KNOXVILLE, Iowa (Sept. 14) — Pulling ahead of second-running Jared Landers of Batesville, Ark., when race leader Jimmy Owens of Newport, Tenn., slowed on lap 16 of 25, Josh Richards of Shinnston, W.Va., led the remaining distance to score a $7,000 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series victory in the opening night of Knoxville Raceway's Lucas Oil Late Model Knoxville Nationals.

Charging to the lead on lap 14, Owens suffered water pump issues two circuits later, slowing off the pace down the backstretch. Richards powered ahead of Landers as the pair exited turn four, holding off the Arkansas driver to notch his fifth career Knoxville victory.

“We had a really good car,” Richards said in victory lane. “It was really good in the bottom. It’s been a handful. I hate it for Jimmy (Owens). I don’t know what happened. It looks like he broke an oil line getting into (turn) one. I don’t know if we could have got him or not.

“The car felt really good in the bottom. I feel like for the big race we’ve got to work on it to be able to run the top. It’s just a little too treacherous for me up there. But it was good to get a good, solid night and get a win under our belt. We can focus on Saturday now and see what we need to do to get better.”

It was polesitter Kyle Bronson of Brandon, Fla., leading the opening lap, with Landers taking the point one circuit later. When the first yellow flag waved on lap 10, Landers had already began stretching his lead over the field. But the race was far from over.

Using momentum from the restart, Owens shot into second, challenging Landers for the lead, but never able to make the pass stick. Owens used the lap-13 restart to his advantage, working around the bottom of the racetrack to pull ahead of Landers on lap 14.

With Owens once again suffering Knoxville heartbreak, it was Richards cruising to victory lane, notching his ninth Lucas Oil Series victory of the season.

“I knew once they got bottled up there I needed to get him when I could,” Richards said. “I tried to protect and run the top into (turn) three and then I saw Jared (Landers) slide back again. I just tried to move around. The car was really fast, but it was a bit of handful. This track’s really tricky.”

Piloting a Larry Moring-owned entry, Landers held on to finish runner-up. Advancing from the seventh starting spot, Jonathan Davenport of Blairsville, Ga., ran third, with Brandon Sheppard of New Berlin, Ill., rallying from the 22nd starting position to finish fourth. Third-starting Don O’Neal of Martinsville, Ind., rounded out the top five.

“Congratulations to Josh,” Landers said. “He ran around the bottom there and he was good. “I was trying my best to catch him. But I lost brakes out there a little bit. They got real spongy and I couldn’t do much. I’m excited about this run. We come a long way here and (Ronnie) Stuckey built a race car. They gave me an opportunity to drive this and I’ve just got to thank them.”

Entering the Knoxville weekend fresh off of his second World 100 victory, Davenport said he thinks his team is headed in the right direction for the remainder of the weekend.

“We’re just going to keep on riding this wave,” Davenport said. “We need to be a little bit better in the feature. I finally found a line that I liked a little bit better, but it was pretty tricky through (turns) one and two there. There was a rough spot and I thought I was going to go over there one time. We’ve got some good notes and we’re going to build on it and get a little better tomorrow.”

Notes: Richards scored his ninth Lucas Oil Series victory of the season and his fifth career victory at Knoxville. … The 25-lap feature had four different race  leaders: Kyle Bronson (lap 1), Jared Landers (2-13), Jimmy Owens (14-15) and Richards (16-25). … After leading mid-race and suffering water pump issues, Owens retired to finish 22nd. … The race was slowed by three cautions. … The first yellow flag waved on lap four when Steve Francis slowed with a flat tire. … Hudson O’Neal slowed in turns three and four to draw a caution on lap 10. … A yellow flag flew on lap 13 for debris on the racing surface. … Defending Knoxville Nationals winner Mike Marlar was the first retiree after making contact with the turn-two wall.

