Sports

Jim Morrill Jr. was on fire Friday night (Sept.16) at Batavia Downs, winning five out of the 10 races on the card including both feature races.

In the $15,000 Open I Handicap trot, Morrill left with Credit List and took no prisoners in the process. He parked Frank’s Watching (Ray FIsher Jr.) who eventually ducked in second and Jumpinthejailhouse (Kevin Cummings) who could not find a seat and was destined for a long evening. Credit List went through quarters of :28.2 and :57.1 while Jumpinthejailhouse drafted in the breeze. As they motored up the backstretch, Jumpinthejailhouse was fading and Golden Kronos (Drew Monti) was winging three-deep around him on his advance towards the leader. Golden Kronos got to within one length of Credit List but that was it as Morrill shook him loose down the lane and won by two lengths in 1:57. 

It was the fifth win of the year for Credit List ($4.60) who is owned by Room4040 LLC Stables and trained by Kevin Reynolds Jr. 

In the $14,000 Open II Handicap, Morrill also left with Night Flyer K from his pylon position start and led at every station as well. After splits of :28.4, :57.4 and 1:27.1, Morrill asked for more and got it as Night Flyer K swelled up in the lane and kicked away by 3-¾ lengths to win in 1:56.2, which was the fastest win time ever by the mare over a half mile track and only one-fifth of a second off the Batavia Downs track record for aged trotting mares that coincidentally is co-owned by the second place finisher C R Blazin Beauty (2019), along with Chelsea’s Chance (2018). 

Fresh in from Yonkers, Night Flyer K ($4.00) was victorious in her first start for her new connections Vogel & Wags Nags and Team Rice Racing. Maria Rice is the winning conditioner. 

Morrill completed his quintet conquest with Osprey Vision (1:59.1, $5.10), Joey Pro (1:58.1, $2.10) and Always A Force (1:54.2, $4.40). Four of Morrill’s five wins came in grand slam fashion in races five, six, seven and eight. 

Morrill is currently in second place for dash wins at the Batavia meet and one might think that Friday’s performance would bring him that much closer to the top. However the current leader is Kevin Cummings and not to be outdone by Morrill, he had four wins of his own during the card so Morrill only closed the gap by one. After Friday’s action Cummings now has 65 wins and Morrill has 53.  

Live racing resumes at Batavia Downs on Saturday (Sept. 17) with post time at 6 p.m. Free full past performance race programs for all live race days can be downloaded by visiting the track's website at bataviadownsgaming.com and clicking the "Live Racing" tab.

Photo by Wendy J. Lowery

James V. Compton, 80, passed away on Sept. 13, 2022.

Mr. Compton was born on February 17, 1942 in Batavia, New York to the late Cecil and Alice Compton of East Pembroke, New York. He received his education at Corfu High School and worked as a milkman in the days of home delivery, then as a machinist before going to General Motors in Rochester, where he would retire.

Mr. Compton also loved horses and that led him to become involved in harness racing at Batavia Downs. He first got his license in 1972 and became both a successful driver and trainer that competed at several tracks in upstate New York. Early in his career he raced mostly claimers but starting in the early 1990’s he experienced some real success.

First came Held For Ransom who was an Open pacer that Compton both trained and drove and eventually won 51 races along with $125,115 in purses. Then when Held For Ransom’s racing career was over, Compton and his wife Sandra bred him to one of their retired race mares, suspicion Burns, and the result was his most notable horse, Michael Scores.

Michael Scores (1:50.4, $668,079) started out as a New York Sire Stake star and went on to be an overnight Open legend and will forever be considered one of the greatest pacers to come out of western New York. Out of 275 lifetime starts, Michael Scores won 86 races, finished second 47 times and third 27 more. His biggest win came in 2006 when he captured the Kane Memorial pace at Batavia Downs and set a new all-time track record of 1:52.1.

