For A Dancer remained undefeated through five career starts and tied Lima Playmate at 1:57 for fastest mile-of-the-season honours in her class locally during Friday night’s $119,043 New York Sires Stakes feature for two-year-old trotting fillies at Vernon Downs
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With Steve Smith steering for trainer Joe Holloway and the Bluestone Farms in Friday’s sixth division, For A Dancer (Conway Hall-Fluttering Wings) wired her seven rivals to record her fourth straight states score (three in NYSS events and one in the Reynolds contest at Pocono Downs). The 1:57 performance tied her personal-best clocking, equaled Lima Playmate’s winning time, which occurred one race earlier, and came within one-fifth-of-a-second of the all-time Vernon standard for her age, sex and gait, set by Seducedbychocolate on Sept. 24 last year.
Lima Playmate (Credit Winner-Pacific Legacy) led throughout her mile, before winning impressively and trimming two-fifths-of-a-second off the previous local season’s clocking for this class, set by Win Missy B last Friday. Trainer Ray Schnittker, who is an ownership partner of the talented distaffer along with the Lima Playmate Stable, helped the black daughter of Credit Winner-Pacific Legacy improve her lifetime summary to six stakes scores (five in NYSS action and one in the Tompkins-Geers test at Tioga Downs) and a third-place finish in eight appearances.
Friday’s other NYSS divisional winners included The Heart Lives On (RC Royalty-Cunning Vixen) in 1:57.4 for driver Jim Morrill, Jr., trainer Octavia Rappoport and owner Carolyn Meinwald; Borrow And Spend (Credit Winner-Armbro Déjà Vu) in 1:58.3 for trainer-driver and co-owner Schnittker and the Borrow & Spend Stable; Adreamcomestrue As (Conway Hall-Yankee Jeanie) in 1:58.4 for driver Marcus Johansson, trainer Anette Lorentzon and the ACL Stuteri Ab group; Montana Skies (Conway Hall-Montana Maple) in 1:58.4 for Morrill, Jr., trainer Trond Smedshammer, Robert Feldman and the American Viking Racing Stable; and Getinonthesecret (Conway Hall-Missys Mission) in 1:59 for trainer-driver Dan Daley, his wife, Ann-Mari, Richard Lombardo and Murray Ferguson, Jr.
White Jade recorded the swiftest divisional tally in Friday’s $37,200 NYSS-sponsored late-closing contest for three-year-old pacing fillies. Morrill, Jr. did the teaming as the speedy daughter of American Ideal-Aries Conquest chopped three-and-one-fifth-seconds off her previous win-mark and came within four-fifths-of-a-second of the Vernon standard for this set, which was set by See You At Peelers on July 9. Erv Miller conditions the five-time current winner for the Tanah Merah Farms.
Friday’s other late-closing victories were recorded by Western Kerry (Western Terror-Kerry Kate) in 1:53.4 with Stephane Bouchard steering for trainer Ray Van Dreason, and owners Jim Kennedy, Jim Kennedy, Jr. and Dave Towne; and Arlington Ave (Riverboat King-Ph Factor) in 1:54.4 with Kim Crawford piloting for trainer Maureen Salino, and the De Ca Sa Stables, William Salmeri, Arthur Lucarelli and George Berkner ownership contingent.
(Vernon Downs)