Jerome Daniels will bring his 3-year-old colt trotter TVS Kosmac to the gate in Wednesday’s first division of the Erwin F. Dygert Memorial Night of Champion series. (Al Brodsky photo) 

By Mike Paradise for the IHHA 

 Points matter. In some states in a negative way concerning your driver’s license. Accumulate too many points and you can lose your license or take a big hit from your insurance company.

 However, most of the time points matter in a good way. In our harness racing industry enough points produced can place a horse at a higher position in a poll or in a racetrack series where sufficient accumulated points can put a horse in a championship event instead of a consolation race.

 Such is the case in Hawthorne’s Night of Champions series where points are dispersed with 50 awarded for a first-place finish, 25 for a second, 12 for third, 8 for fourth, 5 for fifth and 1 for starting. The 10 highest point earners advance to a championship.

 Wednesday is leg two of the Night of Champion series for 3-year-olds nominated to Hawthorne’s top billing. It replaces the scheduled second leg that was washed away by rain back in mid-August. In some instances, today, a first or second place finish can virtually wrap up a starting spot for the November championships, the No. 1 night for Illinois bred pacers and trotters.

 For example, in today’s trio of Plum Peachy events Hypeyourbestieup (Travis Seekman), Fox Valley Sadie (Kyle Husted) and Dandy’s Ms Swifty (Casey Leonard) each won their respective first leg back in August and a favorable finish today could clinch a start in the final.

 While the Terry Leonard stable’s Dandy’s Ms Swifty looks to be in great shape with the rail in the third division (race five), her two main foes will have slug it out an event earlier once again. Both drew okay. The Jamaica barn’s Hypeyourbestieup with the two slot and Fox Valley Sadie from the barn of Amy Husted with the five

 Hypeyourbestieup saw her four-race winning streak snapped a few weeks ago in the Illinois Department of Agriculture championship by Fox Valley Sadie.  Between them, the two talented fillies have won 11 races this season, six for Hypeyourbestieup and five for Fox Valley Husted.

 First leg Erwin F. Dygert Memorial winners Lous Private Eye (Casey Leonard) and Lous Mandalorian (Travis Seekman) head up today’s first two splits for second season state-bred male trotters.

 Tru Cash (Marcus Miller), a third-place finisher in the first-round beat Lous Private Eye in their last encounter leaving from the while Lous Private Eye had a rough go from the second tier 10-slot. However, the tables are turned today with “Private Eye” getting the rail and the Erv Miller trainee having to buck the outside seven slot.

 The Erv Miller stable’s Gorgeous Big Guy (Marcus Miller) carries a 15-race unbeaten streak into his division of round two of the Robert F. Carey Memorial race. He breezed in leg one and with the pole position, he looks like a sure thing to win another.

 The threesome of Fox Valley Durham (Marcus Miller), Guitar Man (Travis Seekman) and first round champion Doctor Cruise (Kyle Husted) head up the sixth race first grouping.

 First leg Beulah Dygert Memorial winners Whiskey Lou (Casey Leonard) and Fox Valley Tiegen (Marcu Miller) square off in the eighth race initial division for Illinois bred 3-year-old filly trotters while Calypso Moon (Curt Grummel) and Stand By Your Man (Mike Brink) buck heads in the second split.

 Calypso Moon picked up 12 points with a third-place finish back in August however Stand By Your Man ended up a far back sixth and earned only a single point. A high place finish today would go a long way for the Brink stable’s $41,000 yearling buy to gain berth in the final.