Nationals points after Thursday

1. Jonathan Davenport - 496
2. Josh Richards - 484
3. Don O’Neal - 484
4. Jared Landers - 482
5. Brandon Sheppard - 463
6. Scott Bloomquist - 463
7. Brian Shirley - 462
8. Shannon Babb - 460
9. Chad Simpson - 456
10. Bobby Pierce - 455
11. Dale McDowell - 454
12. Chase Junghans - 452
13. Jimmy Owens - 451
14. Mike Marlar - 450
15. Jimmy Mars - 447
16. Timothy Culp - 447
17. Hudson O’Neal - 447
18. Jesse Stovall - 440
19. Steve Francis - 436
20. Kyle Bronson - 436
21. Gregg Satterlee- 436
22. Jason Feger - 425
23. Spencer Diercks - 424
24. Chris Simpson - 416
25. Matt Furman - 413
26. Tim McCreadie - 407
27. Earl Pearson Jr. - 401
28. Jeremiah Hurst - 401
29. Ryan Gustin - 390
30. Darrell Lanigan - 390
31. Rodney Sanders - 387
32. Brent Larson - 385
33. Billy Moyer Jr. - 385
34. Tyler Erb - 384
35. Dennis Erb Jr. - 381
36. Tyler Bruening - 373
37. Boom Briggs - 368
38. John Anderson - 363
39. Jay Johnson - 360
40. Jordan Yaggy - 357
41. Kent Robinson - 345
42. Jonathan Brauns - 338
43. Joey Moriarty - 329
44. Jake O'Neil - 327
45. Tim Lance - 326
46. Joel Callahan - 320
47. Dave Eckrich - 317
48. Jason Rauen - 314
49. Randy Timms - 311
50. Colton Flinner 310
51. Chris Spieker 306
52. Billy Moyer 305
53. Mike Fryer 300
54. Justin Duty 299
55. Scott James 290
56. Bob King 286

Preliminary results:

B-main results

Finish (top six transfer to A-main): Scott Bloomquist, Gregg Satterlee, Brian Shirley, Brandon Sheppard, Chad Simpson, Bobby Pierce, Chris Simpson, Tim McCreadie, Earl Pearson Jr., Dennis Erb Jr., Jeremiah Hurst, Brent Larson, Billy Moyer Jr., Jordan Yaggy, Boom Briggs, Ryan Gustin, Jay Johnson, John Anderson, Rodney Sanders, Tyler Bruening, Darrell Lanigan, Tyler Erb.

C-main results

Finish (top four transfer to B-main): Darrell Lanigan, Earl Pearson Jr., Tyler Erb, Boom Briggs, Kent Robinson, Jonathan Brauns, Tim Lance, Joey Moriarty, Dave Eckrich, Randy Timms, Billy Moyer, Chris Spieker, Joel Callahan, Justin Duty, Mike Fryer, Jake O’Neil, Colton Flinner. Scratched: Jason Rauen, Scott James, Bob King.

Consolation lineups

B-main lineup
(15 laps; top six transfer to A-main)
Row 1: Brian Shirley, Scott Bloomquist
Row 2: Rodney Sanders, Gregg Satterlee
Row 3: Tim McCreadie, Chris Simpson
Row 4: Ryan Gustin, Chad Simpson
Row 5: Jeremiah Hurst, Bobby Pierce
Row 6: Tyler Bruening, Brandon Sheppard
Row 7: Brent Larson, Billy Moyer Jr.
Row 8: Jay Johnson, Dennis Erb Jr.
Row 9: Jordan Yaggy, John Anderson
C-main lineup
(12 laps; top four transfer to B-main)
Row 1: Earl Pearson Jr., Darrell Lanigan
Row 2: Jake O’Neil, Tyler Erb
Row 3: Kent Robinson, Boom Briggs
Row 4: Jason Rauen, Jonathan Brauns
Row 5: Joey Moriarty, Tim Lance
Row 6: Joel Callahan, Dave Eckrich
Row 7: Colton Flinner, Justin Duty
Row 8: Mike Fryer, Randy Timms
Row 9: Scott James, Bob King
Row 10: Chris Spieker, Billy Moyer

