by Dave Litte, for The Meadowlands

East Rutherford, NJ — A pair of talented trotters hit the winner’s circle in two divisions of the Reynolds Memorial for 3-year-old colts and geldings on the trot at the Meadowlands Saturday night (July 28).

Lisa photo

Met’s Hall (3) anddriver Andy Miller take the first of two divisions of the Reynolds Memorial,the final Hambletonian prep, Saturday night at the Meadowlands.

In the first division of the final Hambletonian prep, Met’s Hall was bet down to 3-5 and made the quarter on the point in a leisurely :28. Another rated fraction followed and Met’s Hall was cruising past the half in :57.3.

Hockey Hanover, the only non-Hambo eligible in the field of nine, then shocked the favorite (not to mention the bettors), using an authoritative brush to grab the lead, hitting three-quarters two lengths to the good in 1:25.4 at odds of 49-1.

But despite closing in :27.2, Hockey Hanover couldn’t complete the job.

Met’s Hall had a burst of speed left in his arsenal, and he used it, battling back along the inside, closing in :26.4, to record a neck win over a fast-closing Fashionwoodchopper. Hockey Hanover held third.

With the Hambletonian just a week away, the timing was ideal for Met’s Hall (Cantab Hall-Met’s Inn) to record his first win of the year in just his third start. The heavy favorite, who was driven by Andy Miller and trained by Julie Miller, completed the mile in 1:53 and paid $3.40 in winning for the sixth time in 14 lifetime outings.

Beal Memorial champion Crystal Fashion was a dominant winner of the second Reynolds division. Tim Tetrick had the gelded Cantab Hall-Window Willow product sitting an unhurried sixth in the early going before opting to race in a third-over flow down the backstretch.

With an eighth of a mile to go, Crystal Fashion was tipped off his cover and stormed home to record a one-length victory over Hat Trick Habit in 1:52.4. For A Dreamer was third.

As the 1-5 public choice, Crystal Fashion returned $2.60 to win, scoring for the ninth time in 20 lifetime outings while upping his lifetime bankroll to just over $523,000.

JL AND JOE CRUZE TO VICTORY: JL Cruze went right to the top and never looked back in the overnight co-feature, the $20,000 Preferred Handicap for trotters. The 7-year-old gelded son of Crazed-Topcat Hall stopped the clock in 1:51.2 and paid $11.40 as the fourth choice in the wagering.

Western Joe sat off a speed duel where Miso Fast and Highalator went toe-to-toe to three-quarters in 1:20.3, then used a final quarter of :26.3 to win the $20,000 Preferred for pacers in a sizzling 1:47.3. In lowering his previous lifetime best by two seconds, Western Joe (Western Ideal-Ante Fay) paid $12.60 as the fourth betting choice.

A LITTLE MORE: All-source wagering on the 12-race program totaled $2,335,364. … Next weekend marks the final two race cards of the 2017-18 Meadowlands meeting. Friday’s first race gets underway at 7:15 p.m. Hambletonian Day, Saturday, Aug. 4, has a special early post time of 12 noon. … Go to the Meadowlands Facebook page and check out the Hambletonian post position draw live at 2 p.m. Tuesday.