eNASCAR College iRacing Series | Calgary's Connor Yeroschak survives and wins Clash on the Beach

Anything can—and did—happen during the second eNASCAR College iRacing Series Tournament Final Round on Wednesday night. After two weeks of racing, and ultimately narrowing a field of 120 collegiate competitors down to 25, the University of Calgary's Connor Yeroschak went from 11th to first on the final lap to win the Clash on the Beach at Daytona International Speedway, his second victory in the series and the first win in the Tournament era.

After traversing through the Semifinals Last Chance Qualifier (LCQ) following an eighth place finish in his Semifinal Heat, Yeroschak once again found himself in the middle of the field in the Final Round entering eNASCAR Overtime. In ninth on the final restart, Yeroschak's chances were slim, not having the ability to jump to a third lane up top. The field kept it together until the backstretch on the final lap. Then, it all came undone.

Leader after leader continued to wreck. First it was Joseph Joseph (Rutgers) and Logan Clampitt (Cal State Fullerton) coming together. When Edward Sanchez (Baruch) and Daniel Faulkingham (Maine at Machias) filled the lead of their respective lines, they went around. Avoiding the carnage, the remaining trucks entered four-wide, with Yeroschak on the apron. With just enough of a gap to re-merge onto the banking, Yeroschak slid up in front of West Florida's Benjamin White. Yeroschak was able to hang on from there.

"I don't even know... I don't even know what happened," a stunned Yeroschak said post-race in victory lane. "I just stayed bottom, and somehow, somehow slipped through it all. I just had to block to the line. With how this package is, and having to come through the LCQ, I knew it was going to be tough to get up front, so I kind of just rode in the back of the pack to avoid any early carnage... before the last restart, I said my best bet is to just stay on the bottom, so when the wreck happens, I can try to get through. Sure enough, they just all blew each other up on the last lap, and I slipped through, literally perfectly. I don't even know what to say, I'm lost for words with that one."

The great equalizer that Daytona can be was both fair and foul, with many dominant drivers concluding their tournament on the opposite end of where they ran, but those patient enough to wait for it taking advantage at the right time. At a place where anyone can win, it still wound up that one of the best eNASCAR drivers in the world, now a reigning eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series Rookie of the Year winner, took the checkers on Wednesday night.

With two Tournaments in the books, the series heads to Iowa in November for the next one, the Harvest Cup. Registration is still open, and eligible college students can still compete. Scholarships are available in every Tournament, and the overall champion at the end of the season will walk away with the biggest scholarship prize of them all. Leaving Daytona, that student is currently Yeroschak, with a 12 point lead heading to Iowa.

SEMIFINALS

From Week 1's barrage of First Round Heat races, LCQs, and Second Round races across the three Groups, 39 drivers emerged still with a chance at winning the Clash on the Beach at Daytona. Sacramento State's Dylan Ault set the fastest lap in single truck qualifying, with Logan Clampitt qualifying second and Isaac Shelley (UNOH) rounding out the qualifying podium. The three fastest drivers would lead their respective Heats to the green flag.

Each Heat race in the Semifinal was 12 laps in length, with no cautions to slow down the snarling pack. For the most part, each 13-truck Heat field kept it together, at least until the end. Heat 1 saw John Hagen (North Central Texas) claim the checkers as the field wrecked behind coming to the line. The second Heat had a mid-race quarrel, but it was Clampitt cruising to the win. Heat 3 had two photo finishes, with Daniel Faulkingham holding off Edward Sanchez for the victory.

Only five drivers advanced out of each Heat, reserving 15 of the 25 spots in the Final Round. The other 10 would come from the LCQ. Finishing fifth was crucial, and would prove to be the focal point of each Heat. Heat 1's battle came down to a crash across the line, with Michigan's Matthew Zwack and Ohio State's Matthew Morton sliding out of contention, allowing Ault to slide back into position. In Heat 2, a wild run by Triton's Adam Garza had him snipe fifth from Spokane's Bridger Olsen. Heat 3 was a dead tie between Rollins' student John McClear and UCONN's Jose Solis Jr. It went down to the ten thousandths for McClear to advance.

Unfortunately, the pack couldn't keep it together in the LCQ. A large wreck ended the night early for about 10 drivers. Eight drivers were able to escape, and another six, some with damage, were able to keep pushing with a chance. The six drivers battling for the final two spots did catch up to the main pack before the final lap, but coming to the line, they would wreck again. In a photo finish, Purdue's Carson Bowers picked up his second win in the Tournament, just narrowly edging Morton at the line.

Among those eliminated before the Final Round included Zwack, who finished 12th, Clemson's Jake Hall in 15th, Group 3 winner Jacob Bradley (Purdue Indy) down in 19th, and eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series competitor Timothy Holmes (Horry Georgetown) down in 24th.

FINAL ROUND

For the majority of the Final Round, the 25 qualified drivers kept things together. There were a couple of close calls, including one where Daniel Faulkingham and Isaac Shelley got together on the bottom lane, nearly sending them both into a spin cycle.

John Hagen and Logan Clampitt led the way for the majority of the race, leading a combined 21 laps of the eventual 33 ran. Clampitt found himself in position to claim the win as the laps wound down, but everything began to change after the first caution with nine laps to go. UNC Charlotte's Connor Trifari and Arizona State's Bradley Erickson came together, wrecking in the front of the field. Benjamin White was collected, as were a few others on the top line. Barely escaping was Connor Yeroschak, sixth on the top lane.

The field would crash again on the restart, setting up for eNASCAR Overtime. At the front of the field, Clampitt and Joseph led the way back to the green. Two laps later, it wasn't Clampitt, or Joseph, or anyone in the top-five leading the way. Yeroschak went to the apron to avoid the calamity, but would eventually need to merge back onto the racing surface. It was a risky move, but it paid off as he slid right in front of White, Ball State's Daniel Nanney, and George Mason's Zach Sprouse, to take the Tournament win.

CLASH ON THE BEACH - RESULTS

POINTS STANDINGS AFTER TOURNAMENT #2 - CLASH ON THE BEACH

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Connor Yeroschak | University of Calgary, 75 points Bradley Erickson | Arizona State University, -13 Logan Clampitt | Cal State University Fullerton, -13 Daniel Nanney | Ball State University, -16 Matthew Morton | The Ohio State University, -18 Dylan Ault | Sacramento State, -18 Daniel Faulkingham | University of Maine at Machias, -20 Adam Garza | Triton College, -23 Jose Solis Jr | University of Connecticut, -25 John Forbes Jr | Saddleback College, -32 Matthew Zwack | University of Michigan, -33 Dylan Basen | Pasco Hernando State College, -35 Isaac Shelley | University of Northwestern Ohio, -38 Zach Sprouse | George Mason University, -39 Benjamin White | University of West Florida, -40

Over the first two tournaments, 57 drivers have made it to the second week, with 21 drivers advancing twice. Only 13 drivers have raced in both Final Round events, with Yeroschak claiming a second in the first tournament, the Queen City Crown. No driver has driven more laps than Jose Solis Jr (UCONN), who has made both Final Rounds after having to race in each prior round's LCQ. 

The third Tournament is the Harvest Cup at Iowa Speedway. Time Attacks open on October 28th and run until November 6th. Tune in on Wednesday, November 12th, at 7:00 p.m. ET for the first week of competition. Week 2 will take place on November 19th. Races will be streamed live at eNASCAR.com/live and across all of iRacing’s social media channels.

For more information on the eNASCAR College iRacing Series, visit https://pcl.gg/pages/enascar.
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