Heat race notes

Jason Rauen escaped serious injury when he bounced off Josh Richards’s car and pounded the turn-four wall during the third heat. “We’ll be OK,” said the Farley, Iowa, driver, who climbed out of the cockpit and disgustedly walked directly back to his trailer. With extremely heavy right-side damage to his car, Rauen was quite sure his weekend was over. … Earl Pearson Jr. had “something in the rearend” of his Dunn-Benson Racing car break during the first heat, sidelining his primary machine for the night. He immediately pulled out of his backup car, which sported an unlettered quarter-panel. … Kent Robinson ran nearly the entire second heat with rubbing bodywork causing smoke to roll off his left-rear tire. The Indiana driver, whose car sustained bodywork damage in an opening-lap scrape, finally had the tire go flat with three circuits remaining while running second. … Arizona’s Jake O’Neil was an early retiree from the third heat after his car lost water pressure and began smoking. He felt he would be able to continue racing after checking over his powerplant. … The right-rear corner of Tyler Erb’s brand-new body was thoroughly crunched in an opening-lap incident during the fourth heat. … Billy Moyer’s night took a turn for the worse when his car weighed in four pounds light after time trials, negating his qualifying effort. He had to start at the rear of the fourth heat and managed only an eighth-place finish.

Sixth heat

Working around the high side, eighth-starting Mike Marlar moved into third on the first lap, with outside polesitter Jimmy Mars taking an early lead. Slipping ahead of Mars in turn two, Marlar grabbed the lead on the third circuit. With the top-two cars distancing themselves from the field, a third-car battled ensued for the third-place spot between Dale McDowell, Brandon Sheppard and Chris Simpson. Marlar pulled away to win the heat, with Mars finishing second. McDowell grabbed the third and final transfer spot.

Finish (top three transfer): Mike Marlar, Jimmy Mars, Dale McDowell, Chris Simpson, Bobby Pierce, Jonathan Brauns, Dave Eckrich, Bob King.

Fifth heat

Polesitter John Anderson led the opening lap, with third-starting Steve Francis pulling ahead down the backstretch to take the lead on the second circuit. A four-car battle ensured for the runner-up spot, with Hudson O’Neal, Billy Moyer Jr., and Darrell Lanigan challenging Anderson for position. Francis distanced himself from the held at the halfway mark, with Anderson fighting off a charging O’Neal. With Francis pulling away, to win the heat, the field battled behind him. O’Neal finished runner-up, with Kyle Bronson rounding out the podium in third.

Finish (top three transfer): Steve Francis, Hudson O’Neal, Kyle Bronson, John Anderson, Gregg Satterlee, Billy Moyer Jr., Darrell Lanigan, Randy Timms, Tim Lance.

Fourth heat

Polesitter Spencer Diercks shot to the lead at the drop of the green flag, as fellow front-row starter Dennis Erb Jr. slipped back to fifth. A yellow flag waved on the first lap when Tyler Erb spun in turn two. Gaining momentum from the restart, Shannon Babb pulled ahead of third-starting Timothy Culp to run in second, with Scott Bloomquist advancing from the eighth-place spot to run fourth. Rolling around the top side, Babb edged ahead of Diercks to lead lap five. With Bloomquist jumping over the cushion, Dennis Erb Jr. moved into fourth at the halfway mark, with Bloomquist pulling back ahead one lap later. Retaking the lead from Babb, Diercks led the final laps to win the fourth heat. Culp edged ahead of Babb at the line to finish second.

Finish (top three transfer): Spencer Diercks, Timothy Culp, Shannon Babb, Scott Bloomquist, Chad Simpson, Dennis Erb Jr., Tyler Erb, Billy Moyer, Boom Briggs, Justin Duty

Third heat

A yellow flag waved on the opening lap when Jordan Yaggy spun in turn two, bringing the race to a complete restart. A red flag fell on the ensuing restart when Jason Rauen collided with Josh Richards, getting into the turn four wall. As the race finally went green, Richards shot to the runner-up spot, pulling ahead of Jay Johnson to lead the second lap. Advancing from the eighth starting spot, Jimmy Owens moved into the third spot by the fifth lap, with Richards stretching his lead to as much as a straightaway at the halfway mark. Dominating late-race, Richards won the heat, with Owens finishing second and Jared Landers running third.

Finish (top three transfer): Josh Richards, Jimmy Owens, Jared Landers, Brent Larson, Jay Johnson, Jordan Yaggy, Colton Flinner, Jake O’Neil, Jason Rauen.

Second heat

Don O’Neal powered from seventh to fourth on the first lap, with polesitter Matt Furman taking an early lead. A yellow flag waved on lap two when Jeremiah Hurst spun in turn four. Another caution fell on the ensuing restart when Joel Callahan and Brian Shirley collided on the backstretch. O’Neal and Kent Robinson battled for second as the race went back green, with O’Neal taking the lead on the fifth lap. Second-running Robinson slowed on the frontstretch with a flat tire to draw a caution on lap eight. Stretching his lead late-race, O’Neal won the heat, with Furman and Jesse Stovall transferring to the feature.

