Ceravolo gains first SK Modified win of season; McKennedy takes first Waterford win in MRS
Waterford, CT — Waterford Speedbowl hosted Thunder on the Sound Saturday, featuring eight race events and a visit by the popular Modified Racing Series. The event, presented by Connecticut National Guard, also featured a special flyover and landing on the track infield by a UH-60 Black Hawk chopper as part of the opening ceremonies. When the excitement settled in and racing got underway, 1997 track champion Todd Ceravolo of Gales Ferry finally returned to the winner’s circle in the SK Modified® division. Chelmsford, MA native Jon McKennedy led the final 78 laps in the visiting 100-lap Modified Racing Series tour event to take his first Speedbowl win. Jeff Smith of Old Lyme mastered the Bob Valenti Auto Mall Late Model division to record his second win of the year. New Haven’s Al Stone III was back in Street Stock victory lane, his fourth win in as many events. Ken Cassidy Jr. of Lisbon won his second consecutive and fourth Norwich Bulletin Mini Stock race on the season. Allen Coates of Ledyard recorded his 78th career Speedbowl victory in the A.B. CDL Driver Training Center Truck race. Anthony Flannery of East Hampton was the Legends Cars winner and James Logan of Dighton, MA was the Allison Legacy Series race winner.
Ceravolo bolted to the early lead in the 25-lap SK Modified® feature, distancing himself over Joe Perry in the opening laps. Joe Gada and Jeff Pearl battled for third when the first caution flag waved on lap-3 for debris located off turn four.
Ceravolo and Perry resumed their spots at the front when the race went green again with Pearl getting around Gada for third. Defending champion Ron Yuhas Jr. was off the pace on lap-4, dropping to the tail of field with an ignition problem on his machine.
Jeff Paul looked outside Gada for fourth position and Keith Rocco was all over Gada’s rear bumper in sixth. Three cars got together in turn two on lap-8 to slow the pace again. Josh Sylvester, Nichole Morgillo and Frank Mucciacciaro Jr. headed to the pits after the incident.
Ceravolo restarted strong again, this time bringing Pearl to second. Paul snuck by the inside of Gada and Perry by lap-10 to emerge in third position. Rocco was stuck in the outside groove and dropped back to eighth position as the battle for the top-five heated up. Tight racing among that pack reached its melting point on lap-14 when Perry got crossed up, collecting Kyle James and Adam Gada and also creating a near-miss for Doug Coby headed into turn one.
Ceravolo stayed well out front after the next restart. Pearl remained second with Rob Janovic Jr. making noise, rallying outside of Paul and looking to duck under Pearl in a swooping move in turn two. Pearl shut the door to hold back Janovic and resume his chase of Ceravolo.
With two laps to go Ceravolo was nearly a straightaway ahead of Pearl, who was the same distance ahead of the battle for third. Paul was draped all over Janovic on the final lap but unable to pull alongside. Ceravolo ended a season of misery and close-calls with his first win of the year. Pearl was second over Janovic, Paul and Tom Abele Jr. at the checkered flag.
Smith rocketed into the lead of the 25-lap Bob Valenti Auto Mall Late Model race. Caution waved on lap-10 when Ernie Bertrand spun from his third place position in the order. Two more laps were recorded with Smith out front before caution waved again as three-time defending champion Bruce Thomas Jr. went spinning in turn two.
Lap-15 action saw Brian Andronaco Jr. spin into turn one, sending Jason Palmer hard into the wall and also collecting Allen Coates. After the cleanup, Smith raced back out front over Vin Esposito and point leader Tim Jordan. Smith powered to his second win of the season and career in convincing fashion. Esposito remained second over Jordan to the checkered flag. Bertrand rebounded from his spin to finish in fourth ahead of Rich Staskowski.
Caution waved early in the Street Stock feature when point leader Walt Hovey found trouble, spinning off turn two on lap-2. On the restart Nate Appell took a hard trip into the turn two wall while running in fourth position, keeping the race under caution.
