Steve Szupka set the pace in Competition Eliminator Thursday to open sportsman qualifying at the NHRA Nationals presented by Nitro Fish at Maple Grove Raceway. Donald Belles (Super Stock), Stephen Smyth (Stock) and Vonnie Mills (Top Sportsman) also claimed early leads in their respective categories.
Szupka, from Northampton, Pa., drove his Spitzer C/DA to a 6.907-second pass at 7.57 under the index to lead Competition Eliminator. Joe Carnasciale of Ashway, R.I., followed in second with an 8.864 run in his Cavalier, while Calvin Hill of Tamaqua, Pa., slotted into third at 7.386 in his dragster.
The Comp top five also included Thomas Miller of Nottingham, Pa., in his Cobalt and Richard Schonberger of Southampton, Pa., in his Cavalier. Mark Hopkins of Phoenixville, Pa., and Patrick Ross of Avon Lake, Ohio, were among the other early standouts inside the top 10.
In Super Stock, Belles of Collegeville, Pa., delivered the best performance with an 8.865 at more than a second under the FSS/D index in his 2020 Camaro. He was trailed closely by Anthony Bongiovanni of Parsippany, N.J., who posted an 8.694 in his Mustang, and Peter D’Agnolo of Rochester, N.Y., with an 8.546 in a Cobalt.
Other notables included David Collette of Perryville, Md., and Stacy McCarty of Plainfield, Ind., who rounded out the top five. Defending class standout David Barton of Sinking Spring, Pa., qualified sixth with his Mustang, less than a tenth behind the leaders.
Stock Eliminator saw Smyth of Uxbridge, Mass., lead the way in his 2009 Challenger with a 9.525, more than a second under the FS/D index. He edged out David Ficacci of Randolph, N.J., in his 1969 Camaro, and Eric Merryfield of Andover, Mass., who drove a 1977 Gremlin into third.
The top five also featured Bongiovanni in a second entry with his late-model Mustang and John Leach of Fallston, Md., with a 1969 Roadrunner. More than 100 entries are expected in the category this weekend.
Mills of Kennedyville, Md., paced Top Sportsman with a 6.291 at 221.38 mph in her 2013 Camaro. Jeff Brooks of Fredericksburg, Va., put his Henry J into second with a 6.406, while Alexander Thomson of Milford, N.J., claimed third with his ’67 Mustang.
Rounding out the early top five were Al Davidowski of Columbus, N.J., and Ronald Riegel of Fairless Hills, Pa. The class featured multiple six-second passes as racers set an early tone for the weekend.
THURSDAY SPORTSMAN QUALIFYINGÂ
COMP (Q-2)
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1 11 C/DA Steve Szupka, Northhampton PA, Spitzer 6.907 7.57 -0.663
2 7 I/SMA Joe Carnasciale, Ashway RI, ’07 Cavalier 8.864 9.52 -0.656
3 1057 D/DA Calvin Hill, Tamaqua PA, Dragster 7.386 8.01 -0.624
4 1471 C/AA Thomas Miller, Nottingham PA, ’06 Cobalt 7.242 7.85 -0.608
5 1867 I/SM Richard Schonberger, Southhampton PA, ’06 8.961 9.55 -0.589
6 1086 D/A Mark Hopkins, Phoenixville PA, ’92 Beretta 7.644 8.23 -0.586
7 3002 D/A Patrick Ross, Avon Lake OH, ’05 Pontiac G 7.676 8.26 -0.584
8 1979 AH/SM Eldon Baum, Wellsville PA, ’68 Dart 8.378 8.95 -0.572
9 1034 PSTA Chip Ippolito, Laconia NH, ’01 S-10 7.651 8.22 -0.569
10 104 D/SMA Frank Affronti, Ontario NY, ’12 Chevy Cob 8.400 8.95 -0.550
SUPER STOCK (Q-3)
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1 1737 FSS/D Donald Belles, Collegeville PA, ’20 Camaro 8.865 9.90 -1.035
2 1759 FSS/C Anthony Bongiovanni, Parsippany NJ, ’14 M 8.694 9.65 -0.956
3 7 SS/CM Peter D`Agnolo, Rochester NY, ’10 Cobalt 8.546 9.50 -0.954
4 1540 FSS/E David Collette, Perryville MD, ’11 Challe 9.101 10.05 -0.949
5 3099 GT/DA Stacy McCarty, Plainfield IN, ’05 Grand Am 9.069 10.00 -0.931
6 1990 FSS/C David Barton, Sinking Spring PA, ’14 Must 8.724 9.65 -0.926
7 15 GT/MA Bill Kennedy, Wilkes-Barre PA, ’85 Firebi 10.292 11.20 -0.908
8 3662 FSS/F Scott Libersher, Wilmington IL, ’15 Camaro 9.308 10.20 -0.892
9 1027 GT/TB Marc LaBrecque, S. Deerfield MA, ’00 S-10 9.964 10.85 -0.886
10 1325 SS/MA Robert Bagley, Warsaw VA, ’57 Station Wag 10.967 11.85 -0.883
CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE RESULTS
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STOCK (FINAL)
1 17 FS/D Stephen Smyth, Uxbridge MA, ’09 Challenger 9.525 10.60 -1.0752 1013 AA/SA David Ficacci, Randolph NJ, ’69 Camaro 9.659 10.70 -1.041
3 1883 T/SA Eric Merryfield, Andover MA, ’77 Gremlin 13.386 14.40 -1.014
4 1759 FS/A Anthony Bongiovanni, Parsippany NJ, ’10 M 8.704 9.70 -0.996
5 1139 C/SA John Leach, Fallston MD, ’69 Roadrunner 10.417 11.40 -0.983
6 7801 F/SA Pete Lanciers, Spring Valley CA, ’73 Dust 10.875 11.85 -0.975
7 3807 A/SA Mike Delahanty, Novi MI, ’64 Belvedere 10.053 11.00 -0.947
8 1150 B/SA Russell Linke, Old Bridge NJ, ’97 Camaro 10.305 11.25 -0.945
9 1152 B/S Ed Bednaz, Terryville CT, ’70 Nova 10.264 11.20 -0.936
10 144 O/SA Bob Bender, Perryville MD, ’69 Kingswood 12.218 13.15 -0.932
CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE RESULTS
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TOP SPORTSMAN (Q-2)
1 1027 Vonnie Mills, Kennedyville MD, ’13 Camaro 6.291 221.38 221.38
2 1929 Jeff Brooks, Fredericksburg VA, ’51 Henry J 6.406 217.67 217.67
3 141D Alexander Thomson, Milford NJ, ’67 Mustang 6.598 213.67 213.67
4 1967 Al Davidowski, Columbus NJ, ’10 GXP 6.772 204.42 204.42
5 1736 Ronald Riegel, Fairless Hills PA, ’68 Camaro 6.854 203.37 203.37
6 124 Michael Grafas, Brick NJ, ’63 Corvette 7.067 195.48 195.48
7 163 Don Preece, Meriden CT, ’68 Camaro 7.105 182.60 194.32
8 152A George Forster, Greencastle PA, ’98 Monte Carlo 7.107 194.97 194.97
9 1783 Vincent Fourcade, Mount Airy MD, ’15 Camaro 7.177 191.35 191.35
10 1209 Levon Currie, Glassboro NJ, ’98 Cutlass 7.224 190.97 190.97