Finish (top three transfer): Don O’Neal, Matt Furman, Jesse Stovall, Jeremiah Hurst, Brian Shirley, Tim McCreadie, Joel Callahan, Kent Robinson. Scratched: Scott James.

First heat

Polesitter Jason Feger led the opening lap, with eighth-starting Jonathan Davenport improving to the fifth-place spot. As Feger and Tyler Bruening held the top-two spots, a three-car battle ensued for third, with Davenport pulling ahead of Joey Moriarty on lap five. A yellow flag waved on lap seven when Earl Pearson Jr. slowed in turn two. Using momentum from the restart, Davenport shot ahead of Bruening on lap nine, reeling in Feger for the race lead. Racing around the bottom of the track, Davenport edged out Feger to win the first heat, with Chase Junghans  rounding out the podium in third.

Finish (top three transfer): Jonathan Davenport, Jason Feger, Chase Junghans, Tyler Bruening, Ryan Gustin, Chris Spieker, Joey Moriarty, Mike Fryer, Earl Pearson Jr.

Heat race lineups

(12 laps; top three transfer)
First heat
Row 1: Jason Feger, Joey Moriarty
Row 2: Tyler Bruening, Chase Junghans
Row 3: Ryan Gustin, Rodney Sanders
Row 4: Earl Pearson Jr., Jonathan Davenport
Row 5: Mike Fryer, Chris Spieker
Second heat
Row 1: Matt Furman, Joel Callahan
Row 2: Jesse Stovall, Kent Robinson
Row 3: Jeremiah Hurst, Tim McCreadie
Row 4: Don O’Neal, Brian Shirley
Row 5: Scott James
Third heat
Row 1: Jay Johnson, Colton Flinner
Row 2: Brent Larson, Jason Rauen
Row 3: Jake O’Neil, Josh Richards
Row 4: Jared Landers, Jimmy Owens
Row 5: Jordan Yaggy
Fourth heat
Row 1: Spencer Diercks, Dennis Erb Jr.
Row 2: Boom Briggs, Timothy Culp
Row 3: Shannon Babb, Chad Simpson
Row 4: Tyler Erb, Scott Bloomquist
Row 5: Justin Duty, Billy Moyer
Fifth heat
Row 1: John Anderson, Tim Lance
Row 2: Steve Francis, Billy Moyer Jr.
Row 3: Kyle Bronson, Hudson O’Neal
Row 4: Gregg Satterlee, Darrell Lanigan
Row 5: Randy Timms
Sixth heat
Row 1: Dave Eckrich, Jimmy Mars
Row 2: Jonathan Brauns, Dale McDowell
Row 3: Brandon Sheppard, Bobby Pierce
Row 4: Chris Simpson, Mike Marlar
Row 5: Bob King

