Trainer Scott Mogan had a night to remember getting three wins -- with three different drivers -- Friday at Scioto Downs Racino.
He almost got four wins on the evening, but his youngest and first horse to the gate just got beat at the wire.
Mogan's night started out in race two when three-year-old trotter JJ Rock finished second by a neck to Tesla in 1:56.4. In the next two races, Mogan was on fire with his pacing mare Shes Shocking and older trotting mare ML Cupcake.
Kyle Ater took over for regular driver Kayne Kauffman (who has been ill) and drove Shes Shocking to victory in race three, one of three divisions of the Open II for fillies and mares. Leaving from the eight-hole, the four-year-old Electric Yankee mare sat the pylons to win by a half-length in 1:53.3.
“She needs somebody aggressive,” explained Mogan. “Kayne’s driven her about every start of her life. Of course he wasn’t available tonight, so I chose Kyle; I thought he was the best fit for her. She’s drawn the outside a lot and I just wanted him to get her out of the gate and close to the front and it worked out perfect.”
His other two wins were each in a division of the non-winners of $8,000 last four for trotters. ML Cupcake was Mogan’s third race in a row for the evening and led at every point of call for driver Dan Noble. The five-year-old Master Lavec mare set a new lifetime mark of 1:56.4 when she won by one-and-a-quarter lengths over Sammy Merlot.
Later in the evening, Chip Noble had the call for JJ Hall, JJ Rock's half-brother, in race 10 and got up in the final strides to win in 1:56. Noble has driven the five-year-old Jailhouse Jesse in 37 of his 45 lifetime starts and the horse comfortably won for the 15th time in his life.
“I’ve got a favourite driver, but it all depends on the horse,” said Mogan. “For the young horses I have a choice, but for the older horse I’ve got someone that I might choose different. Every horse is different.”
Choosing different drivers for the horses he has in that evening seems to work for Mogan. He has only one horse in on Saturday evening at Scioto, Pin Stripes, and once again he has a different driver, Randy Tharps. First post is at 6:30 p.m. with 13 total races on the card.
(Scioto Downs)