Ater, Morgan wrap up Scioto titles

Kyle Ater leads all drivers with 93 wins at the 2008 Scioto Downs meet as the season wraps up with programs on Friday and Saturday evenings.

Once again, Virgil Morgan Jr. repeated as the leading trainer at Scioto Downs. The powerful Morgan Stable had sent out the winners of 46 races through last Saturday to lead all trainers.

The two Ohio horsemen received plaques commemorating their accomplishments last Saturday on Super Night when more than 8,000 people came to the Columbus oval to watch eight Ohio Sire Stakes champion finals.

Ater, 31, led the driving race from early in the meet although Chris Page showed off his driving skills with 70 victories through Saturday night. Ater earned purses of $356,964 and has a .331 Universal Driver Rating.

Following Ater and Page were Jeremy Smith, Jeff Nisonger, and Sam “Chip” Noble.

Morgan has a stable that sends horses to the post at many different tracks. He still lives in Grove City, not far from Scioto Downs, and he’s based at Scioto. His horses won 27.2 percent of their starts at Scioto and he has a Universal Trainer Rating of .408 going into the last two nights of the season. 

On Super Night, Morgan paraded his star Mister Big, the eighth richest pacer of all time with earnings of more than $2.9 million. The large and appreciative crowd gave Mister Big a warm greeting as the 5 year old toured the track.      

Ranking behind Morgan in wins were Dan Ater, Jeff Amann, and Jim Dailey. (Scioto Downs) 

« Back