Ed Puleo took the lead from Josh Galvin when racing got underway. Brandon Plemons and Stone both moved in behind Puleo as Galvin fell back, eventually spinning on the frontstretch of lap-7 to slow the race when caution waved once again.
Puleo had his hands full holding back Stone and Plemons when the action picked back up. Stone raced under Plemons for second waiting for a racing lane to challenge Puleo for the lead. That lane opened up on lap-12 allowing Stone to dive under Puleo for the race lead. Stone edged ahead on lap-13 and when Puleo tried to duck in line behind Stone, Plemons had filled the hole and contact sent both to the infield for another caution flag surrendering their great runs.
Stone prevailed over the remaining laps to win his fourth race and continue to dig into Hovey’s point lead. Ronnie Oldham Jr. finished second and Norm Sears was third.
An exciting 25-lap Norwich Bulletin Mini Stock feature got started with a fracas on lap-1 in turn four that collected point leader Danny Field. Field resumed from the rear of the field following a caution flag. The event saw several different drivers positioning themselves for the win over the race including Charles Canfield, Ian Brew and Sean Caron.
Brew took the lead as the field just moved past halfway, on lap-14. Caution waved on lap-16 when Louis Bellisle spun off frontstretch. Field pitted again during caution and resumed from the tail of the field.
Canfield got into the infield off the back chute after the race came back under green, coming to rest at the apron of turn three. Caution came out again on lap-19 and Canfield’s run up front came to an end.
Caron restarted in second next to Brew but fell off the pace as the green flag returned, dropping all the way to the rear of the field before retiring to the infield ending his night. The complexion of the race turned again when the leader, Brew, suddenly dropped off the pace on lap-21, joining Caron in the infield.
The chain of events saw Cassidy move to the front over Greg Moran Sr. Phil Evans battled Steve Violette for third over the final few laps, ahead of a hard-charging Field. Cassidy held on to win his second consecutive race and fourth on the season. Moran finished second over Evans. Jeffrey Cembruch had a career-best fourth place finish at the checkered flag. Ben Bargnesi was fifth. Cassidy moved to within 9-points of Field in the championship battle.
Bill Leonard overtook Corey Coates on lap-7 to lead the 25-lap A.B. CDL Driver Training Center Truck race. That however was short lived for Leonard, when after four laps under the green flag Allen Coates emerged as a contender and took over at the front. As Coates slowly stretched his lead over Leonard, the caution flag waved on lap-17.
Another restart one lap later saw Allen Coates and Keith Rocco locked in a battle for the lead. Rocco had no answer to get around Coates for the remainder of the race and Coates took the victory, his seventh of the year. Rocco was second ahead of Leonard. Keith Chapman and Brandon Warren completed the top-five.
The 25-lap Legends Cars race started the night off with Flannery dominating to take the win. He took the lead in the opening laps after an exchange for the lead between Joey Mucciacciaro, Alessandro Vitelli, and David Garbo Jr. Once in front Flannery distanced himself from the field.
The final half of the event was run caution-free and the best battle on the speedway through the
duration of the race was for second between Garbo and Vitelli. They swapped the position throughout the event, with Garbo taking the spot at the checkered flag. Vitelli finished third ahead of Mucciacciaro and Ed Field.
The Speedbowl sees the return of the NEMA Midgets next Saturday, September 11 for the Gene and Marilyn Angelillo Memorial event. The NEMA Midgets and NEMA Lites will both compete in the night, along with four of the ‘Bowl’s NASCAR Whelen All-American Series divisions – the SK Modifieds®, Bob Valenti Auto Mall Late Models, Street Stocks and Norwich Bulletin Mini Stocks. More information is available at Speedbowl.com.
