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Ross pads lead with victory WHITE CITY - Howie Ross apparently feels at home at the Southern Oregon Speedway. The Santa Rosa, Calif., driver repeated as the feature winner during the annual stop of the Western States Dwarf Car Association at the track on Saturday night. Ross staged an impressive battle with J.D. Gardner, exchanging the lead throughout the 30-lap main event. Gardner, of Lakewood, Colo., had the lead when a yellow flag came out on the 28th lap, giving Ross a final chance at the win. Ross added to his lead in the series point standings when he wrestled the top spot from Gardner on the final corner, taking the checkered and the $1,250 that went with it. "There's something working for me here because J.D. should have had this race," said Ross. "I got lucky. Sometimes a little luck is better. For this race, I'll take the luck." Rogue River's Jon DeBenedetti was slated to be part of the shootout in the feature but was knocked out of action for the night when he rolled his car in the trophy dash. Two other classes were also in action on Saturday. In the pro stocks, Jim Walker Jr. set the pace yet again, winning his ninth feature of the season. Rick Hunsley ran a solid race, finishing second. Jim Hill cruised to another easy victory in the mini stocks. The Grants Pass driver made a clean sweep of the night, taking his heat, the trophy dash and the feature event. The win was Hill's 26th in mini stocks. Following the triumph, he promptly sold his car and announced he will be moving up to the pro stocks next season. WESTERN STATES DWARF CARS D Main: 1. Sean Salisbury; 2. Bill Van Praag; 3. Jim Dunn; 4. Gary Fitzsimmons; 5. Wayne Van Raden; 6. Roger McCarthy; 7. Brad Fuchs. C Main: 1. Jessie Chinn; 2. Adam Johnson; 3. Brian Quilty; 4. Michael Grehert; 5. Sean Salisbury; 6. Josh Hiatt; 7. Curtis Romero; 8. Ron Love. B Main: 1. Rob Anderson; 2. Brian Shaw; 3. Frank Munroe; 4. Jeff Shafer; 5. Jessie Chinn; 6. Steve Alberdi; 7. Seth Wilson; 8. Al Ghiorso; 9. Adam Johnson; 10. Brian Quilty; 11. Michael Grehert; 12. Josh Hiatt; 13. Curtis Romero; 14. Skip Hempler; 15. Ron Love. Feature: 1. Howie Ross; 2. J.D. Gardner; 3. Gilbert Toste; 4. Seth Wilson; 5. Jeff Shafer; 6. Jessie Chinn; 7. Douglas Martin; 8. Ronnie Williams; 9. Adam Johnson; 10. Steve Alberdi. BLEACHERS MINI STOCKS Heat 1: 1. Tracy O�Callahan; 2. Tom Lanigan; 3. Sam Dixon. Heat 2: 1. Patrick Lanigan; 2. Pat Akins; 3. Jack Clement. Heat 3: 1. Jim Hill; 2. Rick Weber; 3. Scott Hines. Heat 4: 1. Rocky Bass; 2. Wayne Kniffen; 3. Tim Towler. Trophy Dash: 1. Jim Hill; 2. Rocky Bass; 3. Tracy O�Callahan; 4. Patrick Lanigan. Feature: 1. Jim Hill. LES SCHWAB PRO STOCKS Heat 1: 1. Tony Walker; 2. Chris Charlton; 3. Albert Gill. Heat 2: 1. Butch Poppa; 2. Tracy Bradley; 3. Frank Word III. Heat 3: 1. Jerry Severson; 2. Brian Poppa; 3. Dan Thomas. Heat 4: 1. Eric Bray; 2. Rick Hunsley; 3. Mike Medel. Trophy Dash: 1. Butch Poppa; 2. Tony Walker; 3. Eric Bray; 4. Jerry Severson. B Main: 1. Wally Watkins; 2. Bo Shields; 3. Earl Gower. Feature: 1. Jim Walker Jr.; 2. Rick Hunsley. Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.