Photos: Try Hockey for Free Day
It was Try Hockey for Free Day at Falleti Ice Arena and Nora, almost 3, couldn't wait to play, said her father Brian Gildner. In fact, Nora is eager to play every time Brian takes her older brother to practice.
Sports
Catching up with Jeff Redband to start 2015 hoops season
That's Jeff Redband, the former Batavia HS hoops star, in the white shirt, though, technically, he's a redshirt.
Redband is sitting out his freshman season at Daemen College as a redshirt, giving him time to develop his game for the Division II level. He can practice with the team, but can't suit up for games. The status allows him to avoid losing a year of NCAA eligibility.
Daemen kicked off it's first official Division II season with an exhibition game against the UB Bulls, a Division I team that made the NCAA tournament for the first time last season, but was rocked in the off season by some key personnel changes.
Head coach Bobby Hurley left to take a position at a higher level university and last season's MAC player of the year, Justin Moss, was dismissed from the university for an alleged theft from a dorm room.
The Nate Oaks era, however, started in fine style, with the Bulls dominating Daemen 87-68. The Bulls played the aggressive brand of basketball, which Oaks prefers, though were bedeviled by 24 turnovers.
Oaks, in his first season as a Division I head coach, has a reputation for being the top-flight recruiter, and the early returns for his freshman class look good. C.J. Massinburg, from Dallas, scored 25 points, going 5-6 from beyond the arc and snagging five rebounds. Nick Perkins, a freshman from Ypsilanti, Mich., scored 12 points and had eight rebounds. (In photos, Massinburg is 3 and Perkins is 33.)
Studio City stars in Batavia Downs feature
By Tim Bojarski, Batavia Downs Media Relations
Studio City made a beeline for the lead and took no prisoners once that position as acheived, en route to victory in the $8,500 Open I-II trot at Batavia Downs on Friday night (Nov. 6).
Dave McNeight III sent Studio City to the quarter in :28.4 before backing off the next panel to :31. The breather forced three horses to pull and attack going to the half, but only Diamonds For Life (Ron Beback Jr.) got even remotely close to the leader. Studio City fought off the challengers around the far turn and proceeded to pull away to a three-length victory in 1:58.4.
It was the fourth win of the year for Studio City ($8.80) and the purse pushed his earnings to $45,407 for owners Scott Woogen and Lisa Denison. Lisa Lederhouse trains the winner.
Several horsemen made multiple visits to the winner’s circle on Friday. Jack Flanigen had a driving triple while Kevin Cummings, Jim McNeight and Ray Fisher Jr. all registered doubles. On the training side, John Mungillo, Maria Rice and JD Perrin all sent two winners to post.
When live racing resumes at Batavia Downs on Saturday night (Nov. 7), the Pick-5 carryover pool will be $2,004, which is the largest carryover pool of the 2015 season.
Batavia High School featured on Good Day Rochester
Batavia High School students volunteered early this morning to be featured live on this week's edition of "Friday Morning Lights" on Fox channel 13 Rochester.
Hannah Welker 13WHAM News/FOX Rochester morning reporter was setting up before 6:30 a.m. to prepare for this week's show. Hannah was very impressed with the school spirit of the students at BHS.
Many athletic teams, including Batavia football, cheerleading and girls volleyball to name a few, attended today's event. The Blue Zoo will be traveling to Rochester this Sunday to cheer on the undefeated Blue Devils at 1 p.m.
Principal Scott Wilson being interviewed.
Senior co-mayor Sam Cecere being interviewed in front of students from the Blue Zoo.
Memumsnotnice three-peat in Batavia mares Open
(Photo of Memumsnotnice with driver Ray Fisher Jr., courtesy of Paul White)
By Tim Bojarski, Batavia Downs Media Relations
After winning two of her first four races of 2015 back in January and February, Memumsnotnice (Ray Fisher Jr.) went 0-for-21 the next eight months. But that drought ended in October and now the mare is riding a three-race win streak, all in Open mares company and all at Batavia Downs.