Saturday 9/4 Results and standings:
NASCAR Whelen All-American Series SK Modifieds® (25-laps): 1. Todd Ceravolo, Gales Ferry; 2. Jeff Pearl, Salem; 3. Rob Janovic Jr., Waterford; 4. Jeffrey Paul, Ledyard; 5. Tom Abele Jr., Norwich; 6. Joe Gada, Salem; 7. Tucker Reynolds Jr., Westbrook; 8. Ron Yuhas Jr., Groton; 9. Doug Coby, Milford; 10. Keith Rocco, Wallingford; 11. Tyler Chadwick, Ledyard; 12. Glen Pressell III, Gales Ferry; 13. Josh Sylvester, Lebanon;14. Adam Gada, Bozrah; 15. Frank Mucciacciaro Jr., Milford;16. Jeffrey Gallup, Agawam, MA; 17. Joe Perry, Ashaway, RI; 18. Kyle James, Ashaway, RI; 19. Nichole Morgillo, Yalesville
Unofficial Standings after twenty events (top-ten): 1. Rocco, 934; 2. Yuhas, 873; 3. Janovic, 812; 4. Chadwick, 801; 5. Paul, 757; 6. Pearl, 682; 7. Abele, 624; 8. J. Gada, 612; 9. James, 528; 10. James, 526
NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Bob Valenti Auto Mall Late Models (25-laps): 1. Jeff Smith, Old Lyme; 2. Vin Esposito, Seymour; 3. Tim Jordan, Plainfield; 4. Ernie Bertrand, North Branford; 5. Richard Staskowski, Hope Valley, RI; 6. Bruce Thomas Jr., Groton; 7. Allen Coates, Ledyard; 8. Jeffrey Paul, Ledyard; 9. Jimmy Rosenfield, Middleboro, MA; 10. Brian Andronaco Jr., Wilton; 11. Richard Duranti, Quaker Hill; 12. Jason Palmer, Berlin
Standings after twelve events (top-ten): 1. Jordan, 569; 2. Smith, 532; 3. Esposito, 501; 4. Staskowski, 497; 5. Bertrand, 488; 6. Thomas, 459; 7. Paul, 447; 8. Andronaco Jr., 431; 9. Palmer, 420; 10. Botticello, 310
NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Street Stocks (25-laps): 1. Al Stone III, New Haven; 2. Ronald Oldham Jr., Westbrook; 3. Norm Sears, Andover; 4. Brandon Plemons, Uncasville; 5. Ed Puleo, Branford; 6. Gregory Moran Jr., Preston; 7. Walt Hovey Jr., Chaplin; 8. Norman Root Jr., Old Saybrook; 9. Mathew Burr, Quaker Hill; 10. Chris Kvaka, Stratford; 11. Josh Galvin, Franklin; 12. Christopher Meyer, North Franklin; 13. Paul Gaedeke, Southington; 14. Jack Aquilina, Oakdale; 15. Nate Appell, Westbrook
Standings after nineteen events (top-ten): 1. Hovey, 858; 2. Stone, 856; 3. Puleo, 772; 4. Sears, 766; 5. Plemons, 759; 6. Galvin, 726; 7. Oldham, 601; T-8. Moran, 592; T-8. Appell, 592; 9. Meyer, 573; 10. Steve Barrett, 532
NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Norwich Bulletin Mini Stocks (25-laps): 1. Ken Cassidy Jr., Lisbon; 2. Greg Moran Sr., Preston; 3. Phil Evans, Uncasville; 4. Jeffrey Cembruch, Wallingford; 5. Ben Bargnesi, Norwich; 6. Danny Field, Deep River; 7. Steve Violette, Canterbury; 8. Nick Pappacoda, North Branford; 9. Chris Williams, Waterford; 10. Christina Kellerman, Stratford; 11. Louie Bellisle III, Griswold; 12. Joe Bavolacco, Stratford; 13. Alan Hall Jr., North Haven; 14. Charles Canfield, New Haven; 15. Ian Brew, Wood River Jct, RI; 16. Sean Caron, East Hampton; 17. Bill Leonard, Wood River Jct, RI; 18. Eric Bourgeois, East Haddam; 19. Mark Panaroni, Ivoryton; 20. John Kelly, New London; 21. Chuck Rogers, Quaker Hill; 22. Joe Godbout III, Hope Valley, RI
