J.J. Hill Wins 3rd Annual Late Model 100 at Stafford Speedway
Stafford Springs, CT — The Late Model division took center stage at Stafford Motor Speedway this past Friday night with the 3rd Annual Late Model 100, the second extra distance event of the 2010 season. Joining the Late Model 100 was Stafford’s SK Modifieds®, SK Light Modifieds, DARE Stocks, and twin 20-lap Limited Late Model feature events. J.J. Hill was the big winner of the evening, taking his first career victory in the 100-lap extra distance classic. Newly crowned NASCAR Whelen All-American Series National Champion Keith Rocco took his 9th feature victory of the 2010 season in the 40-lap SK Modified® feature event, Tommy Barrett, Jr. took his 7th win of the 2010 season in the 20-lap SK Light Modified feature, Andrew Durand and Rob Dow were the winners of the 20-lap Limited Late Model features, and Kyle Casagrande became the first three-time winner of the 2010 season in the 15-lap DARE Stock feature.
#41 – J.J. Hill
In the 100-lap Late Model feature event, Tom Fearn took the lead at the green with Scott Cook, Jim Peterson, Adam Gray, and Michael Bennett making up the top-5. Woody Pitkat, who won the Lincoln Tech Late Model 100 back in May at Stafford, spun and backed into the turn 1 wall with 3 laps complete to bring the caution out. Pitkat was able to get back out on the track and continue in the race.
Fearn took the lead back under gren with Gray moving into second. J.J. Hill moved into third with Peterson falling back to fourth and Cook falling back to fifth just in front of Bennett. Peterson’s car was leaking fluid on lap-13 and he was brought to pit road for a consulation. With Peterson’s misfortune bringing him to pit road, Cook was now in second place, a full straighaway behind Fearn, who was setting sail while in the lead. Behind Cook was a que of cars including Bennett, Ryan Posocco, Dillon Moltz, and Wayne Coury, Jr.
The running order remained the same until lap-18 when Cook began to backslide as Bennett, Posocco, Moltz, Coury, Corey Hutchings, Hill, and Keith Rocco all went by to drop Cook from second back to ninth place.
The cars ran in line until the caution came out with 33 laps complete as Dillon Moltz came to a stop in turn 2 after making contact with the wall.
Fearn took the lead on the restart, but Bennett was all over his back bumper looking to make a pass for the lead. Posocco was third, with Coury fourth and Hill in fifth. AS the field clicked off 40-laps on the scoreboard, the top-4 cars of Fearn, Bennett, Posocco, and Coury were running nose to tail with Rocco moving by Hill to take over the fifth position. Tommy Butler went around in turn 4 to bring the caution back out with 45 laps complete.
Fearn was back into the lead on the restart with Bennett, Coury, Posocco, and Cook making up the top-5. Hill was sixth, Corey Hutchings was seventh, Rocco fell back to eighth, Jim Mavlouganes was ninth, and Tracy Brouillette rounded out the top-5 at the half-way point of the race.
There was a mad scramble at the front of the field on lap-55 as Posocco slid back several spots to eighth place behind Rocco. On lap-59 Cook made a move to the inside of Coury to take over third place. With Coury stuck on the outside, he fell back to eighth place as Hill, Hutchings, Rocco, and Posocco all went by Coury.
The order shuffled again on lap-68 as Cook made a move to the inside of Bennett to take over second. Cook continued his charge to the front as he passed Fearn for the lead on lap-70. Hill moved into second behind Cook with Hutchings third, Rocco fourth and Bennett fifth. Fearn fell back in line in sixth, just ahead of Posocco in seventh place with 28 laps to go. Hutchings spun in turn 2 with 79 laps complete to bring the caution out and slow the field.
On the restart, Cook didn’t come up to speed right away which bottlenecked the inside line as Hill powered into the lead. Fearn was now second with Rocco, Bennett, and Pitkat behind him. Posocco was sixth just ahead of Hutchings, with Cook falling back to eighth place.
