Women Layer scorches to repeat in KYSS Prelim

OAK GROVE, Ky. — Todd McCarthy circled Women Layer (Sweet Lou) to the top and muscled through a quick mile to score easily again in his $50,000 harness racing division for the second preliminary of Kentucky Sire Stakes (KYSS) at Oak Grove Racing, Gaming & Hotel on Monday afternoon (April 28).

Leaving from post 2, McCarthy moved for the lead after brother Andy McCarthy cleared command with Better Is Nice to a :26.1 first quarter. Women Layer took over control passing the stands and sailed through the remainder of the mile, clocking a :54.3 half and 1:22.3 three-quarters before sealing the win by 1-1/2 lengths under wraps in 1:50. Better Is Nice held second while Nuclear (driven by David Miller) rallied for third and Courtship (Marcus Miller) settled for fourth.

WOMEN LAYER REPLAY

A 4-year-old gelding by Sweet Lou, Women Layer has now won 14 times from 23 starts and has earned $436,079. Virgil Morgan Jr. trains the gelding for owners Let It Ride Stables Inc., Douglas Overhiser, Jeff Fought Racing and Larry Wills. He paid $2.56 to win.

Steely Knife (Trace Tetrick) pulled a 10-1 upset in the other KYSS division when capitalizing off fast fractions to surge forward for a 1:51.1 win. Tetrick waited while Swaggy Cal (Jeremy Indof) cut a swift mile of :26.4, :55.1 and 1:22.4 before hitting the ropes with rivals swarming. Total Stranger (Todd McCarthy) led the two-wide charge to the final turn, and Steely Knife used his tow to launch three high coming around the final turn and build momentum for the stretch drive. Steely Knife kept fighting down the center of the track and reeled in Swaggy Cal to post a neck win at the beam with Copperfield (Andy McCarthy) rallying from last for third. Lou Hill (Dexter Dunn), the 4-5 favorite, sat a pocket trip and only found room late to finish fourth.

STEELY KNIFE REPLAY

Ron Burke trains Steely Knife, a gelding by Always B Miki, for owners Burke Racing Stable, Knox Services, Phil Collura, J & T Silva Stables and Purnel & Libby. He won his seventh race from 38 starts, has now earned $341,587 and paid $22.86 to win.

Woman Of Passion (Todd McCarthy) rebounded from a neck defeat in leg one to post a romp in leg two with a 1:53 mile. McCarthy took command with the 1-2 chalk and cut a tempo of :27, :57.2 and 1:25 while many of her rivals either broke stride or gave futile chase to her seven-length win. Pizelle (David Miller) picked up pieces from a ground-saving trip for second while Pisco Sour (Andy McCarthy) took third from a parked mile and Black Button (Marcus Miller) closed for fourth.

WOMEN OF PASSION REPLAY

Winning her 12th race from 26 starts, Woman Of Passion has now earned $364,499 for owner-breeder Al Libfeld. Carter Pinske trains the Walner mare who paid $3.08 to win.

Bath Bomb (Andy McCarthy) registered a repeat win in KYSS preliminaries with a 1:50.1 win on the engine. After clearing from post 7 through a :26 first quarter, Bath Bomb grabbed a breather to a :55.1 half but accelerated for the backside as 1-2 favorite Asweetbeachhere (Todd McCarthy) followed intently from the pocket. Asweetbeachhere took an early shot at Bath Bomb moving to three-quarters in 1:22.1 and kept fighting while Peace Talks (Dexter Dunn) loomed three wide behind the dueling pair. Bath Bomb held her ground all through the stretch to keep a neck up on Asweetbeachhere at the end with Peace Talks taking third and Fearless Bettor (David Miller) finishing another five lengths behind in fourth.

BATH BOMB REPLAY

Per Engblom trains Bath Bomb, a daughter of Lather Up with six wins from 18 starts and $169,360 earned on her card, for owner Morrison Racing Stables. She paid $8.10 to win.

Convoy Hall (David Miller) kicked from a second-over trip to win the $50,000 KYSS dash for trotting horses and geldings with a 1:54.1 effort. Miller found cover to follow from odds-on chalk Bargain (Dexter Dunn) moving to a :55.4 half and stayed perched while inching forward towards tempo-setter Ways N Means (Andy McCarthy) on the march to three-quarters in 1:24.4. As Ways N Means tired on the top, Miller launched Convoy Hall three wide and powered by his peers in the stretch to register a three-length win in the end over Bargain. Hung Over (Marvin Luna) kicked from a pocket trip late for third and Ways N Means held fourth.

CONVOY HALL REPLAY

Carter Pinske trains Convoy Hall, a gelding by Muscle Mass, for owners Doug McIntosh, Randy Liepa and Beverley Snobelen. He has won eight races from 11 starts, has now earned $141,973 and paid $7.66 to win.

Dandy’s Mercy (Marcus Miller) wired her rivals to open the Monday card in the $33,000 Fillies & Mares Open Handicap Pace. Miller cut a clip of :27, :56.4 and 1:24.2 before wrapping the mile in 1:52 with a 1-1/2-length win under minimal encouragement. Yankee B Something (Tony Hall) chased from a pocket trip for second with JK’s Shining Star (Marvin Luna) saving ground for third and No Foolin April (Dexter Dunn) faltering from a first-over push for fourth.

DANDY’S MERCY REPLAY

 

John Butenschoen trains Dandy’s Mercy, a 4-year-old mare by Captain Crunch, for owners Hart Walker, Dandy Farms Racing, FT Racing Stable and Douglas Overhiser. She won her 11th race from 25 starts, has now earned $276,409 and paid $4.30 to win.

Racing continues at Oak Grove on Tuesday (April 22) with a 13-race card headlined by the $33,000 Open Trot in Race 10. Tuesday’s card also features a carryover in the Pick 4, covering Races 8 through 11, worth $1,682.02. First-race post time at Oak Grove is 1:45 p.m. (CDT). For more information on Oak Grove, visit oakgrovegaming.com.

For complete race results, click here: US Trotting results.

from Oak Grove Racing Publicity