Frank Ruocco & Keith Rocco Score SK Modified® Double Header Feature Events at Stafford Speedway
Stafford Springs, CT –Stafford Speedway played two with an SK Modified® feature doublehader on Friday, August 13th. Frank Ruocco and Keith Rocco were the winners of the twin 40-lap SK Modified® feature events, Corey Hutchings won the 30-lap Late Model feature, Matt Galko won the 20-lap SK Light Modified feature, Shawn Thibeault won the 20-lap Limited Late Model feature, and Andrew Hayes was the winner of the 15-lap DARE Stock feature.
In the first 40-lap SK Modified® feature, Eric Berndt charged to the lead from the pole with Mark Bakaj, Sean Foster, Chris Jones, and Woody Pitkat making up the early top-5. The top-5 ran in line for the first 9 laps before Foster made a move by Bakaj for second and Ted Christopher was working the high groove to try to take fifth place away from Pitkat. Bakaj fell back from second to sixth as Foster, Jones, Pitkat and Christopher all moved past.
On lap-15, Pitkat made a move to the inside of Jones in turn 3 to move up to the third position while Berndt continued to hold the race lad. Jones spun in turn 1 with 16 laps complete to bring out the first caution of the race and it erased the sizeable lead that Berndt had built up over Foster and the rest of the field.
[Photo Gallery] by Nicholas Teto
Berndt took the lead back under green with Pitkat getting by Foster for second. Christopher and Foster made contact one lap after the restart with Foster going around in turn 2 to bring the yellow back out. On the restart, Pitkat got loose in turn 2 and backed up the outside line, which resulted in Tom Bolles and Jeff Malave spinning to the backstretch infield and the caution came back out.
Berndt again took the lead on the restart with Frank Ruocco moving to the inside of Pitkat for second. Berndt washed up the track a tad on lap-19 which allowed Ruocco to get to the inside of Berndt and he took the lead from Berndt on lap-20. Pitkat moved into second and Berndt fell back to third and fell back further after contact with Dan Avery sent Berndt around in turn 2. The race stayed green and Ruocco and Pitkat began to wage a great side by side duel for the lead. The two cars ran wheel to wheel for several laps before Ruocco was able to edge ahead of Pitkat on lap-26. Todd Owen was third, with Ryan Preece fourth and Jones was back up to fifth place after his early spin.
Pitkat was trying all kinds of moves to take the lead from Ruocco, but Ruocco was holding Pitkat at bay. Their duel allowed Preece to close in and he went by Pitkat on lap-35 and pulled alongside Ruocco to duel for the lead. Pitkat fought back behind Ruocco and Preece and he made contact with the back bumper of Ruocco on lap-38 which sent Ruocco up the track and back to third place. Behind that action, Nichole Morgillo, Sean Foster, Ted Christopher, and Todd Owen spun to bring the caution out and negate the pass for the lead.
For the restart, Ruocco and Preece were on the front row with Pitakt and Jones lined up behind them. Ruocco led the field around to the white flag and he held off both Pitkat and Preece to take the victory, his fourth win of the 2010 season. Pitkat nipped Berndt at the line for second, with Jones and Curt Brainard rounding out the top-5.
In the second 40-lap SK Modified® feature, Tom Bolles didn’t get through the gear box on the start and bottlenecked the inside row, which set off a chain reaction that collected several cars including Dan Avery, Raymond Grassetti, Matt Gallo, Adam Skowyra, and Nichole Morgillo and brought the caution flag out.
Bolles took the lead under green with Mark Bakaj getting a good run on the outside to take second. Jeff Malave was third with Ted Christopher and Sean Foster making up the top-5 in the early stages. Christopher quickly worked his way by Malave and he took second from Bakaj on lap-5. Bolles had pulled away to a nice lead over Christopher, but Christopher was slowly shrinking the gap to Bolles while Bakaj, Malave, and Todd Owen held down the remainder of the top-5 positions at lap-10. Christopher ran Bolles down and he took the lead on lap-15. Foster and Frank Ruocco went for synchronized spin into the infield with 15 laps complete to bring the caution flag out.
Christopher took the lead back under green with Bolles, Owen, Keith Rocco, and Ryan Preece making up the top-5. The caution came back out with 19 laps complete for a multi-car spin in turn 1 involving Chris Jones and Donny Travaglin. On the restart, the caution came back out as Tom Bolles went around in turn 2 and collected several other cars.
