RGeeProductions
07-01-2012, 12:09 PM
Earl Paules and Don Wagner keeping Modified point battle tight after wins at Mahoning Valley
Earl Paules and Don Wagner each garnered Modified wins Saturday night at Mahoning Valley Speedway and in the process they kept their tight point battle going strong as season’s the midway juncture nears.
Point leader Paules of Palmerton picked up his second victory coming in the make-up race from June 3. Starting seventh, he had to work his tail off in taking the lead from his teammate Scott Meckes.
Wagner, who hails from Wharton, passed Tom Flanagan on 17 then held off John Bennett for his third ’12 verdict.
In the first race pole sitter Troy Bollinger jumped out to the early lead and then held steady until lap 17 which is when Meckes took over after an outside pass at the start/finish line.
By lap 19 Paules appeared in second then needed every bit of the next five laps to get past Meckes who made a solid effort to protect the lead.
It wasn’t until a restart on lap 24 when Meckes lost the top spot, but, the Rookie of the Year contender never eased up as he kept in close range with Paules, taking a career best second.
“He, (Meckes) did a great job, drove me clean and he definitely made me work out there. We’re teammates and this was good and he was due for a good finish,” said Paules.
“With the heat today the track was a little slick and you have to drive it that way. I really want to thank the fans for coming out in this heat too.”
John Bennett ran a balanced race for third with Matt Wentz and John Markovic rounding out the top five.
In the regular feature Tom Flanagan was the pole sitter and early leader. Right behind him the cars of Jeff Rex, Jr., Wagner and Bennett all raced tightly.
A near winner from the previous week, Flanagan was looking to redeem himself and was once again showing that this could be his night. Wagner, however, was uncompromising as he caught and then went side-by-side with Flanagan on lap 15. From the outside line he then inched into the lead on lap 19 and the next time around had a car length advantage.
“The top groove was definitely the faster groove. I was struggling to hold it down to the bottom. I got a good run on Tommy (Flanagan) to get around him on the top side and that was the place to be,” said Wagner.
Over the final ten laps Bennett stepped up to second and was throwing everything at Wagner as the two crafty veterans engaged in a closely run contest the rest of the way.
“Whenever you got this guy is on your outside, Johnny Bennett, he’s the man to beat here for the last few years. He’s a really good race car driver and no one in the class makes it easy. There was a bunch of fast cars up front and we were just lucky to get the win tonight.” said Wagner.
Paules, Rex and Bobby Jones completed the top five. Flanagan, Wagner and Rex copped heat wins.
Paules was in a league of his own when it came to the make-up Late Model race from June 3. After shooting into the lead on lap seven, it became no contest as he cruised to his unprecedented seventh win in nine starts.
While Paules ran on his own, the race for second was a great battle. George Ramos was on his game in scoring his season best effort after fending off Dave Wallace, Ed Bauer and Frankie Althouse.
In the regular run show, there was plenty of excitement to say the least. Geno Steigerwalt led the early going while being on the defensive to Mike Sweeney. On lap ten both went into turn one neck-and-neck. Unfortunately for Steigerwalt he lost traction and spun after they made slight contact.
Sweeney was now at the helm with Paules on his bumper after the restart. Turn one again became the spot of ill-fate only this time both front runners would be involved. After completing lap 13, Paules was making a charge from the outside but as they headed to the first corner they collided and both spun.
Lehighton’s Rick Wallace moved up to the lead and maintained the spot through the finish for his second win in as many weeks and the first time he won back-to-back weeks since championship season of 1995.
Ramos once again took second and remains on the cusp of his career first win. Paules fought back to third, his worst finish of the year with Dave Wallace and Althouse completing the top five.
Heat wins went to Sweeney and Ramos.
In the Street Stocks, Zach Graver of Lehighton was able to parley his pole starting spot into his second class win. Graver led the entire way, never once letting up to the onslaught of opponents. He is the eighth different winner in 10 races thus far and made it a perfect night by also winning his heat.
Joe Steigerwalt was second followed by Kevin Smith. Smith and Todd Ahner also scored heat wins.
Jeremy Miller was the runaway winner in the 4-Cylinder Stocks, which was until he went to the post-race inspection area where he failed tech because of a rules infraction.
That elevated rookie Nick Baer of Germansville to the top of the finishing order, giving the second generation driver his career first win in a stock car. The victory also elevated him to number one in points.
