St. Mary’s Ryken High School graduate Jonathan Roberts proudly holds the ceremonial trophy after capturing the dash winning title at Rosecroft Raceway last Thursday evening. Roberts recorded five winners on closing night to overtake Johnathan Ahle for the driving title.
Trainer Greg Trotto and catch driver Johnathan Ahle guide Thor And Dr Jones into the Rosecroft Raceway winners’ circle after Ahle steered the pacer to a 1:53.1 victory in the 2023 season finale.
St. Mary’s Ryken High School graduate Jonathan Roberts proudly holds the ceremonial trophy after capturing the dash winning title at Rosecroft Raceway last Thursday evening. Roberts recorded five winners on closing night to overtake Johnathan Ahle for the driving title.
TED BLACK/Southern Maryland News
Trainer Greg Trotto and catch driver Johnathan Ahle guide Thor And Dr Jones into the Rosecroft Raceway winners’ circle after Ahle steered the pacer to a 1:53.1 victory in the 2023 season finale.
Last Thursday evening Rosecroft Raceway put the finishing touches on its 2023 fall meet and entire calendar of racing by offering a competitive, 14-race card and by honoring its top equine and human performers alike for the past four months.
In the featured $12,000 Maryland Open on the closing night card, Dragon Roars Again (Jarred Moyer) overcame an extended first over bid to forge a 5-1 upset by overhauling favored Marco Beach (Eric Davis) in the lane for a length score in 1:51.3. A six-year-old Dragon Again gelding owned and trained by Thomas Lord, Dragon Roars Again recorded his second win in three starts at the meet and now owns a 8-5-4 slate and $76,000 banked from 38 seasonal tries.
One race later in a conditioned event for aged pacers, Tapped Teen (Jonathan Roberts) benefited from patient handling early and a second over trip to sweep past the leaders late for a length score. Trained by Mike Hall for owner William “Bib” Roberts, Tapped Teen concluded the season with a 6-3-5 slate and secured the 2023 fall meet driving title for Jonathan Roberts.
Then one race later in the $10,000 Maryland Junior Open, Business Director (Russell Foster) ended the meet with his second straight sharp score when he brushed to command down the backside then drew clear from Precision Bluechip (Hugh O’Neil) in the lane to a five-length score. A four-year-old Art Director gelding trained by Jason Bowers, Business Director notched his ninth win in 28 seasonal tries by stopping the timer in 1:52.3 as the 8-5 favorite.
One race later in the 2023 fall meet finale, Thor And Dr Jones (Johnathan Ahle) overcame an extended first over journey to capture a conditioned event as the solid 7-5 choice in 1:53.1. A five-year-old Dontloseyourdayjob gelding trained by Greg Trotto, Thor And Dr Jones notched his second win from his last four tries and concluded the season with four wins from 31 outings overall.
Driver Jonathan Roberts trailed Ahle by two wins heading into the final night of live racing last Thursday but by the midway point of the program he had already overtaken his main rival. A 1999 St. Mary’s Ryken High School graduate, Roberts recorded five wins on the closing night card and clinched the title with three races remaining when he steered Tapped Teen for a formful score.
Trainer Mike Hall had secured the training title well before closing night with 30 wins and on closing night he was able to add to his total early on the card when Your Brother (Roberts) prevailed handily as the overwhelming 1-9 favorite. A sophomore son of So Surreal co-owned by William MacMillan, Sarah MacMillan and Chris Devine, Your Brother ended his campaign with three straight wins and a 5-5-4 slate and nearly $70,000 banked from 26 seasonal outings.
Despite his second-place finish as the 4-5 choice in the feature, Marco Beach was named the fall horse of the meet by the local contingent. A seven-year-old Somebeachsomwhere gelding trained by Alexandra Goldin for owner Antoinette Bencivenne, Marco Beach concluded the local meet with a 4-5-3 slate from 13 starts including a 1:51 score in the Maryland Open on Nov. 19.
One week earlier in the second annual Rosecroft-Freehold drivers’ challenge, New Jersey driver Vincent Ginsburg departed with a slim lead in the standings after steering Tom’s Twilight and Always On Top to bookend scores in the four-race event. Rosecroft regular Trae Porter guided Dancing On A Star to an upset victory in the second leg and local driver Eric David steered Too Soon BG home in the third leg.
Once again highlighting the fall meet was the eighth edition of the $125,000 Potomac Pace Invitational for Free-For-All pacers, which attracted the top five finishers from the $600,000 Breeders Crown Open two weeks earlier. Breeders Crown hero Bythemissal (Yannick Gingras) lived up to his role as the 4-5 favorite in the Potomac when he drew clear late to a three-length score while stopping the timer in 1:48 flat.
Allywag Hanover, the 2022 Potomac Pace champion and all-aged track record holder courtesy of his 1:46.4 victory that evening, settled for minor spoils when fourth in this year’s renewal but he attained an immediate measure of revenge two weeks later when he ventured to The Meadowlands in New Jersey and captured the $350,000 FanDuel Open Pace in 1:49.1 by overhauling favored Bythemissal in the lane.
After a brief hiatus Rosecroft will kick off the 2024 winter-spring meet on Thursday, January 18 and race two nights each week through Preakness Day, May 18. Live racing is slated for each Tuesday and Thursday beginning at 7:15 with the lone exceptions being a pair of Saturday cards on Kentucky Derby Day, May 4 and Preakness Day, May 18.
