Owner/trainer Mike Sinclair's Heavenly Bet ($4.60, part of entry) overcame post eight and controlled the terms through the middle of the race en route to a 1:55 score over her stablemate Winners Over in the $23,700 Gail's Diner Series Final on Sunday (May 22) afternoon at Tioga Downs.

While Winners Over (Dan Clements) was away most sharply in the field of eight, Scott Coulter gradually worked Heavenly Bet forward through a :27.3 first quarter-mile before clearing with just over a circuit to go. The two would continue at the head of the field throughout, with Heavenly Bet spared of pressure due to a failed first-over bid by Ghost Runner (Tom Jackson). After intermediate fractions of :56.4 and 1:24.4 over good going, the three-year-old Bettors Delight filly faced a challenge from her stablemate on the far turn. Heavenly Bet proved superior of the Sinclair pair, holding sway by three-quarters of a length. Well Shaded (Fern Paquet Jr.) emerged out of traffic to take third, while Shesgotthebeat -- a winner in both her preliminary events -- only could manage a fourth-place finish after she was compromised by badly stalling cover on the far turn.

The afternoon's other three featured events -- an $11,000 Open Pace and two $7,500 second-round divisions of the Nichols True Value Series -- all went to driver Tom Jackson, who led all drivers on the 13-race program with that natural hat trick. Meadows invader Nitro Seelster ($4.40) sustained a first-over push to reel in Believe This Bob for a 1:52 Open win, while Fresh Cut ($44.80, 1:54.2) and Le Gambe ($4.30, 1:54.1) prevailed in their respective Nichols True Value splits.

No one hit the 50-cent Pick 5, resulting in a $208.67 carryover to Friday (May 27) evening's program.

Tioga Downs offers four programs next week, with a 6:30 p.m. EDT first post on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, and a 1:30 p.m. EDT Memorial Day card on Monday.

(Tioga Downs)