Doug Knauss got a season best second while fellow title contender Jake Kibler was third. Miller and Barry Christman, Jr., annexed heat wins. Dan Freundt of Lehighton picked up the Front Wheel Drive bonus for the fifth time.
Kris Graver of Lehighton drove to a blistering sixth win in the Dirt Mods as the caution free 20 lap event was reeled off in a time of 3:41. The victory helped him to extent his point lead and it upped his career win total with the division to 12 in just a year and a half’s time.
Randy Thomas was second, nearly six seconds behind with his brother Dave Thomas third.
Wayne Krenn of Kempton raced to a hard fought win with the Micro Stocks, his first of the season. Taking the lead on lap one, Krenn had a race long battle of pursuers that challenged him but he was on his guard the entire time, earning his third Mahoning win.
Newcomer Alex Greenzweig, the final challenger, took second. Brain Correll and John Rakos notched heat wins.
Modified Feature Finish, (6/3) 35 Laps: 1. Earl Paules, 2. Scott Meckes, 3. John Bennett, 4. Matt Wentz, 5. John Markovic, 6. Nevin George, 7. Don Wagner, 8. Shawn Sitarchyk, 9. Eric Beers, 10. Kevin Rex, Jr., 11. Terry Markovic, 12. Troy Bollinger, 13. Bobby Jones, 14. Matt Higgins, 15. Chip Wanamaker, 16. Tom Flanagan, 17. Todd Geist Did not start: DJ Wagner, Zane Zeiner, Ron Missimer
Modified Feature Finish, 35 Laps: 1. Wagner, 2. Bennett, 3. Paules, 4. Rex, 5. Jones, 6. George, 7. John Markovic, 8. Wentz, 9. Beers, 10. Behler, 11. Higgins, 12. Geist, 13. Terry Markovic, 14. Flanagan, 15. Sitarchyk, 16. Bollinger, 17. Tyler Haydt, 18. Meckes, 19. Mooney
Did not qualify:
Late Model Feature Finish, (6/3) 25 Laps: 1. Earl Paules, 2. George Ramos, 3. Dave Wallace, 4. Ed Bauer, 5. Frankie Althouse, 6. Mike Sweeney, 7. Geno Steigerwalt, 8. Rick Wallace, 9. Paul Effrig, 10. Kenny Hein, 11. Doug Bell Did not start: Mike VanFossen, Paul Koehler, Jr.
Late Model Feature Finish, 25 Laps: 1. Rick Wallace, 2. Ramos, 3. Paules, 4. Dave Wallace, 5. Althouse, 6. Bauer, 7. Hein, 8. Sweeney, 9. Effrig, 10. Simon, 11.Steigerwalt
Street Stock Feature Finish, 25 Laps: 1. Zach Graver, 2. Joe Steigerwalt, 3. Kevin Smith, 4. TJ Gursky, 5. Gene Bowers, 6. Jillian Long, 7. Todd Ahner, 8. Jason Kuhn, 9. Rich Moser, 10. Josh Mooney, 11. Chris Parry, 12. Joe Roberts, 13. Kyle Strohl, 14. Jason Frey, 15. Lou Strohl, 16. Jonathan Tracey, 17. Jason Beers, 18. BJ Wambold
Did not qualify:
Dirt Modified Feature Finish, 20 Laps: 1. Kris Graver, 2. Randy Thomas, 3. Dave Thomas, 4. Mike Stofflet, 5. Joe Stangle, 6. Dave Gorbatuk, 7. Bill Sittler, Jr.
4-Cylinder Stock Feature Finish, 20 Laps: 1. Jeremy Miller, 2. Nick Baer, 3. Doug Knauss, 4. Jake Kibler, 5. Dan Freundt, 6. Justin Martinson, 7. Robert Miller, 8. Bobby Kibler, Jr., 9. Jake Oswald, 10. Stone Wentz, 11. Barry Christman, Jr., 12. Taya Wentz, 14. Kyle Strohl, 15. Tyler Stangle, 16. Cory Hill
Micro Stock Feature Finish, 20 Laps: 1. Wayne Krenn, 2. Alex Greenzweig, 3. Roger Snyder, 4. Robert Maguire, 5. Stacey Santee, 6. Bill Darling, 7. John Rakos, 8. Pete Bayles, 9. Mike Duffy, 10. Tyler Wagner, 11. Bob Wagner, 12. Calvin Carroll, 13. Mario Oberto, 14. Josh Heiser, 15. Joe Carroll, 16. Brian Correll, 17. Dave Allen, 18. Walt Mueller Did not start: Taylor Santee
Dino Oberto
Earl Paules and Don Wagner each garnered Modified wins Saturday night at Mahoning Valley Speedway and in the process they kept their tight point battle going strong as season’s the midway juncture nears.
