Hilltop Speedway
May 19, 2012
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McLOUGHLIN’S  SWEEP HILLTOP; ARONHALT, DICKERSON, & JERRY ADKINS RETURN TO VICTORY LANE; JOHN LARGE TRUCKS IT TO CHECKER FLAG

by Mike Swanger
MILLERSBURG, OH (May 19) - Warm temperatures brought a another big crowd on Driver Autograph night at Hilltop Speedway as the action on the track kept the fans buzzing. By winning the dash for the Holmes Tire Late Models, J R Gentry would start on the pole of the 25 lap feature along side Eric Smitley. Gentry popped into the lead at the drop of the green flag with Nashport’s Shane McLoughlin taking second as Brad Malcuit moved into third on lap three. As the race reached lap eight, Gentry had built a good lead setting a torrid pace as McLoughlin, Malcuit, and Dave Hornikel would scuffle for second as Ryan Markham and Mike Lonas battled for fifth. Gentry’s comfortable lead was erased when a caution flew on lap 20 to bunch the field back up. As the green flag reappeared, McLoughlin and his Riesbeck’s Food Market, McLoughlin Auto Sales and Lias Tires #9 went to the highside of turns one and two and then sling shoted the car under Gentry down the backstretch to snatch the point and then pull away for his first win of the season. Malcuit held off Hornikel for third as Markham finished fifth. Hornikel and Markham won the heats.    

Earlier in the evening, Tanner McLoughlin led all the way in the Mini Wedge main to win his third straight feature to make it a father- son sweep. Tanner’s win was not easy as Phil Bubeck was able to get alongside the #59 of McLoughlin’s a couple of times but could never slip past. Charity Bubeck held off Hannah Rose for third as Tristen Brown rounded out the top five. McLoughlin and Brown topped the heat races.

Rick Mardis took the outside front row starting position and set the pace for the first four laps of the Raceday Photos Modified feature as Ryan West followed. Warsaw’s Norm Aronhalt would drop West a spot on lap five and then scoot past Mardis on the next circuit for the top spot. The pace of the race was slowed by numerous cautions that kept the field bunched up and had allowed Kevin Morehouse to move into third from his 16th starting spot just past halfway. After a lap 11 caution, Morehouse powered past West for second and set sail for Aronhalt, who had won the Wayne-Hill challenge last week as Morehouse was trying to do the same this week. With the yellow flying twice in the last three laps, Aronhalt and the Ports Petroluem, & Tye Twarog,  #309 ran the highside to perfection to hold off Morehouse’s slide jobs attempts and go to victory lane for the second week in a row. West hit the wall with three to bring out that caution that allowed Gary Clark to take third as pole starting Larry Kugel finished fourth and Vic Hottinger grabbed fifth for the second week in a row. Posting heat wins were Kugel, Mardis and Aronhalt.

Brandon Gardner and Jeremy Dickerson won the heats for the Street Stocks to earn the right to start on the front row of their feature and at the drop of the green flag, it was all Dickerson as the Mansfield driver and his Ohio Door & Sash and Griff’s Racing Engines #44d never looked back to win his first feature at Hilltop Speedway. Gardner, who was trying for the Wayne-Hill challenge money also, had his hands full with Justin Patterson for second and with five to go, succumbed to Patterson’s pressure for second. Dickerson had built up a big enough lead that Patterson could not track him down. With three laps to go Bob Daugherty slipped past Kenny Daughriety Jr. for fourth.

Millersburg’s Jerry Adkins held off early charges from Brett Adkins and Chris Priebe and then stretched his lead as the race wore on to post his second Mini Stock win of the season aboard the TH Mfg #101. Priebe would settle in second place as Terry Adkins tracked down Brett Adkins just past halfway to take third as Jordan James filled out the top five. Brett Adkins, Jerry Adkins and James notched the heat wins.

John Large of Warsaw won the heat race and then went flag to flag for his first win of the season in the Bugs-R-Gone truck main, stopping the Potts’ four week run of wins. Driving the L &L Motors and Advance Auto Parts #17, John was followed by Jack Large and Tom Garlick as Kevin Potts and David Potts rounded out the top five.

Next Saturday night, May 26th, the All Star Late Models pull into Hilltop Speedway with $5,000 awaiting the winner with the Raceday Photos Modifieds, Street Stocks, Mini Stocks and Wedges on the racing card also. Grandstand gates will open at 4 pm with racing starting at 7 pm. Sportstime Ohio TV will be in to tape the All Star Late Models for a future broadcast on the Cleveland based station.
 
