Prince Edward Island-owned Avyanna kicked off the Monticello Raceway leg of the New York Sire Stakes (NYSS) for the three-year-old pacing fillies on Monday Aug. 5.
Owned by Hailee Currie of Rocky Point, P.E.I., the Roll With Joe filly out of multiple Atlantic stakes-winning mare Saulsbrook Alana earned her first stateside victory in the NYSS under the tutelage of trainer Travis Alexander.
The 1-9 favourite, Peace Talks, retook the lead from Kissapotamus as they raced past the opening panel in :27.4 and fronted the first field of fillies through middle splits of :57.1 and 1:25 with Avyanna and driver Tyler Buter poised to strike from second-over when the leader tired in the stretch. Avyanna out-stepped a four-wide Hunting Hula off the final turn in a :29.1 last quarter to win the $80,694 division by 1-1/2 lengths in 1:54.3. Just One Bite rallied from last to show.
Avyanna, who now has five wins from 15 career starts, nearly doubled her bankroll with the lion's share of the purse putting her earnings at $84,089. She paid $15.30 for the mild 6-1 upset.
The second $82,222 division went to the 1-9 favoured point leader, Tarrific, who went first-over from third heading into the backstretch to take command at the third quarter mark in 1:25 then sprinted home in :27.4 to win in 1:52.4, just missing the track record for three-year-old pacing fillies by one-fifth of a second. Shes Epic edged out pacesetter Camerican for second more than three lengths behind the winner
Tarrific was driven by Jason Bartlett for trainer Chris Ryder and owners Margaret Dey of Allentown, New Jersey and Let It Ride Stables of Boca Raton, Florida. The Huntsville-Road Bet filly now has three wins -- all earned in Sire Stakes competition this year -- with $212,132 banked from 14 career starts.
Three $27,778 divisions of the Excelsior Series were won by Tempville (Tyler Buter) in 1:54.4 for trainer George Ducharme, Hurrikaneaphrodite (Jason Bartlett) in 1:55.1 for the John McDermott stable and the Ed Hart-trained Petrol Queen (Braxten Boyd) in 1:55.4.
(Standardbred Canada with files from Monticello Raceway; photo of Avyanna from a previous win)