A short list of other notable horses campaigned by Mr. Compton include 55-race winner Gasper Again (1:53.4, $165,975), 50-race winner Splurging Rita (1:58.2, $161,231) and Sly Hi (1:56.1, $70,953).

During his career, Mr. Compton compiled some impressive numbers. As a driver he had 522 wins, 459 seconds and 367 thirds out of only 2725 starts, giving him a stellar .330 UDR and $1,137,716 in earnings. As a trainer he had 2,892 starts with 578 wins, 483 seconds and 385 thirds that gave him a .337 UTR and $1,934,431 in earnings.

Mr. Compton is survived by his loving wife of 61 years, Sandra L. Compton; his children, Kevin Compton of E Bethany, Roger Compton and his wife, Cheryl of Bloomfield NJ, Cheryl Squire and her husband, Timothy of Wakefield NC, Jeanne Palmer and her husband, Albert of Warsaw NY.

Mr. Compton also has 6 grandchildren; Taylor Squire, Rachael Boynton, Aaron Pahuta, Allyssa Compton-Disla, Michael Compton and Amanda Palmer; 2 great-grandchildren, Addison Gregg and Ethan Boynton; sister-in-law, Grace Compton; brother-in-law, Wayne Speed; Patty Beverly and her family, John Nelson and his family, Geri Puma and her family, along with many nieces, nephews and dear friends.

Mr. Compton is predeceased by his siblings, Phillip Compton, Richard Compton and Carol Speed, as well as his grandson, Zachary Squire.

Family and friends may call on Sunday (Sept. 18) from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the Falcone Family Funeral & Cremation Service Inc., 8700 Lake St. Rd. (Rt. 19), LeRoy, New York. His Celebration of Life Service will be held on Monday (Sept. 19) at 11:00 a.m. at Northgate Free Methodist Church, 8160 Bank St. Rd., Batavia, New York. Interment will follow in Hillside Cemetery, East Pembroke, New York.

After winning two straight top paces for fillies and mares at Batavia Downs, Shallow was handicapped by post eight and seven the following two weeks and did not hit the board. This week she caught a short field but still had to dig deep to win the $15,000 Open I pace for fillies and mares on Wednesday evening (Sept. 14). 

They were three deep into the first turn when Shallow (Ray Fisher Jr.) out-tussled So Admirable (Jim Morrill Jr.) for the lead motoring to the quarter in :28.2. But Morrill wasn’t content with a pocket trip and pulled So Admirable in front of the stands and took control of the top before they hit the half in :58.1. 

Heading past the five-eighths, Tres Chic Bluechip (Kevin Cummings) pulled first-up but couldn not get closer than third on the rim as So Admirable was stretching out to a 2-¼ length advantage by the three-quarters. Heading into the lane, Shallow ducked into the passing lane while Tres Chic Bluechip went outside of So Admirable, making it three across the track. They stayed even for several strides but Shallow got the advantage in deep stretch and won by three-quarters of a length in 1:55. 

Shallow ($10.40) hit double digits in the win category, now sporting 10 victories in 2022 and they earned $82,616 for her owner Room4040 LLC Stables. Andy Gardner trains the winner. 

In the $11,000 upper-level conditioned event also written for distaff participants, Faithful Desire (Jim Morrill Jr.) drafted perfectly behind Misty Memory N (Dave McNeight III) through fractions of :29, :59.3 and 1:27.3 before tipping off cover and pacing home in a stiff :27.4 to win by one-half length in 1:55.3. 

Scoring her second win in the last three starts and sixth win of the year, Faithful Desire ($5.00) is owned by Crazy Parrot Farm and is trained by Shawn McDonough. 

Faithful Desire was the fourth win of the night for Morrill, who led all drivers for output on Wednesday. Tom Mays led all trainers for wins with two. 

Live racing resumes at Batavia Downs on Friday (Sept. 16) with post time at 6 p.m. Free full past performance race programs for all live race days can be downloaded by visiting the track's website at bataviadownsgaming.com and clicking the "Live Racing" tab.