On Wednesday (Nov. 4), Memumsnotnice ($7.20) took the $10,000 distaff Open pace in the same dominating fashion she displayed the previous two weeks. After leaving from post five, she led by a loose two-lengths while cutting fractions of :28.2, :57.4 and 1:25.4 before cruising home unchallenged in 1:55. The winning time was a new seasonal mark.
In her last three starts, Memumsnotnice has led at every station and won those races by a combined seven lengths.
The winner’s share of Wednesday’s purse pushes Memumsnotnice's earnings to $42,568 for owners Thatsideofthefence, LLC, and John Mungillo, who also trains the 6-year-old Jereme’s Jet mare.
Kevin Cummings, Shawn McDonough, Jack Flanigen, Dave McNeight III and Ray Fisher Jr. all scored driving doubles Wednesday night.
When live racing resumes at Batavia Downs on Friday (Nov. 6) at 6:15, the Pick-5 carryover will be $1,173. That is one of the largest carry-over pools of the season.
Le Roy comes back against Notre Dame to win volleyball semifinal
Down two matches to nil, and down on points midway through the third set, Le Roy rallied in its Class C Section V semifinal volleyball match against Notre Dame to pull out a 3-2 victory and advance to the next round.
The sets went 25-23, Norte Dame, 25-21, 23-25, 15-25 and 21-25.
Photos by David Boyce.
USTA District 8 and NYSS Banquet at Batavia Downs
By Tim Bojarski, Batavia Downs Media Relations
On Sunday (Nov. 15), Batavia Downs will be the site for the U.S. Trotting Association District 8 membership meeting, Director election and New York Sire Stakes (NYSS) year-end awards banquet, hosted by the New York State Horse Breeding Development Fund.
All members of USTA District 8 are invited to attend the general membership meeting which begins at 4 p.m. in the Robert J. Kane board room. The agenda includes a discussion of proposed USTA rule changes and other business, followed by questions and answers.
There will also be voting for two Directors' seats that are currently available and polls will open at 4 p.m. If you are not attending in person, be advised that your mailed ballot must be received by the USTA no later than Nov. 11.
At the conclusion of the meeting, there will be a cocktail party held in advance of the dinner that will start at 6:30 p.m. and be hosted by Batavia Downs, Buffalo Raceway, Monticello Raceway, Saratoga Raceway, Tioga Downs and Vernon Downs. Cocktails and hors devours will be available at in the Grandstands Banquet Room, located on the upper level.
Dinner will start at 7:30 p.m. and will also be held in Grandstands.
Shortly after dinner begins, opening remarks will kick off the NYSS awards ceremony and presentations by the USTA and the New York State Horse Breeding Development Fund.
Tickets for the banquet are $30 per person and must be purchased in advance. Anyone purchasing a ticket will also receive $15 worth of "free play" on the gaming floor.
Tickets can be obtained by sending a check (payable to the NYS Harness Horse Breeders) to: NYS Harness Horse Breeders, 12 Avis Drive, Suite 1, Latham, NY 12110 Attention: Betty.
Payment must arrive no later than Wednesday (Nov. 11) and the general public is welcome to attend.
If you need further assistance, please call the HHBNYS at 518-785-5858.
Cobble Beach and Historian highlight Batavia Downs Saturday matinee card
By Tim Bojarski, Batavia Downs Media Relations
The last matinee card of the year at Batavia Downs was held on Saturday (Oct. 31) and featured the top-two pacing classes on the grounds and the performances turned in by the winner of each were equally impressive.
Cobble Beach (Jack Flanigen) shook off a couple fringe finishes and took no prisoners going wire to wire in the $10,000 Open pace in 1:54.4. It was the ninth win of 2015 for Cobble Beach ($7.70), which has become a career year for wins and earnings (now $74,180) for the 5-year-old Artiscape gelding. James Clouser Jr. trains Cobble Beach for owner Leonard Segall.
