HAGERSTOWN, MD – It was a clean sweep for Tyler Erb on Saturday night at Hagerstown Speedway as the 25-year-old Texas native set Allstar Performance overall fast time, won his heat, and led all 50 laps to win the Conococheague 50 in the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series-sanctioned event.
Defending race winner Tim McCreadie finished in second followed by Gregg Satterlee, Kyle Hardy, and points leader Devin Moran. With the win, Erb becomes the 13th different winner in 14 Lucas Oil races held at Hagerstown Speedway, which is celebrating its 75th Anniversary this year.
Erb jumped to the lead at the start of the race on an evening where there were a few rain-shower delays, but the track crew whipped the ½ mile facility in quick shape as the program was complete by 8:30 PM. Only one Stop-Tech caution flag slowed Erb during the event. This win was not only Erb’s first ever win at Hagerstown, but also the first at this track for his crew chief Randall Edwards.
Bryan Bernheisel pressured Erb until McCreadie, who had scored a thrilling last lap victory a year ago at Hagerstown, passed Bernheisel on lap four to take second. McCreadie was running a different line than Erb and got within a couple of car lengths as the two battled up to the lap 28 yellow.
After the caution Erb went unchallenged for the lead the rest of the way as McCreadie fell into the clutches of Hardy and Satterlee. Hardy was looking for a podium finish in the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, but Satterlee was able to wrestle the spot away from him with 12 laps remaining.
In Lucas Oil Victory Lane for the 17th time in his career Erb becomes the seventh different winner this season. “That’s the way we draw it out every week to have a night like this, but it doesn’t always pan out. I am glad we got this in with the weather and everything. It was really a good crowd for not the most desirable weather conditions. I can’t believe it honestly. The first time I came here I was so bad, it was unbelievable, last year we got a little bit better but to win this year just means a lot. I am excited to get to Port Royal tomorrow. To get a win here it’s a real confidence booster, this place just moved up on my list of race tracks I like now.”
McCreadie, the reigning series champion, came home in second. “We were starting to fade a little bit before that caution. This is the car we ran last year. People think oh it’s Hagerstown so you’re always going to be good here. I have driven enough to know we made a big stride today.”
Satterlee, 2016 Lucas Oil winner with a last lap pass at Hagerstown, rounded out the podium with a third-place run. “We really needed to win my heat race. We just needed a little better starting position for the feature but all-in-all it was good night. We are working on a couple of new things with the car this year to get better. I don’t think we have quite got where we need to be, but we are definitely close.”
The winner’s Best Performance Motorsports Rocket Chassis is powered by a Clements Racing Engine and sponsored by Bulk Material Lift, M&W Transport, Lucas Oil Products, Midwest Sheet Metal, Bazell Race Fuels, KBC Graphics, Roberts Bee Company, and First-Class Septic.
Completing the top ten were Jimmy Owens, Earl Pearson Jr., Matt Cosner, Ricky Thornton Jr., and Shane Clanton.