HILLTOP SPEEDWAY SUMMARY
Saturday, May 19, 2012
HOLMES TIRE LATE MODELS  (18)
Fast Qualifier  Brad Malcuit & Shane McLoughlin  15.265
Dash        J R Gentry, Eric Smitley, McLoughlin, Malcuit, Mike Lonas, Wayne Maffett Jr.
Heat   1   Ryan Markham, Charlie Duncan, Mark Gardiner, Keith Tish, Jason Hinton, Larry Bellman
Heat   2   Dave Hornikel, Blaine Aber, Bryan Casey, Aaron Phillis, Justin Chance, J D Fisher
Feature   McLoughlin, Gentry, Malcuit, Hornikel, Markham, Lonas, Maffett Jr., Smitley, Gardiner, Chance, Tish, Duncan, Phillis, Aber, Bellman, Casey, Fisher, Hinton
 
RACEDAY PHOTOS MODIFIEDS  (20)
Heat   1   Larry Kugel, Ryan West, Ty Samples, Vic Hottinger, Darrick Hubbard, Kevin Morehouse, Melissa Haskins
Heat   2   Rick Mardis, Kevin Shairer, Tigh Shaffer, Eddie Wilson, Desi McHenry, Matt Samples, Mike Hutchinson
Heat   3   Norm Aronhalt, Gary Clark, Jason Graham, Josh Morrow, Hilton Eppley, Virgil Eaches
Feature   Aronhalt, Morehouse, Clark, Kugel, Hottinger, Wilson, Graham, Hubbard, West, Eaches, Morrow, Shaffer, Mardis, M. Samples, Hutchinson, Eppley, T. Samples, Shairer, Haskins, McHenry
 
STREET STOCKS  (12)
Heat   1   Brandon Gardner, Kenny Daughriety Jr., Bob Chilcote, Dave Giaugue, Jason Shairer, Kodie Daughriety
Heat   2   Jeremy Dickerson, Justin Patterson, Joe Spearman, Bob Daugherty, Robert Smith, John Wilson
Feature   Dickerson, Patterson, Gardner, Daugherty, Daughriety Jr., Smith, Spearman, Giaugue, Shairer, Wilson, Chilcote, K. Daughriety
 
MINI STOCKS (25)
Heat   1  Brett Adkins, Chris Priebe, Roger Rush, Dustin Daugherty, Lester Berry, Kevin Markey, Moose Workman, Bill Huntington, Jeff Barker
Heat   2  Jerry Adkins, Mitch Reichard, Tim Justice, Matt Kemp, Tim Dockery, Greg Thompson, Arlen Kemp, Blane Wolford
Heat   3  Jordan James, Terry Adkins, J R Carpenter, Randall Whicker, Elliott Robinson, Jason King, Mike Rose (dns), Tom Keller (dns)
L.C. #1    King, Markey, Huntington, Thompson, A. Kemp, Wolford, Workman, Barker, Rose (dns), Keller (dns)
Feature  J. Adkins, Priebe, T. Adkins, B. Adkins, James, M. Kemp, King, Whicker, Berry, Markey, Huntington, Justice, Carpenter, Reichard, Robinson, Daugherty, Rush, Dockey (dns)
 
BUG-R-GONE TRUCKS  (10)
Heat   1  John Large, Jack Large, Tom Garlick, Steve Large, Darrick Hubbard Jr., David Potts, Logan Brannon, Jerry Gardner, Kevin Potts, Cole Lillibridge
Feature  Jo. Large, Ja. Large, Garlick, K. Potts, D. Potts, S. Large, Gardner, Brannon, Lillibridge, Hubbard Jr.
 
MINI WEDGES  (16)
Heat   1  Tanner McLoughlin, Phil Bubeck, Hannah Rose, Tristen Lillibridge, Livia Large, Brayden Morey, Josey Lillibridge, Destiny Bates
Heat   2  Tristen Brown, Braxton Wilson, Cody Stillion, Charity Bubeck, Chase Osborne, Taylor Huggins, Nick Large, Logan Burnes
Feature  McLoughlin, P. Bubeck, C. Bubeck, Rose, Brown, O. Large, Wilson, Stillion, Morey, Bates, J. Lillibridge, Huggins, Burnes, N. Large, T. Lillibridge, Osborne (dns)