Travel Nurse repeated as Buckeye Stallion Series champion with Luke Hanners scoring his 1,000th career driving victory to highlight the eight $104,167 divisional finals at MGM Northfield Park on Saturday, Oct. 4.
The Buckeye Stallion Series freshman filly trot champion a year ago, Travel Nurse led at the first three calls in :28.3, :58.1 and 1:27.1 as she looked to repeat as a sophomore. But securing the win would be far from easy. She led by 2-1/2 lengths entering the final stretch before holding off a strong closing charge from Pretty Lil Penny (Chris Page) to win by half a length as both horses tripped the wire in 1:56.3. Slight even-money favourite Volstarita (Justin Irvine) was third.
Travel Nurse is an Enterprise-Poster Pin Up filly trained by Virgil Morgan Jr. for owner Joyce A McClelland Stable of Zanesville, Ohio. She entered Saturday with two wins on the season, including one in the Buckeye series, and was sixth in the series standings. She has hit the board in 13 of 26 lifetime starts with six victories and $278,204 in earnings.
Hanners, who will turn 25 years old on Oct. 11, scored his 1,000th career victory in his 8,880th start. A native of Columbus, Ohio, who currently resides in Chillicothe, Hanners began his driving career in 2017.
The 2025 freshman filly trot championship went to Readi Two in 1:59.3 with trainer Sandy Beatty in the sulky. Anette Lorentzon stablemates Mockingbird As (Page) and Wild As Her As (Dan Noble) finished second and third, respectively.
Judys Moni (Anthony MacDonald) took the lead off the gate and was in front past the first three calls in fractions of :29.4, 1:00.3 and 1:30. After taking the pocket trip, Readi Two moved to the passing lane to make it three-wide as Wild As Her As challenged on the outside of Judys Moni down the stretch. Readi Two held off a late rally from Mockingbird As from fourth place to win by half a length.
The Ready For Moni-Sentebale filly has hit the board in all eight seasonal starts with six wins and two seconds. She scored victories in two of the five legs of the series and finished second in the standings. Owned by Robert Sharrits of Columbus Grove, Ohio, she now has $105,552 in earnings.
Long Tom geldings Smoke One For Me and Tom Largo won the championships in the colt trot divisions.
Smoke One For Me and Dan Noble used a pocket trip and made a move in the passing lane to win the sophomore colt trot title in 1:56.4. Nelli Up (Kayne Kauffman), a 21-1 longshot, led past the first three calls in fractions of :28.1, :58.1 and 1:27.2. Smoke One For Me entered the passing lane down the stretch and used a late surge to win by 1-1/2 lengths with Nelli Up in second followed by Letsgotoparis (Kurt Sugg) in third.
Smoke One For Me (dam Non Smoker), who posted wins in two of the five legs of the Buckeye this season and finished as the leader in the standings, has eight victories in 21 starts in 2025. The Christi Noble trainee has hit the board in 20 of 27 lifetime starts with 10 wins and $160,386 in earnings. He is owned by Norman Rae Racing of Xenia, Ohio.
Freshman colt trot champion Tom Largo and Chris Lems took the lead off the gate and were in front past the first three calls in :29.3, :59 and 1:28. He opened up a seven-length lead entering the final stretch and won by more than eight lengths over second-place Ready Made (Beatty) in 1:57.1. Eckert Hill Brady (Page), who made a break at the start, was third.
Tom Largo (dam Smith Hall) is trained by Scott Cox for Ohio owners Jughead Stables of Strongsville, G Peters of Akron and Robert Kubiak of Strongsville. He posted a win in two of the five legs of the Buckete this year and was third in the standings. He has hit the board in six of nine seasonal starts with five wins and $172,761 in earnings.
Our Honor Defend and Case Bateson rallied from sixth place at the three-quarter pole to win the sophomore filly pace championship by a nose as the top five finishers all finished within two-fifths of a second of each other.
A 24-1 longshot, Our Honor Defend finished 10th in the Buckeye standings this year but qualified for Saturday’s race courtesy of second-place Bubblles Out and seventh-place Guard The Fire not being in the field.