More pre-race notes

The quick shower that struck at 5:30 p.m. led to an hour's delay in the start of the racing program; hot laps were called to the track around 7:45 p.m. ... The delay was helpful for Scott Bloomquist of Mooresburg, Tenn., who arrived late to the track. ... Boom Briggs of Bear Lake, Pa., is debuting a new Longhorn Race Car. He tested the machine for about 15 laps on Sunday night at Tri-City Raceway Park in Franklin, Pa., where he traveled to enter a $1,500-to-win Super Late Model event expressly to shake down his new mount. Briggs was one of only three Late Models to show up, however (a special that was rescheduled for Sunday at Stateline Speedway in Busti, N.Y., likely took away some possible entrants), so the division was dropped from the program; he asked officials if he could stay and make some laps. … Jesse Stovall of Galena, Mo., is making his third start in a Black Diamond car his debuted in a pair of MLRA-sanctioned events over Labor Day weekend. The machine boasts a predominantly black look that resembles the scheme Stovall used in 2015. … Colton Flinner of Allison Park, Pa., the 2016 Lucas Oil Series Rookie of the Year, made the long haul to Knoxville with his Kryptonite Race Car. It’s just his second Lucas Oil start since dropping off the national tour in early May. … After overseeing a three-car/three-driver assault at the World 100, Jason Feger of Bloomington, Ill., prepped two cars for the Knoxville Nationals: his own machine and one for Tim Lance of Broomfield, Ill. … Jake O’Neil of Tucson, Ariz., has returned to the seat of his family-owned No. 0J for the first time since beginning his short-lived stint with the Gressel Racing team in July. He’s racing alongside sponsor and fellow Arizonian Joey Moriarty. … The Nationals field also includes a pair of Portland, Ore., drivers — Justin Duty and Matt Furman. Furman, of course, is a native of Iowa City, Iowa, who currently resides on the West Coast, but he said he will likely be relocating again — perhaps even to Iowa — within the next year depending on where his wife lands a job. … When Brent Larson of Lake Elmo, Minn., was asked if he was making his first start at Knoxville this weekend, he said with a smile, “Do they have a rookie bonus? If they do, then it’s my first time.” Larson, who actually made his Knoxville debut last year, was referring to the World 100 race-rookie program that benefitted him to the tune of $2,300 in extra earnings last week. ... Three-time MLRA champion John Anderson of Omaha, Neb., is behind the wheel of his own Longhorn No. 21x, a car he purchased this year from Brian Shirley's Bob Cullen Racing team. He raced only sporadically in 2015 and not at all in '16, but he decided to get back into action this year and has entered about a half-dozen MLRA and Malvern Bank Series events over the past month. He's unsure if he'll stay for the remainder of the Nationals weekend, however.

Pre-race notes

Sunny conditions with temperatures hitting 90 have prevailed throughout the day, but a rogue dark cloud crossed the speedway at 5:30 p.m. and let loose an extremely short — and unexpected — burst of rain. It does not appear that the precipitation will cause any delay in the racing program. … Defending Knoxville Nationals champion Mike Marlar of Winfield, Tenn., noted that a chassis change — from Capital to XR1 Rocket — isn’t the only difference in his entry from 2016. “My car was yellow last year,” said Marlar, who is back to his usual black-and-yellow colors this year. … Jared Landers of Batesville, Ark., who wasn’t able to defend his 2015 Nationals triumph last year because an injury sidelined him, spent the afternoon prepping for his return to the half-mile oval by sitting in his ride for the weekend — Larry Moring’s Black Diamond machine — and carefully getting himself comfortable in the cockpit. … Chase Junghans of Manhattan, Kan., was hoping to make Knoxville the second event with a new Andy Durham-built Ford engine under the hood of his car, but that plan was destroyed when the powerplant broke during a World 100 preliminary program last Friday night at Ohio’s Eldora Speedway. He’s entered this weekend in another XR1 car from his father’s racing stable that’s equipped with a Durham Chevy. … Dale McDowell of Chickamauga, Ga., is behind the wheel of the Sweet-Bloomquist car he ran in last week’s World 100 finale after his 1-race-old primary car was damaged in a heat-race accident the first night of the weekend. “It needs some medical attention,” McDowell said of the sidelined vehicle, which needs frame work to its right side before it sees action again. … Earl Pearson Jr. of Jacksonville, Fla., hasn’t been home to Jacksonville, Fla., since before leaving for last weekend’s World 100, but he reported that his residence was not affected by the historic flooding that ravaged his hometown when Hurricane Irma blew through. He said his father’s garage took on some flood waters and his former crew chief, Jason Fitzgerald, saw his race shop flooded by three feet of water (according to EPJ, Fitzgerald was able to get his race cars and engines out before the waters rose), but his property only lost power for 24 hours and had some trees and limbs knocked down. … Tyler Erb of New Waverly, Texas, is back in action after skipping last weekend’s World 100 to head home and help his father’s business get caught up in the wake of Hurricane Harvey’s flooding shutting down the Houston area. “I drove a dump truck for seven days,” said Erb, who did find time to freshen his XR1 Rocket machine with a new body and other improvements.

Pre-race setup

The 14th annual Lucas Oil Late Model Knoxville Nationals gets under way on Thursday night with the first of two rounds of preliminary action at Knoxville Raceway, the famed half-mile oval best known for hosting sprint car racing.

Defending Knoxville Nationals winner Mike Marlar of Winfield, Tenn., is on hand for the crown jewel weekend. Former Knoxville Nationals champion Billy Moyer of Batesville, Ark., who was the winner of last year’s opener, is also among the weekend’s entrants.

