Anne Stepien and Russ Adams surged from mid-pack to move into second and third place respectively in week nine of the 2016 harness racing Hambletonian Society Grand Circuit Handicapping Challenge sponsored by DRF Harness, Green Acquisition Corporation, The Hambletonian Society, Hoosier Park Racing and Casino, Meadowlands Racing and Entertainment, Northfield Park, The Raceway at Western Fair District, Red Shores Charlottetown Driving Park, Tioga Downs, and Vernon Downs.
Stepien was the top handicapper for the week, earning 101.55 (339.15 total) points while Adams was just off the pace, finishing second with 94.25 (320.85) points. Jay Hochstetler remains the overall leader with 339.15 points, his lead shrinking slightly to 92.6 points. This makes it nine weeks straight with Hochstetler in the lead.
Stepien managed to win three of the four races for the evening, winning the first division of the Graduate Trot with Crazshana ($17.20), the Graduate Pace with Artistic Major ($20.40), and Wiggle It Jiggleit ($3.00) in the Battle of Lake Erie; her only miss was in the second division of the Graduate Trot when Pinkman finished third. Adams also had Crazshana and Artistic Major but his selection of Crescent Fashion finished second in the second division of the Graduate Trot while Foiled Again ran out of the money in the Battle of Lake Erie. It was far back to Dennis O'Hara who finished third for the week with 50.08 points.
Following Saturday night’s action, the standings are as follows:
May 21, 2016 – Leg #15 |
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Pos |
Handicapper |
Total Points |
Points Earned |
Overall |
Position |
Points |
1st |
Jay Hochstetler |
420.05 |
11.70 |
431.75 |
1st |
– |
2nd |
Anne Stepien |
237.60 |
101.55 |
339.15 |
10th |
92.60 |
3rd |
Russ Adams |
226.60 |
94.25 |
320.85 |
11th |
110.90 |
4th |
Matt Rose |
302.13 |
17.90 |
320.03 |
3rd |
111.73 |
5th |
Dennis O'Hara |
269.28 |
50.08 |
319.35 |
6th |
112.40 |
6th |
Mark Deutsch |
311.75 |
4.20 |
315.95 |
2nd |
115.80 |
7th |
Adam Friedland |
242.03 |
42.10 |
284.13 |
9th |
147.63 |
8th |
Ray Cotolo |
284.08 |
0.00 |
284.08 |
4th |
147.68 |
9th |
Gordon Waterstone |
249.13 |
14.10 |
263.23 |
7th |
168.53 |
10th |
Rusty Nash |
251.43 |
11.70 |
263.13 |
5th |
168.63 |
11th |
Ray Garnett |
242.83 |
6.30 |
249.13 |
8th |
182.63 |
12th |
Michael Carter |
195.10 |
25.20 |
220.30 |
14th |
211.45 |
13th |
Joe Bengston |
188.10 |
29.40 |
217.50 |
15th |
214.25 |
14th |
Sally Hinckley |
197.08 |
14.10 |
211.18 |
13th |
220.58 |
15th |
Bryan Owen |
199.75 |
8.70 |
208.45 |
12th |
223.30 |
This week is a busy week for the handicapping team. The week begins Monday, with two divisions of the Miss Versatility Trot at Mohawk Raceway. The the Memorial Day weekend is busy with the Molson Pace on Friday, May 27 at The Raceway at Western Fair District followed by Saturday, May 28’s Art Rooney and Lismore stakes at Yonkers Raceway. The contest weekend concludes on Sunday, May 28 with a trio of races, the Betsy Ross Mares Invitational, Dorothy Mullen Invitational, and Maxie Lee Memorial at Harrah’s Philadelphia.
As a reminder, visit http://hanaharnesscontest.
Allan Schott
HANA Harness Racing Coordinator