In the co-feature $8,400 Open II, Historian (Jim McNeight) took advantage of a two-hole trip behind FB Seelster (Dave McNeight III) and stalked the leader the entire mile before shooting up the passing lane in deep-stretch to garner victory by a mere head. Historian ($12.20) toured the course in 1:53.3, which was a new lifetime mark for the 5-year-old Stonebridge Regal gelding. Jack and Maria Rice own the winner with Maria Rice also doing the training.
Several horsemen made multiple trips to the winner's circle on Saturday. Kevin Cummings, Jim McNeight and Jack Flanigen all had driving triples while trainers Maria Rice, James Clouser Jr. and JD Perrin all sent two winners postward.
Arainna Brone, who was visiting Batavia Downs while home for the weekend from college, won the $4,000 pair of diamond earrings in the “Diamond of a Day” promotion sponsored by TAG Jewelers.
Racing resumes at Batavia Downs on Wednesday (Nov. 4) with post time at 6:15 p.m.
(Photo of Arainna Brone with Tony Gruppo of TAG Jewelers, courtesy of Paul White.)
Bath blasts past Le Roy, 44-0
If a number of photos in this post seem to feature a bit too much of the Bath, well that was pretty much the story of the game Saturday as the Le Roy Oatkan Knights dropped a Class C sectional playoff game to Bath 44-0.
Josh Laurie was held 105 yards passing and Nick Egeling gained only 15 yards on the ground.
For four quarters, it was pretty much all Bath, with the Rams amassing 353 yards of total offense.
Reed Kacur had three receptions for 28 yards and Ryan Boyce, two for 37 yards.
Batavia overcomes Hornell's defensive scheme to walk away with 43-7 semi-final win
The way Greg Mruczek sees it, the challenge Hornell gave Batavia in the first quarter of Saturday's sectional semi-final for Class B gives a Blue Devils team that has faced little adversity all season long a taste of how tough advancing in the post season will get.
Mruczek and his teammates adjusted and ended up smashing the Red Raiders 43-7.
Four second-quarter touchdown passes from Mruczek sealed the deal. He hit Anthony Gallo on a 16-yard route, Ray Leach on 46 yards, Ryan Hogan on 24 yards and Malachi Chenault on 41 yards.
"We had to pick up some blitzes in that first quarter," Mruczek said. "We definately had some adversity, but we definately fought through the adversity. We definately got a feel for playing in a close game and that's definately going to happen in the finals."
In the finals, Batavia will face Livonia, and while that's a 6-3 team (compared to Batavia's 9-0 record), they scored 70 points yesterday against Penn Yan, who ran up 60 points.
The diversity of receivers Mruczek called upon for those four second-quarter TDs demonstrates the array of weapons any defense must try to counter when playing Batavia, and the ability to strike quickly from anywhere on the field gives the team a lot of confidence, said Dom Mogavero.
"We a dynamic team," Mogavero said. "Every single person on this team can play football, the twos, the threes, everyone on the depth chart can play football and we all know we're really talented atheletes.
"We stick together as a family. The only stat that matters to us is wins and losses."
Mruczek was coming off a stretch over two games where he was 19-20 passing, including a 10-10 performance last week, with his only prior missed pass a throwaway under pressure two weeks ago. Those blitzes of Hornel had Mruczek a little off balance in the first quarter and he gave up a rare interception.
Still, he went on for a 12 for 25 performance for 303 yards and four TDs.
Batavia's other two touchdowns came on runs of 56 yards by Leach and 47 yards by Caleb Burdett.
Mogavero had 77 yards on seven carries and Ray Leach rushed for 79 yards on five carries for the Blue Devils.
Gallo caught four passes for 126 yards.
In additional to his TD reception, Hogan had two interceptions. His steller performance came less than a week after his father's death.
"He's a gamer," Mruczek said. "He's got a lot of heart. I love that kid. He works hard every day."
