Vinny Ward (14); 16. 73-Samuel Wagner (18); 17. 8-Jeff Wingate (16); 18. 1-Mitch Wissmiller (3); 19. 77K-Katlynn Leer (8); 20. 43-Frank Brown (19)