Photo by Wendy J. Lowery

The Batavia Boys soccer team fell to 2-2 on the season with a 1-0 loss on Tuesday to Greece Odyssey. 

Greece Odyssey scored the winning goal with two minutes left in the contest.

 Goalkeeper Jack Pickard had 15 saves. 

Taking full advantage of a soft second quarter, Just Plain Loco hit the gas in the second half and put away the field in the $15,000 Open I Handicap pacing feature at Batavia Downs on Saturday night (Sept. 10).

Dave McNieght III left hard with Just Plain Loco, seated fellow leaver Stratosphere (Drew Monti) in the first turn and then took the field to the quarter in :27.4. With the six-horse field staying single file from there, McNieght grabbed leather and backed off the second panel to :30.1 and that was the game changer. Surfer Beach (Jack Rice) made the first over move and tried to advance towards the leader, but Just Plain Loco had another plan in mind.

He sped to three-quarters in 1:25.3 and put some distance between himself and the field before heading into the last turn. At the top of the stretch Just Plain Loco had a two-length advantage and a lot left in the tank as he paced home in 1:53.1, which was just one-fifth of a second off his season's best effort. 

It was the seventh win of the year for Just Plain Loco ($4.30) who is owned by Paul Lang and Mark Toth. Jennifer Giuliani trains the winner. 

McNeight had two wins during the night. 

The $14,000 Open II Handicap pace was a real slugfest and only the photo finish camera could separate three horses at the wire. 

Drunkonaplane (Jack Rice) left and got the cold shoulder from the pylon-starter Yankee On The Move (Kyle Cummings). The two went at it through quarters of :27.3 and :56.1 before Ideal Artillery (Drew Monti) rolled up first in the breeze and tipped three wide around the fading Drunkonaplane at the five-eighths pole. 

Ideal Artillery then hooked up with Yankee On The Move at three-quarters and they paced in unison around the far turn and into the stretch. It was there that American Trademark (Keith Kash) shook loose and made it three across the track. Under heavy urging, the trio battled all the way to the line where Ideal Artillery got a nose in front to win in 1:53.4. 

Ideal Artillery ($5.70) is owned by Howard and Michael Ouriel and is trained by Don Rothfuss.

Kevin Cummings was the top driver on Saturday with three wins during the proceedings. 

Live racing resumes at Batavia Downs on Wednesday (Sept. 14) with post time at 6 p.m. Free full past performance race programs for all live race days can be downloaded by visiting the track's website at bataviadownsgaming.com and clicking the "Live Racing" tab.

Photo by Wendy J. Lowery.

The Pembroke girls soccer team once again came from behind and won in overtime 4-3, this time beating Eastride.

Head coach April Meier provided the scoring summary:

• Nevaeh Bunch (#3) for Eastridge   Time: minute 11  
• Madison Harisis (#11) for Eastridge Time: minute 34
• Karli Houseknecht (#25 senior captain) for Pembroke Time: minute 35
• Karli Houseknecht (#25 senior captain) for Pembroke Time: minute 45
• Isabel Breeden (#8 senior captain) for Pembroke Time: minute 47
• Haley Sweet (#18 senior) for Pembroke Time: overtime minute 2, Assisted by Molly Chittenden (#11 senior) off a direct kick. 

Notable Defensive plays made by: Ameilia Berghorn, Isabel Breeden and Emma Groff

Richard R. Mays, of Hamburg, passed away on Sept. 7, 2022, after a fierce battle with cancer.

Mr. Mays was a lifelong horseman who competed in western New York for 50 years. He was first licensed in 1973 at the age of 16 and has been competing at tracks across New York state ever since. He experienced great early career driving success with the Open pacing mare May O’neighs (2:01.1, $83,925) and Open pacing gelding Lyron Hanover (1:59.3, $127,242) along with a list of other top horses that he raced at Batavia Downs. Later in his career when he switched to training more than driving, Mr. Mays developed many solid racehorses including the multiple stakes winner Two Twentytwo (1:51.3, $293,729).  

