The Meadows Standardbred Owners Association proudly announces its annual awards for the top horses at The Meadows in 2017.
Each winner among the 12 categories now has an opportunity to be voted Pacer/Trotter of the Year and Meadows Horse of the Year. Balloting will take place among the MSOA’s members.
This year, the individual category winners were based upon new criteria set forth by the MSOA’s Board of Directors which focused on each horse’s earnings at The Meadows. All owners must be members of the MSOA.
The top freshman pacing colt of the year is Like Clockwork, owned by Birnam Wood Farms and trained by Tim Twaddle. The pacer took a mark of 1:52.2 and earned over $87,000 with six wins in eight starts.
Paula Sokol’s Rock N On Sunshine has been named the MSOA’s top two-year-old filly pacer for 2017. A three-time winner, the filly took a mark of 1:55.4 and earned over $21,000 for trainer Rich Gillock.
Top freshman trotting honours go to What A Hunk, owned by Susan Daugherty and trained by her husband, Bill Daugherty, Jr. A two-time winner in 2017, What A Hunk took a mark of 1:59.3 and earned just under $30,000.
Explosive G, owned by Richard Hess and trained by Wilbur Yoder, has been named the MSOA’s Two-Year-Old Filly Trotter of the Year. She earned over $53,000 with a mark of 1:59.2, winning twice in nine starts.
Among three-year-old colt pacers, Louies So Bossy was named to the top spot. Joseph Soltis owns, and Paul Corey trains Louies So Bossy, who took a 2017 mark of 1:52.1.
Terrortina, owned by breeder Bob Key, earned sophomore pacing filly honours. A stake filly, she took a mark of 1:53 for trainer Norm Parker. Terrortina successfully defended her title from 2016, when she was named the MSOA’s top two-year-old pacing filly.
Also defending his title in 2017 was Media Buzz, the top three-year-old trotting colt. After winning the award as a two-year-old in 2016, Media Buzz pushed his career earnings over $100,000 this year with a mark of 1:54.2. Steve Bush trains and co-owns with Dennis and Alvira Fassett.
Mimosa Hanover was named the MSOA’s three-year-old Trotting Filly of the Year after winning six of 25 starts in her first year of racing. Dan Altmeyer trained and co-owned with Richard Kelson, Heather Wilder and Jeff Altmeyer. Mimosa Hanover earned over $80,000 before being sold to other local connections at the Harrisburg Sale.
Call For Justice parlayed his lengthy local win streak earlier in the year into Aged Trotting Horse/Gelding of the Year honours. Owned by Burke Racing and Weaver Bruscemi LLC, Call For Justice won a total of 12 races for the season for trainer Ron Burke.
Barn Girl, owned by Renee Bercury and trained by Bill Bercury, was dominant throughout the year, winning 15 of 31 starts en route to being named the MSOA’s Aged Trotting Mare of the Year. She lowered her lifetime mark to 1:53.
The Bercury Stable also captured the Aged Pacing Horse/Gelding award with Dapper Dude. Dapper Dude won 13 of 35 starts with a season mark of 1:50 and 2017 earnings in excess of $150,000.
Finally, the MSOA's Aged Pacing Mare of the Year is Show Runner, owned by A Piece of the Action Stable. Show Runner competed at the top distaff level most of the season for trainer Christy Pantaleano.
The top three awards will be announced –- and all 12 winners will be honoured –- at the annual Night of Champions event, to be held Friday, January 19, 2018 at The Meadows Racetrack & Casino. Post Time is 5:30 p.m.
(MSOA)