Malachi Chenault said the team was there for Hogan throughout the week.
"He's a tough player," Chenault said. "We knew his situation and we just tried holding him up as much as we can and be as supportive as possible, that's all."
Defensively, Danny Williams had 10 tackles (two for loss) and Trent McGraw had eight tackles (two for loss) for the Blue Devils.
Top photo: Leach celebrates his second quater TD, which came off a tipped pass (second photo).
Hogan with one of this two interceptions.
Gallo with a TD reception.
Leach on a run play.
Leach.
Leach on defense.
Gallo with a reception.
Mruczek with a second quarter pass
Williams buries Hornell's Trenton Smith.
To purchase prints of photos by Howard Owens, click here.
Jim Burns was also at the game and took photos:
Write That Down scores again in Batavia Downs feature
(Photo of Write That Down with reinsman Shawn McDonough, ocurtesy of Paul White.)
By Tim Bojarski, Batavia Downs Media Relations
Write That Down proved that last week’s Open II win was no fluke as he took on the best resident trotters Friday night (Oct. 30) and came out on top in the $9,500 Open trot at Batavia Downs.
When prohibitive post-time favorite Lutetium (Kevin Cummings) left from post six to take the lead, the rest of the field stood down and followed in post one-through-five order behind him. After a :28.1 quarter, the leader started to back-off the pace and that is when Write That Down (Shawn McDonough) pulled and started his move.
Slowly and methodically, Write That Down advanced on the outside and drew within a length of the leading Lutetium at three-quarters in a brisk 1:27.3. When the race rounded the last turn, these two separated themselves from the rest of the field; Lutetium at the pylons and Write That Down to his right flank. With both Cummings and McDonough rocking and knocking down the lane, Write That Down nosed out Lutetium at the wire in 1:57.2.
It was the seventh win of the year for Write That Down ($15.80) including three wins at Batavia Downs in only four starts here and his owners Scott Beecher and Daniel Seidberg have now banked $43,642 on account of the 4-year-old’s efforts. Jeff Sorenson trains Write That Down.
Ron Beback Jr. piloted three winners on the night and Jack Flanigen had two.
Racing resumes at Batavia Downs on Saturday (Oct. 31) with a special Breeders Cup matinee that gets under way at 1:15.
Batavia High School's new mascot makes debut appearance
Meet Senior Josh Kurtz who wears the new mascot uniform for sporting events for Batavia.
The classes of 2015 and 2016 got together and told the administration that the old mascot uniform was in rough shape. Students lobbied for a new one.
Kutz said, “We needed one that would best represent the school spirit that our student body could give.”
Last night’s girls sectional volleyball matchup in the gymnasium was the first appearance at a sporting a for the restylized mascot.
Sectional Girls Volleyball: Batavia dominates Geneva in three sets
Batavia Varsity Girls Volleyball beat Geneva in their quarterfinal sectional matchup 25-9, 28-26 and 25-13.
Batavia senior Madison McCulley had one ace and 10 assists to set up her teammates -- senior Tessa Engle with four kills, junior Maria Canzoneri with three kills.
“Maddie McCulley was setting wonderfully, making smart choices and really distributing the balls well," said Head Coach Jeremy Mettler.
Photo above is senior Madision Swiatowy watching her teammate junior Maria Canzoneri with a kill in the second set.
Freshman Ryann Stefaniak, with two kills and two aces, contributed to the 25-9 win in the first set.
The second set Geneva took an early lead coming out serving 10 to five and Batavia took a timeout.
Mettler said, “We need to relax and run our system. Our system is very good. Let’s get Maddie setting up Tessa and Taylor on the outside, but it starts with the pass."
Batavia bounced back taking a 15 to 12 lead and Geneva took a time out. The set went back and forth, exchanging leads and ties through most of the set.
Senior Tessa Engle added some digs and kills along with Courtney Burns (with a dig pictured below) and Meghan Swiatowy who served to win a few points to tie it up 24 apiece. Timeout was called.