Survivin Fire (Noble), the 8-5 betting favourite, took the lead off the gate and was in front at the first three calls in :27.2, :56.4 and 1:24.2. Our Honor Defend was four lengths back of the lead at the three-quarter mark before making a late charge. Making it four-wide heading toward the finish line, she edged Anna Loves Bananas (Merriman) by a nose to win with Survivin Fire in third as all three horses tripped the wire in 1:54.2.
Our Honor Defend is a Lost In Time-Dancing On My Own daughter trained by Scott Betts, who co-owns the filly with Keith Gisser of Cleveland Heights, Ohio and Kerry McCullough of Sandusky, Ohio. She has hit the board in 16 of 33 career starts with five wins and $119,589 in earnings.
In another close finish, Unique Catch and Aaron Merriman won the sophomore colt pace championship by a neck over Fly High Cruiser (Noble). Coming off a win in the fifth leg of the Buckete to secure eighth place in the standings, Unique Catch was in seventh place at the quarter pole and sixth at the halfway mark before rallying for the victory. Johnny Up (Sugg) led at the first three calls in :27.1, :56.2 and 1:24.3. Unique Catch made it three-wide going into the final turn en route to surpassing Johnny Up down the final stretch while Fly High Cruiser came up from fifth place to challenge. Unique Catch edged Fly High Cruiser at the line as both horses finished in 1:53.4. Woodrow Blue Chip (Justin Irvine) was third.
Unique Catch is trained by Daren Harvey, who co-owns the gelding with Ohio's Wayne Mast Jr. of Dundee, and Eden Acres Farmstead and Steven Miller of Millersburg. The Catch The Fire-Unique Legacy gelding has five wins in 15 seasonal starts. He has hit the board in 21 of 27 lifetime starts with 14 wins and $204,618 in earnings.
In the freshman filly pace division, Jamie Amanda and Luke Hanners rallied from fourth place at the three-quarter pole to win the championship in a lifetime-best 1:54.4. Queen Valerie (Page), the 5-2 betting favourite, went off stride off the gate, and Mingle In Dingle (Cameron McCown) went to the lead. Mingle In Dingle led at each of the first three calls in fractions of :28, :56.4 and 1:25.1. Jamie Amanda moved second-over going to the three-quarter pole and was three-wide going to the final turn. Still on the outside, Jamie Amanda surged to the lead down the final stretch and won by 1-3/4 lengths. Standerosa (Merriman) was second followed by Mingle In Dingle in third.
Jamie Amanda is trained by Virgil Morgan Jr., who co-owns the Downsbytheseaside-Omen Hanover filly with Let It Ride Stables and Odds On Racing of Boca Raton, Florida. A winner in two legs of the Buckete in 2025, she has four wins and one second in seven seasonal starts with $94,739 in earnings.
Heerz Corinthian, a winner in two of the five legs of the Buckeye this season who entered Saturday sixth in the standings, won the freshman colt pace championship with Cameron McCown. The Downbytheseaside-Rainbow Writer gelding was in sixth place as The Ebony Dragon (Hanners) led the field past the quarter pole in :26.4. The Jessica McCown trainee proceeded to move first-over and was third at the half with The Ebony Dragon still in front in :56.4. Heerz Corinthian took the lead going to the three-quarter pole in 1:25.1 en route to winning by 2-1/4 lengths over Wagon Day (Kauffman) in 1:55.4. Hunka Hunka (Sugg), who posted wins in four of the five legs of the series this year and was the leader in the standings, finished third.
Owned by Heerzthestock Inc. of Bucyrus, Ohio, Tripoli Stable of Norridge, Illinois and Susan Sullivan of New Orleans, Louisiana, Heerz Corinthian has hit the board in six of nine seasonal starts with five wins and $127,502 in earnings.
The 2025 Buckeye Stallion Series concludes with eight $25,000 USD divisions of consolations on Sunday, Oct. 5 at MGM Northfield Park. First-race post time is 6 p.m.
(With files from Ohio Harness Horsemen's Association)