photo by: Ryan Waggoner/Special to the Journal-World

Clayton Stone of Anthem, Arizona (pink jersey) crosses the finish line to win the men's pro division of the Tour of Lawrence street sprints Friday night. However, after the race, Stone was disqualified for interfering with another rider during the race, handing the title to Benjamin Stover of Lawrence (second from right).

For the second straight year, Lawrence resident Benn Stover won the men’s open division of the Sunflower Outdoor & Bike Street Sprints on the opening night of the Tour of Lawrence.

But unlike last year, there wasn’t as much to celebrate.

Stover finished second in the championship heat of the street sprints Friday, but took home first-place honors when the original winner, Clayton Stone of Anthem, Ariz., was disqualified.

One of the race officials ruled Stone made an abrupt motion in the first 30 meters to block another racer, essentially cutting off another cyclist’s lane, which drew an automatic disqualification. Stone led by a sizable margin, doing a bunny hop with his bike as he crossed the finish line.

“I mean, I don’t want to win by a DQ,” the 27-year old Stover said. “(Stone) was faster.”

Stover, who attends Kansas University and graduated from Free State High, placed inside of the top three in the event for the fourth consecutive year.

He beat out a few of his Olathe Subaru Trek Racing teammates for the victory after Stone’s DQ. Lawrence resident

Garrick Valverde finished runner-up, and Kent Woermann took fourth.

“I missed a couple shifts at the start,” Stover said. “I don’t know if I could’ve beat (Stone) either way. But it was just frustrating to have those mis-shifts. Second is good — first by default, I guess.”

Fans lined up behind barricades on Vermont Street to watch the 200-meter sprint, stringing from about Seventh Street to the finish line at Eighth.

One of the differences in the street sprint is teammates compete against each other versus helping each other with strategy in the longer races.

“It’s local and it’s fun,” Stover said. “We race all over the country all year, so it’s nice to have a local weekend where you don’t have to travel and you can see friendly faces.”

Earlier on Friday night, Lynn Wilson won the women’s open sprint, her first time participating in the event.

Wilson, who lives in Kansas City, Mo., has competed in the Tour of Lawrence’s longer races for the past five years, but finally decided to enter the street sprints.

“I’ve always wanted to do it,” Wilson said. “It was just kind of last minute. I’ve been working on my sprint for the last two years, so I figured I’d try it.”

Wilson admitted it was a “big surprise” when she won the race, considering it was her first time competing in the event in Lawrence and the strong competition in the field.

“I practice all year,” she said. “My husband races and his team, so I’m very fortunate to have him and his teammates that help me a lot. They are a lot stronger, so it kind of pushes me to be better.”

In between the men’s and women’s open sprints, Micah Newell, of Edmond, Okla., won the men’s masters 40-plus race.

The Tour of Lawrence continues at 8:30 a.m. today with the Meadowbrook Apartments and Haskell Campus Criterium Races, which run on urban roads through the Haskell Indian Nations University’s campus.