PHILLIPSBURG, N.J. -- In her first full season of competition in the USAC Northeast Ford Focus midget car series, Stephanie Stevens of Phillipsburg, NJ, made USAC History by becoming the first female to earn a title in the Earl's Fast Qualifier (FQ) Championship.

During the 2005 Northeast Ford Focus season, Stephanie collected five heat wins, runner-up finishes at Seekonk and Adirondack Speedways and five top-5's in 9 races.

Stephanie finished the season ranked fourth in the final USAC Northeast Ford Focus Series standings and edged Nick Wean by a single point to win the 2005 Earl's FQ title.

"Our team is happy with the results of our first year in the USAC Northeast Ford Focus midget car series," said Stephanie. "It is a great honor to be the first female to win the Earl's Fast Qualifier award and that is a testament to our crew and their hard work in learning tracks that we had not raced on in the past."

"We are looking forward to next season and we would like to thank our family, friends, crew and especially our sponsors for their support this season. We will chase the USAC Northeast Ford Focus midget car series title in 2006 with a new asphalt chassis while participating in some of the races in newly formed Mid-Atlantic region," added Stevens.

The 21-year old senior mechanical engineering major at Messiah College is in her 12th year of racing having started in 1994. Stephanie participated in the 2004 Lyn St. James Foundation Driver Development program.

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