Christopher maintained the lead back under green with Rocco moving into second. Preece and Owen were side by side for third place, with Zach Sylvester and Woody Pitkat single file behind them. Preece would win the battle with Owen for third and it was three car train between Christopher, Rocco, and Preece for the race lead. Rocco was able to pull alongside Christopher momentarily on lap-30, but settled back into line.
Rocco rode behind Christopher until the final lap of the race when he made a move to the inside of Christopher in turn 1. The two cars ran wheel to wheel down the backstretch and when they hit turn 3, Rocco edged ahead of Christopher and came off turn 4 with the race lead and his 8th victory of the 2010 season. Christopher finished second, with Preece, Owen, and Sylvester rounding out the top-5.
In the 30-lap Late Model feature event, Adam Gray powered by Mark St. Hilaire at the green flag to take the early race lead. Scott Cook was third behind St. Hilaire with Tom Fearn and Corey Hutchings making up the top-5. Cook made a move to the inside of St. Hilaire on lap-3 for second and he brought Fearn and Hutchings along with him by St. Hilaire. The caution came out with 4 laps complete for a spin in turn 3 that involved Michael Bennett, J.J. Hill, Dillon Moltz, Patrick Townsend, and Jim Peterson.
Gray took the lead back under green but as the field hit turns 3+4, Fearn went around as did Ryan Posocco and Woody Pitkat to bring the yellow back out without completing a lap. On the restart, Hutchings pulled alongside gray and he took the lead from Gray on lap-6. Posocco followed Hutchings by Gray to take over second with Tom Butler and Cook rounding out the top-5 behind Gray. Duane Noll spun in turn 3 to bring the yellow out with 6 laps complete.
On the restart, Hutchings, Gray, and Posocco went 3-wide into turn 3 for the lead with Hutchings coming out ahead of Gray, Cook, and Posocco. The caution came back out for a multi-car accident in turn 1 that involved Patrick Townsend, Doug Blowers, Jr., Don Acker, Jr., Dillon Moltz, John Kasper, Michael Bennett, and Tom Butler.
Hutchings took the lead back under green but Cook was glued to his back bumper. Tom Fearn looped his car around in turn 1 to bring the caution out with 10 laps complete. Hutchings continued to lead back under green with Cook and J.J. Hill behind him. Posocco and Gray were side by side for fourth with Gray taking the spot. Gray moved by Hill for third place on lap-14 and Posocco followed him by Hill, dropping him out of the top-5. Hutchings had pulled out a several car length lead on Cook but Cook was closing the gap back to Hutchings when a huge flame erupted from the engine compartment of Jim Peterson’s car with 15 laps on the board to bring the yellow out.
Hutchings again took the lead, but Cook lost several spots as Gray, St. Hilaire, and Posocco all got by Cook on the restart. St. Hilaire drifted up the track on lap-19, which allowed both Posocco and Cook to get by and Keith Rocco also was able to get past St. Hilaire, dropping him from third back to sixth in the running order.
Cook made his way past Posocco for third on lap-23 and Rocco followed him through, dropping Posocco from third back to fifth. Hutchings was still in command ahead of Gray, with Gray beginning to reel Hutchings back in after Hutchings had built up a sizeable advantage. Gray was never able to get closer than a couple car lengths to Hutchings as Hutchings took down his second win of the 2010 season. Gray finished second with Cook, Posocco, and St. Hilaire rounding out the top-5.
In the 20-lap SK Light Modified feature event, Earl Pelletier took the early race lead ahead of Zach Aszklar, Jay Goff, Erica Santos, and Dylan Liseo. Pelletier held the lead until lap-5 when Aszklar moved to the front. Santos moved alongside Pelletier behind Aszklar and they rode side by side for second with Matt Galko, Joey Cipriano, and Tommy Barrett, Jr. behind them.
Pelletier spun with 8 laps complete as did Liseo to bring the caution out for the first time. The restart order was Aszklar and Galko on the front row, Santos and Cipriano on the second row, and Barrett and Goff in the third row. Galko powered into the lead on the restart with Cipriano moving into second. Aszklar settled into line in third, but Barrett made a power move to his inside to drop him back to fourth. Ted Cain spun off turn 4 to bring the yellow out with 10 laps complete.
