Bassetti and Schneider take final Bell Lap titles

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Consistent performances lifted Samuel Bassetti (Elevate-KHS Pro Cycling) and Samantha Schneider (IsCorp Pro Cycling) to the top of the final standings for Cyclingnews' The Bell Lap, a 16-day, 19-race season-long series comprised of the top criterium races in the US.

Bassetti topped Shane Kline (SmartStop Self Storage) by seven points and third-placed Eric Young (Rally Cycling) by 11. Scott Law (Elevate KHS Pro Cycling) was fourth, followed by John Murphy (Holowesko-Citadel).

Schneider dominated the women's rankings, beating runner-up and teammate Josie Talbot by 90 points. Kendall Ryan (Team Tibco-SVB) took third, 116 points in arrears. Georgia Baker (Fearless Femme Racing) was fourth, followed by Laura Van Gilder (Mellow Mushroom-van Dessel) in fifth.

Schneider took the series lead in the opening event at the Athens Twilight Criterium but then lost it briefly to Baker when she skipped round 2 at the Rochester Twilight Criterium, slipping to third behind Talbot.

Schneider retook the lead with a win in round 3 at the Winston-Salem Classic and then held it from there, adding victories at the Harlem Skyscraper Classic and the Boise Twilight Criterium to seal the deal.

The men's series started with Murphy in the lead after he took out the opening round at Athens. Jeff Schiller (To Wheels) was the next rider in the hot seat after winning in Rochester, and a win from Rally Cycling's Colin Joyce at the Winston-Salem Classic lifted him briefly into the lead.

Kline's victory at the Tour of Somerville during round 4 pushed him up into the lead. The SmartStop rider's spell at the top of the rankings was also short-lived, because Murphy was ready to challenge him again. 

Murphy retook the lead thanks to solid performances in the Armed Forces Cycling Classic weekend, where the Holowesko-Citadel rider was fourth in the Clarendon Cup but made the podium the next day in the Crystal Cup, coming a close second to Cory Williams (Elevate-KHS).

But that was Murphy's last trip to The Bell Lap races, and a podium performance from Bassetti at the USA Cycling Pro Road Race Championships criterium, where he finished third behind Rally Cycling's Ty Magner and Eric Young, lifted him into the lead for good. Six more points at the Boise Twilight Criterium secured Bassetti's final advantage.

Cyclingnews The Bell Lap Final Standings