With Hill out front, he was slowly pulling away from Fearn in second, who had Rocco and Bennett to contend with. Hill led the final 21 laps and was never challenged as he cruised to his first career victory ahead of Fearn, Bennett, Posocco, and Rocco.
In the 40-lap SK Modified® feature, Tom Bolles took the early race lead with Jeff Baral hanging tough to his outside. Baral fell back into a side by side duel with Jeff Malave for second with Malave taking the spot. With Baral still on the outside, Curt Brainard was on the charge as he moved alongside Baral with Dan Avery glued to his bumper.
Brainard and Baral were still side by side on lap-7 as Malave and Bolles were pulling away. On lap-8 Malave looked to the low side of Bolles for the race lead, but he wasn’t able to get to the front. Nichole Morgillo and Michael Gervais, Jr. spun to bring the caution out with 9 laps complete just as Malave was looking to take over the race lead.
Malave moved to the front on the restart with Baral taking second. Keith Rocco made a strong move to take third place with Bolles falling back to fourth place, just in front of Frank Ruocco. The caution came back out for debris on the track with 12 laps complete.
#88 – Keith Rocco
Malave again took command on the restart with Rocco moving into second place. Ruocco moved up to third, with Baral fourth and Zach Sylvester moving into the fifth position. Rocco took the lead from Malave on lap-15 and his pass brought Ruocco alongside Malave for second. Morgillo spun in turn 2 to bring the caution back out with 15 laps complete.
Rocco took the lead back under green with Ruocco and Malave dueling side by side for second place. Ruocco took the position from Malave on lap-18 with Baral and Sylvester behind them. Woody Pitkat and Josh Sylvester went around in turn 4 with 18 laps complete to bring the caution out.
Rocco again took the lead ahead of Malave, who settled into line ahead of Ruocco. Sylvester was now up to fourth with Ryan Preece moving by Baral to take over the fifth position. Preece quickly worked his way by Sylvester for fourth place, but the caution came out with 24 laps complete for a spin by Keith Carzello.
Rocco kept the lead back under green with Ruocco getting by Malave for second. The caution came back out with 25 laps complete as Curt Brainard hit the turn 2 wall and several cars spun trying to avoid Brainard.
Rocco was the leader back under green with Preece moving into a side by side duel with Ruocco for second. The two cars were side by side but the caution came out for Bolles, who spun into the turn 2 wall to bring the yellow back out with 29 laps complete.
Several cars including Todd Owen, Carzello, Kurt Lenanan, Morgillo, and Raymond Grassetti went around in turn 3 on the restart to bring the yellow back out. Preece went around on the next restart while trying to take the lead from Rocco to keep the race under yellow flag conditions.
The field completed a lap before Josh Sylvester, Pitkat, and Chris Matthews went into the turn 1 wall to bring the yellow back out.
Rocco was still out front back under green with Ruocco moving into second. Malave was third, with Baral in fourth and Zach Sylvester was fifth. Ruocco nearly had a pass for the lead, but he wasn’t able to get in front of Rocco. Matt Gallo found the turn 1 wall with 35 laps complete to bring the yellow back out.
Rocco took the lead but the shuffle behind him continued as Baral took second with Ruocco to his outside. Avery was fourth and Zach Sylvester was fifth, but the caution came back out with 37 laps complete for a spin by Woody Pitakt in turn 2.
Rocco took the lead back under green with Ruocco moving into second. Ruocco took a look to the inside of Rocco but couldn’t make the pass stick. As the cars took the white flag, Ruocco made one last ditch effort in turn 3 and got into the back of Rocco’s car and got him loose, but Rocco hung onto the car and took the checkered flag for his 9th victory of the 2010 season. Ruocco finished second, with Baral, Avery, and Zach Sylvester rounding out the top-5.
In the 20-lap SK Light Modified feature event, Zach Aszklar led the first lap before Jay Goff took to the outside groove to move to the front of the field. Heather DesRochers spun on lap-2 and collected Victoria Bergenty and Earl Pelletier to bring the yellow out.
