Kyle Strohl Wins Wild Modified Main: Factory Stocks return after over a decade

COLUMN BY: Ted Grow – MAHONING VALLEY SPEEDWAY – LEHIGHTON, PA  – Kyle Strohl reached Victory Lane for the third time in five races during the 2026 season Saturday night at Mahoning Valley Speedway Park.

Starting fifth in the 35-lap Modified feature, Strohl had to navigate through a race filled with intense battles and close calls before claiming the victory.

At the drop of the green flag, Mark Miller nosed ahead of outside pole sitter Jacob Kerstetter. Kerstetter led the opening lap, but the action quickly intensified behind him. Lou Strohl attempted to work underneath Miller’s No. 7X, resulting in slight contact. Miller displayed outstanding car control, correcting his machine several times while checking up the field—including Kyle Strohl—before regaining control without bringing out a caution.

By lap nine, Kyle Strohl had worked to the outside of Lou Strohl when Lou’s car became slightly sideways. The two made contact and spun, bringing out the race’s first caution.

On the restart, race leader Jacob Kerstetter and sixth-place starter Jacob Christman waged an exciting side-by-side battle as both drivers searched for their first career Modified victory at the famed quarter-mile oval. Christman looked both high and low over several laps, but Kerstetter answered every challenge to maintain the lead.

By lap 14, Kyle Strohl, who had restarted seventh following the caution, had charged back to fourth using the outside lane.

Another caution flew on lap 21 when Terry Markovic spun, bunching the field back up behind Kerstetter. On the ensuing restart, Strohl quickly disposed of Christman for second before turning his attention to the leader. Applying heavy pressure, Strohl finally completed the winning pass on Kerstetter on lap 27.

A slow spin by Josh Mooney on lap 34 set up a green-checkered finish, but Strohl was not to be denied as he drove away over the final lap to capture his third victory in just five starts during the 2026 season.

Jacob Kerstetter earned the night’s lone heat race victory.

The first 20 laps of the Street Stock main event provided plenty of excitement for the fans in the stands. Cody Geist and Jill Snyder raced side by side through the opening five laps before Adam Steigerwalt emerged as the next challenger for the lead. Steigerwalt steadily closed the gap and worked his way around Geist on lap 14.

Frankie Althouse, who started sixth, had driven into fifth place by the time the race’s first caution flew on lap 20. The yellow came out after Randy Ahner’s No. 83 erupted in a cloud of smoke following a broken water pump. Fourth-place runner Brandon Christman was collected in the incident but was able to rejoin the field at the tail end.

On the restart, Steigerwalt held the point over Jon Moser, with Althouse now running third. Steigerwalt got an excellent restart, pulling clear of Moser while bringing Althouse along with him. Although Althouse closed the gap, his car faded slightly in the closing laps, allowing Steigerwalt to pull away just enough to secure the victory. Althouse held on for second, followed by Moser, Snyder, and Geist to round out the top five.

Althouse and Snyder were the Street Stock heat race winners.

The factory stocks returned to the racing surface after an absence of more than a decade, delivering a nonstop feature event from start to finish.

Adam Kratzer  led the field to the green flag, but outside pole sitter Bob Wink wasted little time taking over the top spot. Wink paced the field for the opening 15 laps while fourth-place starter Blaine Barry stayed within striking distance, applying constant pressure and searching for an opening on both the high and low sides of Wink’s No. 87 machine.

Barry eventually found the speed he needed to complete the pass for the lead and then pulled away over the final 10 laps to score an impressive green-to-checkered feature victory.

Earlier in the evening, Bob Wink captured the factory stock heat race win.

The Hobby Stock 25-lap main event was plagued by cautions, with the most significant incident occurring on lap four while battling for the lead. Travis Solomon, TJ Rex, and Shayne Geist raced three-wide when Solomon spotted an opening to the inside of Rex as Geist held the outside line. Solomon dove underneath Rex in an attempt to take the lead, but contact between Solomon and Rex sent Rex into Geist before Rex slammed the outside wall exiting turn four.

The crash ended the nights for all three drivers. The incident was especially costly in the championship battle, as Geist and Solomon entered the evening first and second in the point standings.

Taylor Schmidt narrowly avoided the multi-car accident and capitalized on the opportunity. Despite a barrage of caution flags and restarts throughout the remainder of the race, Schmidt stayed composed to capture his first Hobby Stock feature victory of the season.

Victory Lane turned into a family celebration as brother Devin Schmidt, who finished fourth, quickly parked his car, climbed out, and conducted the post-race interview with Taylor following the  win.

TJ Rex and Taylor Schmidt each picked up heat race victories earlier in the evening.

Ron Pierson Jr. captured his second Pro-4 feature win of the season, holding off teammate Tyler Stangle for the victory.

Starting from the pole, Pierson jumped out to the early lead on the opening lap. However, fourth-place starter Cody Kohler made a daring three-wide move at the end of Lap 1 to take over the top spot.

The race’s first caution came on Lap 4 when Terry Peters made contact with Stangle, sending both drivers spinning.

Kohler remained in control for the next two laps before mechanical issues struck. While leading on Lap 6, his car began to sputter, forcing him to pull into the infield and surrender the lead.

Pierson inherited the top position and never looked back, cruising to his second victory of the season. Stangle rallied from the earlier incident to finish second behind his teammate.

Tyler Stangle also claimed the Pro-4 heat race victory earlier in the evening.

Feature Results:

Modifieds (35 Laps) 1. Kyle Strohl 2. Kerstetter 3. Christman 4. N. Baer 5. Lou Strohl 6. Don Wagner 7. Terry Markovic 8. Darian Danyluk 9. Josh Mooney 10. Mark Miller

Street Stocks ( 30 Laps) 1. Steigerwalt 2. Althouse 3. Moser 4. Snyder 5. Geist 6. Josh Kuryona 7. B. Christman 8. Jamie Smith 9. TJ Kemmerer 10. Keith Boehm DNF Randy Ahner

Pro 4 ( 20 Laps) 1. Pierson Jr 2. Stangle 3. RIch Pursell DNF Terry Peters, Cody Kohler DNS Kadie Pursell

Hobby Stocks ( 25 Laps) 1. Taylor Schmidt 2. Ryan Berger 3. Cody Kohler 4. Devin Schmidt 5. Maggie Wambold 6. Parker Phillis 7. Jeremey Henry 8. Arland Moyer Jr DNF Travis Solomon, Shayne Geist, TJ Rex, Trisha Connolly DQ BJ Wambold

Factory Stocks ( 25 Laps) 1. Barry 2. Wink 3 Luke Foerster 4. Joe Kunkle 5. Addam Kratzer