Point leader Paules of Palmerton picked up his second victory coming in the make-up race from June 3. Starting seventh, he had to work his tail off in taking the lead from his teammate Scott Meckes.
Wagner, who hails from Wharton, passed Tom Flanagan on 17 then held off John Bennett for his third ’12 verdict.
In the first race pole sitter Troy Bollinger jumped out to the early lead and then held steady until lap 17 which is when Meckes took over after an outside pass at the start/finish line.
By lap 19 Paules appeared in second then needed every bit of the next five laps to get past Meckes who made a solid effort to protect the lead.
It wasn’t until a restart on lap 24 when Meckes lost the top spot, but, the Rookie of the Year contender never eased up as he kept in close range with Paules, taking a career best second.
“He, (Meckes) did a great job, drove me clean and he definitely made me work out there. We’re teammates and this was good and he was due for a good finish,” said Paules.
“With the heat today the track was a little slick and you have to drive it that way. I really want to thank the fans for coming out in this heat too.”
John Bennett ran a balanced race for third with Matt Wentz and John Markovic rounding out the top five.
In the regular feature Tom Flanagan was the pole sitter and early leader. Right behind him the cars of Jeff Rex, Jr., Wagner and Bennett all raced tightly.
A near winner from the previous week, Flanagan was looking to redeem himself and was once again showing that this could be his night. Wagner, however, was uncompromising as he caught and then went side-by-side with Flanagan on lap 15. From the outside line he then inched into the lead on lap 19 and the next time around had a car length advantage.
“The top groove was definitely the faster groove. I was struggling to hold it down to the bottom. I got a good run on Tommy (Flanagan) to get around him on the top side and that was the place to be,” said Wagner.
Over the final ten laps Bennett stepped up to second and was throwing everything at Wagner as the two crafty veterans engaged in a closely run contest the rest of the way.
“Whenever you got this guy is on your outside, Johnny Bennett, he’s the man to beat here for the last few years. He’s a really good race car driver and no one in the class makes it easy. There was a bunch of fast cars up front and we were just lucky to get the win tonight.” said Wagner.
Paules, Rex and Bobby Jones completed the top five. Flanagan, Wagner and Rex copped heat wins.
Paules was in a league of his own when it came to the make-up Late Model race from June 3. After shooting into the lead on lap seven, it became no contest as he cruised to his unprecedented seventh win in nine starts.
While Paules ran on his own, the race for second was a great battle. George Ramos was on his game in scoring his season best effort after fending off Dave Wallace, Ed Bauer and Frankie Althouse.
In the regular run show, there was plenty of excitement to say the least. Geno Steigerwalt led the early going while being on the defensive to Mike Sweeney. On lap ten both went into turn one neck-and-neck. Unfortunately for Steigerwalt he lost traction and spun after they made slight contact.
Sweeney was now at the helm with Paules on his bumper after the restart. Turn one again became the spot of ill-fate only this time both front runners would be involved. After completing lap 13, Paules was making a charge from the outside but as they headed to the first corner they collided and both spun.
Lehighton’s Rick Wallace moved up to the lead and maintained the spot through the finish for his second win in as many weeks and the first time he won back-to-back weeks since championship season of 1995.
Ramos once again took second and remains on the cusp of his career first win. Paules fought back to third, his worst finish of the year with Dave Wallace and Althouse completing the top five.
Heat wins went to Sweeney and Ramos.
In the Street Stocks, Zach Graver of Lehighton was able to parley his pole starting spot into his second class win. Graver led the entire way, never once letting up to the onslaught of opponents. He is the eighth different winner in 10 races thus far and made it a perfect night by also winning his heat.
Joe Steigerwalt was second followed by Kevin Smith. Smith and Todd Ahner also scored heat wins.
Jeremy Miller was the runaway winner in the 4-Cylinder Stocks, which was until he went to the post-race inspection area where he failed tech because of a rules infraction.
That elevated rookie Nick Baer of Germansville to the top of the finishing order, giving the second generation driver his career first win in a stock car. The victory also elevated him to number one in points.
Doug Knauss got a season best second while fellow title contender Jake Kibler was third. Miller and Barry Christman, Jr., annexed heat wins. Dan Freundt of Lehighton picked up the Front Wheel Drive bonus for the fifth time.