Mettler said, "We need to put the ball in play and hit our targets. We did it in game one and we can do it in game two."
He emphasized that, "we need to play fundamental volleyball and let’s show them what we can do."
To win a set it has to be by two points, but each team tied and exchanged leads while missing serves until Batavia edged them 28-26, which was the highest scoring set the Blue Devils had this season.
The third and eventually last set started out where both teams exchanged leads and ties. At six to six, Junior Courtney Burns had a spike to bring Tessa Engle up to serve and she did.
Tessa served to win the next eight points for the Devils to take charge of the third set. Geneva gained a point or two, but Meghan Swiatowy added another four, which brought the lead to 21-9.
Mettler started to pull his starters off the court and Batavia won 25-13.
Highlights for both teams:
Batavia:
Engle – Four aces, eleven digs, 10 kills
McCulley – One ace, four digs, three kills and over 30-plus assists.
Canzoneri – One block, three kills
Meghan Swiatowy – Two aces, two digs
Ryann Stefaniak -- Two aces, three digs, two kills
Taylor Stefaniak – Five digs, eight kills, one block
Maddie Swiatowy -- 13 digs, one kill
Geneva:
Guinan – Two aces, one block, four kills
Legoth – 12 digs, two aces
Maher – One ace, two blocks, five kills
Next sectional game for Batavia is the Semifinals at Gates Chili High School on Tuesday vs. Aquinas at 5:30 p.m.
For more photos go to:
Bulldawgs: 2015 NOFA Champions, mini and varsity divisions bring home trophies
(Submitted photo of Batavia Bulldawgs Mini Division 2015 NOFA Champions.)
(Submitted photo of Batavia Bulldawgs Varsity Division champions T/K)
Press release:
The Batavia Bulldawgs youth football and cheer are excited to announce that they are the 2015 NOFA Champions in the Mini (8-9 yr. olds) and Varsity (12-13 yr. olds) Division!
In the Mini division the Mini Bulldawgs battled Attica youth football to the very end for a 13-7 win. The Bulldawgs pulled off the exciting win on the final play of the game Oct. 24 with only eight seconds remaining. The Mini team was coached by Head Coach Brian Mruczek, along with Otis Thomas, Kenny Griffin and Tom Domboroski.
“As coaches we emphasized on becoming a family and the drive to never give up.” Mruczek said. “Over the course of the season, this team became family and learned to believe in each other. The championship game was exactly how our season went. Hard work, dedication, the will to never give up and the ability to believe in each other!”
The Bulldawgs finished with a record of nine wins and only one loss.
In the Varsity division, the Bulldawgs took on undefeated Newfane youth football. In another close game, the Bulldawgs sealed a 13-6 win to take home the championship. The Varsity team coached by head coach Barry Warner, assisted by Paul Grazioplene, Jason Pratt, Matt Beach and Mike Dillon.
“This team has laid the foundation of the Bulldawgs and its future success,” Warner said. "The Varsity team consisted of many of the remaining players from the inaugural season of the Bulldawgs. It was a great way for the kids to end their Bulldawgs career with us."
The team finished with eight wins and two losses for the season.
The Bulldawgs would like to congratulate all the players, cheerleaders, coaching staffs, and Bulldawg families on an amazing season. We would like to also thank all our corporate sponsors and community leaders that have supported us all season.
We are looking forward to concluding our season next Saturday, Nov. 7th, with the CheerDawgs competing in the 2015 NOFA Cheer Zone, which takes place at Attica High School starting at 10 a.m. Please come out and support our CheerDawgs!
Muckdogs announce 2016 schedule
Press release:
The Batavia Muckdogs, Class A affiliate of the Miami Marlins, have announced their schedule for the 2016 season. Batavia will open the 2016 season Friday, June 17th, when the Auburn Doubledays host the Muckdogs at Falcon Park. Batavia opens its home schedule Wednesday, June 22nd, when they entertain State College at 7:05 p.m.