Cipriano took to the outside groove to power his way by Galko for the race lead on the restart with Aszklar, Barrett, and David Webb making up the top-5. Webb and Aszklar went around in turn 2 with 13 laps complete to bring the caution back out.
On the restart, the battle for the lead was intense as Barrett made a 3-wide pass to take the lead, only to have Galko take the lead back on the next lap. With Galko back in front, Cipriano and Barrett touched wheels and spun to bring the caution back out.
Back under green Galko was in the lead with Tony Santangelo, Pelletier, Goff, and Santos lined up behind him. Galko led Santangelo around for the final 6 laps to nail down his third win of the 2010 season. Rounding out the top-5 behind Galko and Santangelo was Pelletier, Goff, and Santos.
In the 20-lap Limited Late Model feature event, Duane Provost and Carla Botticello battled door to door for the race lead before Provost cleared Botticello on lap-2. Jesse Hinze was third, with Andrew Durand and George Nocera, Jr. making up the top-5 behind Provost and Botticello. The top-5 ran in line for the first 8 laps before Nocera made a move to the inside of Durand for fourth place. Provost blew an engine at the start/finish line and spun in turn 1, which collected Nocera and brought the caution out.
On the restart, there was contact made mid pack with Michael Wray taking a hard hit into the turn 1 wall along with Michael Nadeau, which brought out a brief red flag. Back under green, Durand and Botticello went door to door for the lead with Durand moving to the front on lap-10. Shawn Thibeault was also able to move by Botticello, dropping her back to third in the running order. With 11 laps on the scoreboard, the caution came out for Michael Chaves, who spun and came to a stop in the infield.
Thibeault was working Durand over for the race lead, but Durand was able to keep himself out front. Kevin Gambacorta was up to third, with Dave Yardley and Rob Dow making up the remainder of the top-5. Durand was able to keep out front until lap-16 when Thibeault made a move for the lead in turn 3. Once Thibeault was able to get by Durand, he slowly pulled away and went unchallenged to his second victory of the 2010 season. Durand finished second, with Gambacorta, Yardley, and Dow rounding out the top-5.
In the 15-lap DARE Stock feature event, Stephanie Berardi took the lead at the green and she led the first two laps before Albert Saunders moved to the front of the field on lap-3. Saunders took the lead back under green with Andrew Hayes moving into second. Tony Membrino, Jr. moved into third with Berardi falling from second back to fourth with Don Cook holding down the fifth position.
On lap-6 Kyle Casagrande moved by Cook and he brought Cory Casagrande and Jeff Jolly with him past Cook. On lap-11, Hayes moved to the inside of Saunders to take over the race lead. One lap later, Membrino also moved past Saunders to drop him back to third. Kyle Casagrande was fourth and Jolly was fifth. Cory Casagrande cut down a tire and found the turn 3 wall with 13 laps complete to bring out the caution and set up a green white checkered finish.
Hayes took the lead on the restart and he led the final 2 laps to score his second win of the 2010 season. Albert Saunders finished second, with Kyle Casagrande, Jolly, and Membrino rounding out the top-5.
For more information contact the Stafford Motor Speedway track office at (860) 684-2783, or visit us on the web at www.staffordspeedway.com.