During his career, Mr. Mays drove 1,638 winners that earned $4,222,626. He trained another 321 winners which added $1,585,531 to his purse total. His total career efforts won him 1,959 races that benefited his horse’s connections $5,808,157. Mr. Mays was actively racing right up until the time of his passing.

Mr. Mays was the beloved husband of Karen M. Mays (nee Babcock), loving father of Christopher (Frances) Mays, Jamie Simmons, and Scott Mays, dear grandpa of Tyler, Mayson, Maddie, and Hudson, dearest son of the late Frank and Marion Mays, loving brother of Frank Jr., Robert, Terry, Tom, and Joyce. Mr. Mays is also survived by a large loving family and many dear friends.

The family will be present to receive relatives and friends on Thursday, Sept. 15 from 3 to 7 p.m. at the Hamburg Chapel of the John J. Kaczor Funeral Home, 5453 Southwestern Blvd. (corner of Rogers Rd.) where a closing prayer will be said at 7 p.m. Please share condolences at www.kaczorfunerals.com.

Beaten only a nose last week after winning three in a row, Saulsbrook Olympia got back to her winning ways after she parlayed a lot of early movement into a late stretch score in the $15,000 Open I Handicap pace for fillies and mares at Batavia downs on Wednesday night (Sept. 7). 

Dontustopbelievn N (Jim Morrill Jr.) grabbed the front and made fellow leavers Demeter N (Larry Stalbaum) and Dashintothebeach N (Luke Hanners) work hard to take it from her. Demeter N cleared at the :28 quarter and Dashintothebeach N supplanted that one at the top of the stretch, heading to the half. And just as the field had finally achieved single file, Tres Chic Bluechip (Kevin Cummings) pulled first-over from fifth and brought Saulsbrook Olympia (Dave McNeight III) with her to push the issue even further. 

Dashintothebeach N continued to lead up the backstretch until she hit three-quarters where Tres Chic Bluechip drew alongside, but that was just part of the evolving story. Saulsbrook Olympia who had been drafting one out and two back in the breeze was now winging it three-wide halfway into the final turn. By the time they hit the straight, Tres Chic Bluechip had overtaken Dashintothebeach N, but then Saulsbrook Olympia overtook Tres Chic Bluechip and pulled away to 1-½ length victory in 1:53.4. 

It was the fourth win in the last five starts and eighth win overall this year for Saulsbrook Olympia ($9.40) who is owned by William Mcneil and Edward Gorc and trained by Jeniffer Giuliani. 

McNeight III had a driving double on Wednesday. 

There were also two $11,000 upper-level condition races for distaff participants and the winning pair went nearly identical miles. 

In the first So Admirable (Jim Morrill Jr.) started from post one and was never headed. After cutting quarters of :28.1, :57.1 and 1:25.3 while extending her lead to three lengths by the top of the stretch, she closed out the deal in 1:54.2, equalling her lifetime mark. 

So Admirable ($3.50) is owned by Joe Amico Jr. and trained by Shawn McDonough. 

Then in the second, Winning Words (Kevin Cummings) also left from pylon position and went gate to wire in handy fashion. After splits of :28, :57.1 and 1:26, Cummings let Winning Words pace home on top by 1-¾ in 1:54.3.

Winning Words ($4.50) is owned by Steven Goehle and Norene Mego. Angelo Nappo trains the winner. 

Cummings ended the night with three wins while Nappo wrapped it up with two. 

Other horsemen with doubles on Wednesday were driver Dan Yetman and trainer Dave Russo. 

Live racing resumes at Batavia Downs on Saturday (Sept. 10) with post time at 6 p.m. Free full past performance race programs for all live race days can be downloaded by visiting the track's website at bataviadownsgaming.com and clicking the "Live Racing" tab.

Photo by Wendy J. Lowery