Thursday’s program will include hot laps, time trials, heat races (with an eight-car inversion), consolations and the $7,000-to-win main event. Drivers will earn points based on their performances over the first two nights of action, which will set the lineups for Saturday’s consolations and the 100-lap finale.

Friday’s program will be identical to Thursday’s. Drivers will use their best points night — not combined points — to see where they stand for Saturday’s alphabet soup of features, which are topped by the $40,000-to-win main event. Twenty-four drivers will be locked directly into Saturday night’s headliner at the conclusion of Friday’s program, with the remainder positioned in Saturday’s D- (if necessary), C- and B-Mains. DirtonDirt.com is offering live coverage of Thursday and Friday's prelims.

Time trial results

Driver (car no.), hometown, time
Group A
Jonathan Davenport (49), Blairsville, Ga., 17.258
Brian Shirley (3S), Chatham, Ill., 17.304
Jimmy Owens (20), Newport, Tenn., 17.321
Earl Pearson Jr. (1), Jacksonville, Fla., 17.378
Don O’Neal (5), Martinsville, Ind., 17.435
Jared Landers (1777), Batesville, Ark., 17.519
Rodney Sanders (20), Happy, Texas, 17.547
Chase Junghans (18), Manhattan, Kan., 17.573
Tim McCreadie (39), Watertown, N.Y., 17.617
Josh Richards (1), Shinnston, W.Va., 17.631
Ryan Gustin (24), Marshalltown, Iowa, 17.653
Jeremiah Hurst (58), Dubuque, Iowa, 17.685
Jake O’Neil (0), Tucson, Ariz., 17.723
Kent Robinson (7R), Bloomington, Ind., 17.754
Jason Rauen (98), Farley, Iowa, 17.793
Tyler Bruening (16), Decorah, Iowa, 17.901
Jesse Stovall (00), Galena, Mo., 17.941
Brent Larson (B1), Lake Elmo, Minn., 17.953
Joey Moriarty (51), Peoria, Ariz., 18.033
Joel Callahan (40), Dubuque, Iowa, 18.096
Colton Flinner (75), Allison Park, Pa., 18.114
Jason Feger (25), Bloomington, Ill., 18.141
Matt Furman (51), Columbus, Ohio, 18.171
Jay Johnson (93), West Burlington, Iowa, 18.248
Mike Fryer (54), Freeport, Ill., 18.257
Scott James (83), Bright, Ind., 18.262
Jordan Yaggy (77), Rochester, Minn., 18.348
Chris Spieker (56S), Massena, Iowa, 18.385
Group B
Scott Bloomquist (0), Mooresburg, Tenn., 17.218
Darrell Lanigan (14), Union, Ky., 17.359
Mike Marlar (157), Winfield, Tenn., 17.414
Tyler Erb (91), New Waverly, Texas, 17.442
Billy Moyer (21), Batesville, Ark., 17.604
Gregg Satterlee (22), Indiana, Pa., 17.628
Chris Simpson (32), Oxford, Iowa, 17.639
Chad Simpson (25), Mount Vernon, Iowa, 17.668
Hudson O’Neal (71), Martinsville, Ind., 17.681
Bobby Pierce (32), Oakwood, Ill., 17.697
Shannon Babb (18), Moweaqua, Ill., 17.75
Kyle Bronson (40B), Brandon, Fla., 17.771
Brandon Sheppard (1), New Berlin, Ill., 17.777
Timothy Culp (C8), Prattsville, Ark., 17.779
Billy Moyer Jr. (21), Batesville, Ark., 17.914
Dale McDowell (17m), Chickamauga, Ga., 17.925
Steve Francis (15), Bowling Green, Ky., 17.958
Jonathan Brauns (22B), Muscatine, Iowa, 17.988
Dennis Erb Jr. (28), Carpentersville, Ill., 18.015
Tim Lance (48) Brimfield, Ill., 18.086
Jimmy Mars (28), Menomonie, Wis., 18.122
Spencer Diercks (29D), Davenport, Iowa, 18.158
John Anderson (21X), Omaha, Neb., 18.217
Dave Eckrich (58), Oxford, Iowa, 18.333
Justin Duty (15D), Mulino, Ore., 18.337
Randy Timms (5T), Wheatland, Okla., 18.525
Bob King (45), Independence, Mo., 18.795