After a place finish off a tough trip last week, Tuis Angel made it three wins in four Tioga Downs Opens this season as she captured the track's $22,143 Open Handicap Trot on Saturday, June 27.
She cleared to the lead past Purple Lord (Jim Pantaleano) approaching the quarter in :27 for Braxten Boyd and was unhurried to the half in :56.1. With the first-over Special Mission (Dan Daley) moving into range at three-quarters in 1:24.2, Tuis Angel picked up speed into the last turn and edged away by 2-1/4 lengths at the eighth pole. She allowed only minimal gains by her rivals down the lane, crossing the line a 1-3/4-length winner in 1:54. Purple Lord won the race for place over Special Mission.
Tuis Angel won her first two career appearances at Tioga earlier this season, both in Opens, before returning to Pocono Downs for two starts in June. The David Wiest trainee finished second in the top class at Tioga when first-over a week ago and moved her seasonal record to four-for-10 with Saturday's tally. The five-year-old daughter of Andover Hall-Tui, owned by Wiest along with Pamela Kimmel and James Rappold, is now 13-for-60 lifetime. She paid $5.58 to win.
The card was cut short after the fifth race due to a starting gate malfunction. Ridge Warren started the program with a natural hat trick, winning with Vel Im All Fire ($3.80), Doc Nixon ($16.06), and Wukong ($3.92).
The next card at Tioga is set for Sunday, with a 14-race slate starting at 12:30 p.m.
(With files from Tioga Downs)