On the restart, a melee erupted with Dylan Liseo getting upside down and sliding all the way down the frontstretch. Also collected were the cars of Joey Cipriano, DesRochers, Pelletier, Todd Clark, SK Light points leader Matt Galko, which brought the red flag out. All drivers were ok and walked away.
Back under green Aszklar moved to the front with Goff, David Webb, Tommy Barrett, Jr., and Ted Cain making up the top-5. Barrett wasted little time in moving by Webb for third and he then set his sights on Goff. On lap-6, Barrett moved by both Goff and Aszklar with a power move in turn 3 to come out with the race lead. Webb moved into second as Aszklar fell back to third after brushing the wall with Goff behind him.
#83 – Tommy Barrett, Jr.
Barrett began to pull away from Webb in second with Cipriano working his way into fourth place on lap-13 with Goff ahead of him and Cain behind him.
Barrett went unchallenged to the checkered flag as he nailed down his 7th win of the 2010 season. Webb came home in second, with Cipriano, Goff, and Cain rounding out the top-5.
In the first of two 20-lap Limited Late Model feature event, Carla Botticello pulled out to the early race lead with Andrew Durand moving into second behind Botticello. Dave Yardley, III was third with Kevin Gambacorta fourth and George Nocera, Jr. fifth. The top-5 ran in line but the action behind the top-5 was busy as Shawn Thibeault was running in sixth, but he was overtaken by both Dan Flannery and Jesse Hinze before the race hit the halfway point.
At the front of the field, Botticello was maintaining a several car length lead over Durand, who had Yardley and Gambacorta closing in on his bumper. Hinze tried to get to the inside of Flannery for sixth on lap-13, but could not complete the pass.
Hinze’s good run came to a smoky end as he lost an engine with 17 laps complete to bring out the first caution of the race, which erased Botticello’s lead over Durand and the rest of the field and set up a 3-lap dash to the finish.
On the restart, Durand powered by Botticello to take over the race lead for the first time. Botticello fell into line behind Durand with Yardley, Nocera, and Thibeault making up the top-5. Botticello gave it everything she had over the final two laps of the race, but she could not get by Durand as he scored his second win of the 2010 season. Rounding out the top-5 behind Durand and Botticello was Yardley, Nocera, and Thibeault.
In the second 20-lap Limited Late Model feature event, Rob Dow took the lead at the drop of the green with Carla Botticello behind him. Andrew Durand was third, with Dave Yardley, III fourth and Dan Flannery fifth. Flannery worked his way by Yardley and was applying pressure to the back bumper of Durand at the half-way point of the feature.
Flannery would get by Durand and he brought Kevin Gambacorta with him by Durand, but it was all Rob Dow at the front of the field as he led wire to wire to score his third win of the 2010 season. Botticello finished second, with Flannery, Gambacorta, and Durand rounding out the top-5.
In the 15-lap DARE Stock feature event, Stephanie Berardi led the first lap before Vince Gambacorta went to the front of the field on lap-2. Gambacorta held the lead until lap-5 when Cory Casagrande went to the front. Gambacorta spun after contact with Cliff Saunders, but he was able to get going and the race stayed green. Kyle Casagrande moved into second behind his brother, with Cliff Saunders, Berardi, and Donald Cook rounding out the top-5.
With 10-laps complete, Cory Casagrande got tangled up with a lapped car as he was going by and he spun in turn 2 to bring the caution out, which put his brother Kyle in the lead for the restart.
Casagrande took the lead back under green with Berardi moving to the inside of Cliff Saunders for second. Berardi’s great run came to an end as she spun while trying to move by Saunders in turn 3 with 11 laps complete. Berardi’s spin collected several cars and brought the caution out. Casagrande took the lead back under green, but he got loose in turn 4 which allowed Josh Wood to pull alongside Casagrande. But Wood spun the next lap which handed second place over to Cliff Saunders. Casagrande led the field around the final four laps to score his third feature win of the 2010 season. Saunders came home second, with Jolly, Membrino, and Cory Casagrande rounding out the top-5.
#7 – Kyle Casagrande
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