Kris Graver of Lehighton drove to a blistering sixth win in the Dirt Mods as the caution free 20 lap event was reeled off in a time of 3:41. The victory helped him to extent his point lead and it upped his career win total with the division to 12 in just a year and a half’s time.
Randy Thomas was second, nearly six seconds behind with his brother Dave Thomas third.
Wayne Krenn of Kempton raced to a hard fought win with the Micro Stocks, his first of the season. Taking the lead on lap one, Krenn had a race long battle of pursuers that challenged him but he was on his guard the entire time, earning his third Mahoning win.
Newcomer Alex Greenzweig, the final challenger, took second. Brain Correll and John Rakos notched heat wins.
Modified Feature Finish, (6/3) 35 Laps: 1. Earl Paules, 2. Scott Meckes, 3. John Bennett, 4. Matt Wentz, 5. John Markovic, 6. Nevin George, 7. Don Wagner, 8. Shawn Sitarchyk, 9. Eric Beers, 10. Kevin Rex, Jr., 11. Terry Markovic, 12. Troy Bollinger, 13. Bobby Jones, 14. Matt Higgins, 15. Chip Wanamaker, 16. Tom Flanagan, 17. Todd Geist Did not start: DJ Wagner, Zane Zeiner, Ron Missimer
Modified Feature Finish, 35 Laps: 1. Wagner, 2. Bennett, 3. Paules, 4. Rex, 5. Jones, 6. George, 7. John Markovic, 8. Wentz, 9. Beers, 10. Behler, 11. Higgins, 12. Geist, 13. Terry Markovic, 14. Flanagan, 15. Sitarchyk, 16. Bollinger, 17. Tyler Haydt, 18. Meckes, 19. Mooney
Did not qualify:
Late Model Feature Finish, (6/3) 25 Laps: 1. Earl Paules, 2. George Ramos, 3. Dave Wallace, 4. Ed Bauer, 5. Frankie Althouse, 6. Mike Sweeney, 7. Geno Steigerwalt, 8. Rick Wallace, 9. Paul Effrig, 10. Kenny Hein, 11. Doug Bell Did not start: Mike VanFossen, Paul Koehler, Jr.
Late Model Feature Finish, 25 Laps: 1. Rick Wallace, 2. Ramos, 3. Paules, 4. Dave Wallace, 5. Althouse, 6. Bauer, 7. Hein, 8. Sweeney, 9. Effrig, 10. Simon, 11.Steigerwalt
Street Stock Feature Finish, 25 Laps: 1. Zach Graver, 2. Joe Steigerwalt, 3. Kevin Smith, 4. TJ Gursky, 5. Gene Bowers, 6. Jillian Long, 7. Todd Ahner, 8. Jason Kuhn, 9. Rich Moser, 10. Josh Mooney, 11. Chris Parry, 12. Joe Roberts, 13. Kyle Strohl, 14. Jason Frey, 15. Lou Strohl, 16. Jonathan Tracey, 17. Jason Beers, 18. BJ Wambold
Did not qualify:
Dirt Modified Feature Finish, 20 Laps: 1. Kris Graver, 2. Randy Thomas, 3. Dave Thomas, 4. Mike Stofflet, 5. Joe Stangle, 6. Dave Gorbatuk, 7. Bill Sittler, Jr.
4-Cylinder Stock Feature Finish, 20 Laps: 1. Jeremy Miller, 2. Nick Baer, 3. Doug Knauss, 4. Jake Kibler, 5. Dan Freundt, 6. Justin Martinson, 7. Robert Miller, 8. Bobby Kibler, Jr., 9. Jake Oswald, 10. Stone Wentz, 11. Barry Christman, Jr., 12. Taya Wentz, 14. Kyle Strohl, 15. Tyler Stangle, 16. Cory Hill
Micro Stock Feature Finish, 20 Laps: 1. Wayne Krenn, 2. Alex Greenzweig, 3. Roger Snyder, 4. Robert Maguire, 5. Stacey Santee, 6. Bill Darling, 7. John Rakos, 8. Pete Bayles, 9. Mike Duffy, 10. Tyler Wagner, 11. Bob Wagner, 12. Calvin Carroll, 13. Mario Oberto, 14. Josh Heiser, 15. Joe Carroll, 16. Brian Correll, 17. Dave Allen, 18. Walt Mueller Did not start: Taylor Santee
Dino Oberto