Being named “E. Hanover” or “D. Miller” were the keys to success at Pocono Downs at Mohegan Pennsylvania on Sunday night, June 16, as Elista Hanover and Emoji Hanover won the two divisions of the $196,164 third preliminary of the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes (PASS) for three-year-old trotting fillies, and driver David Miller guided a Sire Stakes winner and three winners in the four $27,397 Stallion Series races.

Elista Hanover won her seventh straight race, a streak which includes five stakes, three of them Sire Stakes, and took a new lifetime mark of 1:52.3 for David Miller in one PASS division. Tucking third briefly near the :27.1 quarter, Elista Hanover was then pointed to the front, reaching the top into the second turn and going on to mid-splits of :56 and 1:24.4. Upallnight Hanover, who had the lead at the quarter but had been shuffled to fifth by the three-quarters, came back to be second, 2-1/2 lengths behind the winner, an International Moni filly trained by Annie Stoebe and co-owned by her with R. Lynn and Philomena Curry.

Louis-Philippe Roy, fresh off his success with Nijinsky in the North America Cup the previous night, came to the mountain oval for one drive, and his trip was well worth it as he piloted the Greenshoe filly Emoji Hanover to a 1:53.4 win, her fastest ever, in the other Sire Stakes division. Emoji Hanover and Roy had the rough “tuck-then-first-over” trip in fractions of :27.1, :57.1 and 1:26, but his filly trotted her own last quarter in :27.3 to hold off second-over Paulina Hanover by a length for connections with whom Roy has had previous success, trainer Luc Blais and the ownership of Determination. 

Pick any measure of success, and David Miller achieved it in the Stallion Series. Lifetime marks? All three of his winners set career bests. The lone double Stallion Series winner of the night? Fastest mile? Both distinctions belong to another daughter of International Moni, Southern Moni, up in 1:53.3 for trainer Blake MacIntosh, co-owner with Hutt Racing Stable, Tim Klemencic and Ozzie Mackay. Longest-priced winner? Miller rallied the Andover Hall miss Moonshine Memories to a late-rallying 1:56.3 victory for trainer Paula Wellwood and owner Karen Carroll while paying $54.40 to win.

Miller completed his Stallion Series triple with the Father Patrick distaff Happy Chopper, who stopped the timer in 1:55 for trainer Mark Harder, co-owner with Dean Lockhart and Deena Frost. And who stopped the David Miller Stallion Series dominance? Well, that would be two Millers – driver Andy and trainer Julie, who teamed behind the Greenshoe filly Green Mercedes to win in 1:54, also a career best, for Andy Miller Stable Inc., Patrick Hoopes and VIP Internet Stable LLC.

(PHHA / Pocono)