Standings after nineteen events (top-ten): 1. Field, 869; 2. Cassidy, 860; 3. Caron, 765; 4. Bellisle, 714; 5. Williams, 661; 6. Moran, 653; 7. Brew, 647; 8. Violette, 570; 9. Canfield, 560; 10. Pappacoda, 542
NASCAR Whelen All-American Series A.B. CDL Driver Training Center Trucks (25-laps): 1. Allen Coates, Ledyard; 2. Keith Rocco, Wallingford; 3. Bill Leonard, Wood River Jct, RI; 4. Keith Chapman, Mystic; 5. Brandon Warren, Chicopee, MA; 6. Corey Coates, Ledyard; 7. James Wray, Mystic; 8. Dave Selleck, Newton; 9. Jonathan Zoller, Ayer, MA; 10. Howard Payne, Shelton
Standings after nine events (top-ten): A. Coates, 499; 2. Payne, 455; 3. Leonard, 416; 4. C. Coates, 358; 5. Rocco, 314; 6. J. Warren, 236; 7. Correll, 226; 8. Chapman, 212; 9. Wray, 180; 10. Zoller, 142
Legends Cars (25-laps): 1. Anthony Flannery, East Hampton; 2. David Garbo Jr., Stonington; 3. Alessandro Vitelli, Woodbridge; 4. Joey Mucciacciaro; 5. Ed Field, Deep River; 6. Troy Talman, Oxford, MA; 7. George Whitney, Westbrook; 8. Joey Campbell, Berlin; 9. Dylan Izzo, Monroe; 10. Kyle Rogers, Waterbury; 11. Angelo Belsito, Auburn, MA; 12. Nick Ladyga, Voluntown; 13. Carlo Blandina, Milford; 14. Brian Spencer, Edison, NJ; 15. Peter Cirilli, Farmington; 16. Dirk Eykeloff, Oakdale; 17. Joe Bavolacco, Stratford; 18. Max Zachem, Preston; 19. Dana Dimatteo, Farmington; 20. George Dorothy Jr., Deep River; 21. Arthur Marrero, Baltic
Standings after events: 1. Flannery, 455; 2. Field, 354; 3. Vitelli, 344; 4. Dimatteo, 326; 5. Giarratana, 301; 6. Garbo Jr., 298; 7. Belsito, 274; 8. Campbell, 254; 9. Mucciacciaro, 244; 10. Izzo, 226
Allison Legacy Racing Series Results (25-laps): 1. James Logan, Dighton, MA; 2. Kyle Poodiack, Bennington, NH; 3. Eric Bourgeois, East Haddam; 4. Emily Packard, East Montpelier, VT; 5. Troy McNeil, Fitchburgh, MA; 6. Sean Murphy, Maynard, MA; 7. Melissa Fifield, Wakefield, NH; 8. Peter Portante, Plainville; 9. Anthony Ryan, 10. Billy Barrett, Millis, MA; 11. Devin O’Connell, Madison;. 12. T.J. Jeski, Dracut, MA
Modified Racing Series (100-laps): 1. Jon McKennedy, Chelmsford, MA; 2. Chris Pasteryak, Jewett City; 3. Steve Masse, Bellingham, MA; 4. Geoff Gernhard, Salem; 5. Dwight Jarvis, Ascutney, VT; 6. Max Zachem, Preston; 7. Jacob Dore, Sanford, ME; 8. Rob Goodenough, Swanzey, NH; 9. Rowan Pennink, Huntingdon Valley, PA; 10. Norm Wrenn, Nashua, MA; 11. Ted Christopher, Plainville; 12. Jack Bateman, Canaan, NH; 13. Louie Mechalides, Tyngsboro, MA; 14. Jeff Pearl, Salem; 15. Joe Doucette, Framingham, MA; 16. Keith Rocco, Wallingford; 17. Todd Annarummo, Swansea, MA; 18. Dave Etheridge, Portland; 19. Les Hinckley, Windsor Locks; 20. Ken Barry; 21. Jeff Malave, Manchester; 22. Joey Jarvis, Ascutney, VT; 23. Doug Coby, Milford; 24. Don Fowler, 25. John Cleary, Madison
Sources: Waterford Speedbowl PR