Sources: Scott Running/Stafford Motor Speedway PR
SK MODIFIED® FROM 7/16 (40)
1) Frank Ruocco, Cheshire
2) Woody Pitkat, Stafford Springs
3) Ryan Preece, Berlin
4) Chris Jones, New Milford
5) Curt Brainard, Canton
6) Zach Sylvester, Lebanon
7) Keith Rocco, Meriden
8) Dan Avery, Somers
9) Donny Travaglin, Winsted
10) Sean Foster, Ellington
11) Kurt Lenahan, Roxbury
12) Todd Owen, Somers
13) Raymond Grassetti, Monson, Ma
14) Ted Christopher, Plainville
15) Nichole Morgillo, Wallingford
16) Eric Berndt, Cromwell
17) Mark Bakaj, Lebanon
18) Jeff Baral, Enfield
19) Jeff Malave, Manchester
20) Tom Bolles, Ellington
21) Chris Matthews, Stafford
22) Chris Jensen, Wolcott
SK MODIFIED® (40)
1) Keith Rocco, Meriden
2) Ted Christopher, Plainville
3) Ryan Preece, Berlin
4) Todd Owen, Somers
5) Zach Sylvester, Lebanon
6) Woody Pitkat, Stafford Springs
7) Frank Ruocco, Cheshire
8) Nichole Morgillo, Wallingford
9) Chris Jones, New Milford
10) Donny Travaglin, Winsted
11) Curt Brainard, Canton
12) Tom Bolles, Ellington
13) Matt Gallo, Kensington
14) Mark Bakaj, Lebanon
15) Sean Foster, Ellington
16) Raymond Grassetti, Monson, Ma
17) Dan Avery, Somers
18) Chris Matthews, Stafford
19) Jeff Malave, Manchester
20) Jeff Baral, Enfield
21) Michael Gervais, Jr., Southbury
22) Eric Berndt, Cromwell
23) Adam Skowyra, Brimfield, Ma
24) Kurt Lenahan, Roxbury
LATE MODEL (30)
1) Corey Hutchings, Salem
2) Adam Gray, Belchertown, Ma
3) Scott Cook, Uncasville
4) Ryan Posocco, Stafford Springs
5) Mark St. Hilaire, Berlin
6) Ed Ricard, Stafford Springs
7) Keith Rocco, Meriden
8) Tracy Brouillette, Prospect
9) Tony Lafo, Higganum
10) Don Acker, Jr., Orange
11) J.J. Hill, Stafford Springs
12) Patrick Townsend, Springifeld, Ma
13) Tom Fearn, East Longmeadow, Ma
14) Dillon Moltz, Waterford
15) Jim Peterson, Monson, Ma
16) Michael Bennett, Stafford Springs
17) Tom Butler, Stafford Springs
18) Ryan Preece, Berlin
19) John Kasper, Wilbraham, Ma
20) Duane Noll, Monroe
21) Woody Pitkat, Stafford Springs
SK LIGHT MODIFIED (20)
1) Matt Galko, Meriden
2) Tony Santangelo, Middlefield
3) Earl Pelletier, Wolcott
4) Jay Goff, Stafford Springs
5) Erica Santos, Franklin, Ma
6) Dylan Liseo, East Hartford
7) Heather DesRochers, Granby, Ma
8) Zach Aszklar, Wallingford
9) Shayne Prucker, Stafford Springs
10) Ted Cain, Plymouth
11) Harry Wheeler, Stafford Springs
12) Victoria Bergenty, Plainville
13) Rick Williams, Haddam
14) David Webb, New Milford
15) Joey Cipriano, III, Waterbury
16) Tommy Barrett, Jr., Millis, Ma
17) Stephen Greer, Harwinton
LIMITED LATE MODEL (20)
1) Shawn Thibeault, Plainville
2) Andrew Durand, Chicopee, Ma
3) Kevin Gambacorta, Ellington
4) Dave Yardley, III, Meriden
5) Rob Dow, Stafford Springs
6) Jesse Hinze, Farmington
7) Carla Botticello, Manchester
8) Dan Flannery, Ellington
9) Brian Clement, Wethersfield
10) Chris Cook, Pepperell, Ma
11) Michael Chaves, South Windsor
12) Paul Varricchio, Jr., Berlin
13) Michael Wray, Northford
14) Michael Nadeau, Enfield
15) Joe Nogiec, Bristol
16) Duane Provost, Indian Orchard, Ma
17) George Nocera, Jr., Plainville
18) Derek McLellan, Plainville
DARE STOCK (15)
1) Andrew Hayes, Charlton, Ma
2) Albert Saunders, Stafford
3) Kyle Casagrande, Stafford Springs
4) Jeff Jolly, Wallingford
5) Tony Membrino, Jr., Plantsville
6) Paul Arute, Tolland
7) Vince Gambacorta, Ellington
8) Stephanie Berardi, Broad Brook
9) Barry Fluckiger, Vernon
10) Donald Cook, Agawam, Ma
11) Kelsey Rottino, Willimantic
12) James Carroll, West Hartford
13) Cliff Saunders, Stafford
14) Kaitlyn Brice, Manchester
15) Paul Jensen, East Hampton
16) Stacy Macha, Columbia
17) Cory Casagrande, Stafford Springs