The Muckdogs will host their annual Independence Day celebration on July 4th this year, marking the first time they have been home on the fourth since the 2012 season. In addition to their Pinckney Division rivals, the Muckdogs will welcome the New York Yankees (Staten Island), New York Mets (Brooklyn), Baltimore Orioles (Aberdeen) and the Tampa Bay Rays (Hudson Valley) farm teams to Dwyer Stadium in 2016.
Here is a month-by-month and day-by-day breakdown of Batavia’s 2016 home schedule:
Month Home Games Day Home Games
June 6 Sunday 6
July 13 Monday 6
Aug. 14 Tuesday 4
Sept. 5 Wednesday 4
Thursday 6
Friday 6
Saturday 6
Season tickets, coupon books and ticket packages for the 2016 season will go on sale beginning Sunday, Nov. 1st. They can be purchased by calling 585-343-5454 or in person at Dwyer Stadium, Monday thru Friday, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
For a complete schedule, visit www.muckdogs.com.
The Batavia Muckdogs are the short-season, Class A affiliate of the Miami Marlins and are the last remaining founding member of the New York-Penn League, dating back to 1939. The Batavia Muckdogs are operated by the neighboring Rochester Red Wings.
Location: Dwyer Stadium, 299 Bank Street, Batavia, NY 14020
Phone: 585-343-5454; Fax: 585-343-5620
Web site: www.muckdogs.com
Memumsnotnice makes a splash in Batavia feature
(Photo of Memumsnotnice with driver Ray Fisher Jr., courtesy of Paul White.)
By Tim Bojarski, Batavia Downs Media Relations
Experiencing the same inclement weather as most of the country on Wednesday night (Oct. 28), six top-class distaff side-wheelers went postward in the wind, rain and sloppy track conditions to compete in the $9,500 Open mares pace at Batavia Downs. And when all was said and done, Memumsnotnice dominated her peers once again.
Starting from post one for the fourth consecutive week, Memumsnotnice (Ray Fisher Jr.) briefly yielded the lead to Country Delight (Jack Flanigen) before retaking at the quarter. She then waltzed unchallenged to a :32 second quarter, unfazed by the river of mud underfoot.
While maintaining a solid three-length lead up to that point, Fisher let the mare out a notch and paced a quick :28.3 third panel in an attempt to put the girls away at that station. The ploy was successful and no one had an answer; Memumsnotnice left the field in her spray en route to a convincing, four-length victory.
It was the fourth win of the year (including second in a row) for Memumsnotnice ($4.90) and the spoils pushed her annual earnings to $37,568 for owners Thatsideofthefence, LLC, and John Mungillo, who also trains the mare.
Ray Fisher Jr. scored a driving triple Wednesday while Drew Monti, Dave McNeight III and Jack Flanigen all registered doubles. Trainers Jim Graham, Dave McNeight Jr. and James Clouser Jr. each sent two winners postward.
Racing resumes on Friday night (Oct. 30) with post time set at 6:15.
No. 1 GCC men's soccer on to regional finals
For the fifth straight season the Genesee Community College men's soccer team will play for a Region III title after the No. 1 nationally-ranked Cougars rolled Mohawk Valley CC in the regional semifinals on Tuesday night, 8-0.
A pair of hat tricks sparked the No. 1 seed, which is now just three goals away from tying the all-time National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) single season mark for goals in a season (134).
Ricard Fernandez-Sarro and William Stone each scored three times for Genesee, with Fernandez-Sarro getting tallies in the 2nd, 5th and 49th minutes and Stone scoring in the 32nd, 41st and 48th minutes.
The Cougars' defense provided another strong effort, holding the Hawks to just two shots on goal. Connor Halsted and Lee Payne split time in net and made one save apiece.
Victor Obetta-Chinenye added two second half goals for the Cougars, in the 75th and 77th minutes respectively.
