CHESTER PA – A trio of $16,000 races for up-and-coming younger stock took the Friday afternoon spotlight at Harrah’s Philadelphia, with one division for pacing distaffs and the other two open events for trotters.
On the pace, sire Sweet Lou posted a 1-2 finish as Sweet Cherry outpaced Sweet Chrome through the lane by 1¼ lengths while taking a lifetime mark of 1:52.2. Tim Tetrick, who continued his recent hot streak here with three Friday victories to give him thirteen for the trio of cards so far this week, drove the sophomore for trainer Jim King Jr. and the ownership combine of Tim Tetrick LLC and Jo Ann Looney-King.
Tetrick also drove the faster of the two trotting headliners, with the sophomore Cantab Hall gelding Macmorris Hanover reducing his mark to 1:54.1 for trainer Bob Baggitt Jr. and the partnership of Ben Mudry, Douglas Millard, Timothy Murray, and Howard Taylor. Macmorris Hanover made an early move past Lapped By Lindy, then maintained the advantage to the wire, finally defeating that adversary by 2 1/4 lengths.
In a $14,500 pace for fast-class pacing mares, the A Rocknroll Dancer distaff Scuola Hanover could wait until almost the three-quarters until pulling out to challenge favored pacesetter Bettor Trix N, then took the measure of that one late by a half length in 1:51, also off only a fifth from her lifetime best. Art Stafford Jr. drove the winner of $256,328 for trainer Andrew Stafford, who is co-owner with Arthur Stafford Sr. and Thomas Ireland.