Stone also had two assists in the game and Fernandez-Sarro, Rafael Godoi, Sam King and Joao Falco each had an assist apiece.
The win, Genesee's 18th of the season, is the new school record for most wins in a single season. The Cougars will play the winner of No. 4 SUNY Broome and No. 12 Niagara County CC (Oct. 28) in the regional finals on Saturday at noon at Herkimer College.
GCC women's soccer out of regional tournament
The Genesee Community College women's soccer team bowed out of the Region III Championships, falling to Tompkins-Cortland Community College on Tuesday night, 2-1.
TC3, the No. 5 seed in the tournament, scored less than four minutes into the first half to take a 1-0 lead.
Genesee, the No. 4 seed, dominated time of possession for the majority of the opening period and sent three shots on net but could not get the equalizer.
The Panthers extended their lead in the 54th minute when Kristin Dake scored to make it 2-0.
The Cougars finally broke through in the 68th minute when Carly Stefani finished a pass from Brianna VanAmeron to cut the TC3 lead down to one.
Genesee had a chance to tie in the 72nd minute when a red card assessed to TC3 resulted in a penalty kick. Kayla Doyle's shot was turned aside by the Panthers' goalkeeper and the score remained 2-1.
GCC managed four shots down the stretch during the final 10-minutes of play, but could not find the back of the net and ends the season with an 11-6 record.
TC3 advances to the Region III Finals, which will take place at Herkimer College on Sunday.
Boys in grades 1-6 invited to sign up for basketball program
Basketball is upon us. The NBA kicks off its season tonight, college games are just a couple of weeks away and the high school season won't be far behind. For boys in grades one through six, it's time to plan for the winter season.
Eligible boys in the Batavia City schools can sign up for a mini-camp proceeding the league play season. The camp runs Nov. 7 through Dec. 12 at John Kennedy.
For boys participating in league play, there is a $70 sign-up fee.
To register, download and complete this form (PDF), which also has more information about the camp and league play.
Jokerman was all business in Batavia Downs Open pace
By Tim Bojarski, Batavia Downs Media Relations
Despite stiff competition and some very inclement weather, Jokerman had the last laugh Saturday night (Oct. 24) by winning the $9,500 Open pacing feature at Batavia Downs.
Western Alumni (Ron Beback Jr.) left hard and made it known he was going to cut the mile. And in kind, everyone then followed in post-position order. Past the quarter, Button Fly (Shawn McDonough) came first up and brought Cobble Beach (John Cummings Jr.) in tow. This left Jokerman (Jim McNeight) tucked in nicely, second at the pylons.
Positions remained basically the same through three-quarters and around the last turn. But as soon as they hit the stretch and the passing lane opened up, McNeight directed Jokerman into that gap and muscled his way to the lead and the win in 1:55. Western Alumni hung on for second with Cobble Beach rallying three-wide for show.
It was the ninth win of 2015 for Jokerman who has now earned $66,051 for the year. The 5-year-old American Ideal gelding is trained by Richard Roth, who co-owns with Robert Roth and Randy Roth.
The $8,400 Open II pace co-feature was one of the more entertaining races of the night. Lucky Nadotremblay (Kevin Cummings) and FB Seelster (Dave McNeight III) fought side-by-side, tooth, fang and claw for the front for almost three-quarters of the mile before Arrived Late (Shawn McDonough) tipped four-wide around them at that station to take the lead and open up by three. But he wasn’t safe as If It Rains (John Cummings Jr.) who was right behind him, tracked him down in the stretch to win by a length. Sent off at 16-1, If It Rains, made it rain, returning $35.80.
Jim McNeight scored a driving hat-trick while Kevin Cummings, Ron Beback Jr. and Jack Flanigen all registered doubles. Trainers Gerry Sarama, Alex Giuliani and Maria Rice each sent two winners to post as well.
Racing resumes at Batavia Downs on Wednesday night (Oct. 28) with the first post set for 6:15.
