Race Preview: Schuylerville Stakes

The first stakes race of the Saratoga meet includes some very well-bred fillies

The 2023 Saratoga meet begins on Thursday, and the opening day feature is the Schuylerville Stakes for two-year-old fillies. Eleven fillies are entered in this six furlong event, which in the past has been won by champions such as Meadow Star, Countess Diana, and Golden Attraction.

This year’s edition includes Astoria Stakes winner Closing Act, that race’s runner-up Union Suit, eight fillies coming in off debut wins, and a first time starter for trainer Gary Contessa. In today’s post, I’ll be going through the pedigree of each filly in the field.

1. Carmelina

Carmelina is from the first crop of Maximus Mischief and out of the St. Averil mare Complete St. Complete St did not race at two, but was a stakes winner going 1 1/16 miles on the turf at Laurel Park. Carmelina, who sold for $44,000 as a weanling in the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic December mixed sale, is her first foal to race. She won impressively by five lengths on debut in a maiden special weight at Parx going 4 1/2 furlongs for trainer Robert Reid, Jr.

Carmelina’s second dam, the Polish Numbers mare Complete Number, was multiple stakes placed on both dirt and turf, and was the dam of a stakes-winning hurdler by Cozzene in addition to Complete St. There’s a chance this filly could have some ability on turf in the future.

There have been two stakes winners in 33 starters bred on the cross of Into Mischief with St. Averil’s sire Saint Ballado (6.06%), and three stakes winners in just 11 starters with Into Mischief on top and Polish Numbers on the bottom (27.27%).

2. Becky’s Joker

A first time starter for trainer Gary Contessa, Becky’s Joker put in a fast 34.88 work over the main track at Saratoga in her most recent prep for this race. She was a $130,000 Keeneland November weanling, but a $50,000 RNA at Keeneland September the following year. She is by Practical Joke and is the first foal to race out of the unraced Elusive Quality mare Becky’s Best.

Becky’s Best was out of Vertical Vision, a Pollard’s Vision mare who was a two-time stakes winning juvenile at Prairie Meadows. Vertical Vision is the dam of the multiple graded stakes winner Vertical Oak, a talented sprinter by Giant Oak whose biggest career victory came at Saratoga in the G2 Prioress Stakes.

The cross of Into Mischief over Elusive Quality has produced only a single stakes winner in 54 starters (1.85%), and none of the four starters by Into Mischief and his sons and out of mares carrying Pollard’s Vision are stakes winners, although that cross creates very distant linebreeding to their shared family 23b - the most recent common ancestor between Into Mischief and Pollard’s Vision is the mare Gallopade, who was born in 1828.

3. Union Suit

Union Suit broke her maiden on debut at Indiana Grand before being transferred to trainer Graham Motion. It would appear that Eclipse Thoroughbreds and Madaket Stables bought into this filly off that effort, though original owner Highland Thoroughbreds still retains some ownership interest.

Union Suit, by Union Rags and out of the Verrazano mare Ojai, was a $9,000 short yearling at Keeneland January last year. She is the first foal out of her unraced dam, who was a half sister to a stakes winner and two stakes placed winners. Her third dam, Debonair Dancer, was a multiple stakes winner who produced three stakes winners as a broodmare.

None of the twelve starters by Union Rags and out of mares carrying Verrazano’s sire More Than Ready are stakes winners.

4. Status Seeker

Status Seeker was a winner on debut at Belmont Park by half a length over Permed, a filly who would return to finish second again last week. The daughter of Upstart was a $85,000 Keeneland September yearling, but sold for just $45,000 at OBS March this year.

Her dam, Casual Cocktail, was a two-time winner by Magna Graduate out of the Speightstown mare Pina Colado, who also produced the multiple stakes placed winner Rum Go by Mizzen Mast.

The cross of Upstart over Magna Graduate creates inbreeding to the half brothers A.P. Indy and Honor Grades. This cross is found in five stakes winners (5.21% of starters), including graded stakes winners St. Joe Bay, Signalman, and Mad Flatter. The cross of Flatter over Honor Grades has produced two stakes winners - 18.18% of 11 starters. There are no stakes winners in 11 starters bred on the Flatter/Speightstown cross.

5. Saratoga Secret

A three-length winner on debut at Ellis Park for trainer D. Wayne Lukas, Saratoga Secret was a $200,000 Saratoga August yearling. She’s a daughter of Arrogate, and is the first foal out of the unraced Fort Larned mare Sister. Sister was out of the Langfuhr mare Langara Lass, the dam of three stakes winners, including Kentucky Derby runner-up Lookin at Lee.

The cross of Arrogate’s sire Unbridled’s Song over Fort Larned’s sire E Dubai has not produced a stakes winner in 21 starters, but this immediate family has had success with the Unbridled’s Song sire line - multiple stakes winner Manny Wah is by a son of Unbridled’s Song and out of a daughter of Langara Lass. The Unbridled’s Song/Langfuhr cross has produced 7.46% stakes winners in 67 starters.

6. Closing Act

Winner of the Astoria Stakes in her second start for Steve Asmussen and owner/breeder Douglas Scharbauer after winning a Churchill Downs maiden special weight on debut, Closing Act is a daughter of Munnings out of the stakes placed Master Command mare Evening Show.

Crossing Munnings with a daughter of Master Command creates inbreeding to the full sisters La Gueriere (Munnings’ second dam) and Lady Lochinvar (Master Command’s dam). Both are by Lord at War and out of the Secretariat mare Lady Winborne. This is the only stakes winner in four starters carrying both stallions, though Munnings has also produced multiple G1 winner I’m A Chatterbox out of a mare by Lost Soldier, a half-brother to La Gueriere and Lady Lochinvar.

I love the inbreeding here to La Troienne’s family 1x, and I expect her to put in a good performance as the only multiple winner in the field.

7. Wine on Tap

By Tapit and out of the Quality Road mare Princess La Quinta, Wine on Tap was a $600,000 Book One Keeneland September yearling who won by three lengths on debut for trainer Todd Pletcher and owner MKW Racing. Her dam was a graded stakes winner in the Arlington Matron Stakes and a half sister to two stakes placed winners. Her third dam, Jump With Joy, was a stakes winner who produced two stakes winners and three stakes placed winners among her 11 foals.

There have only been five starters bred on the Tapit/Quality Road cross, of which none are winners. The cross of Tapit over Wine on Tap’s second damsire Tabasco Cat did produce G1 Del Mar Debutante winner Tell a Kelly, but no stakes winners in 31 starters since January 2011.

8. Kiss For Luck

Kiss For Luck is a homebred for Swilcan Stables who had the rare distinction of being a debut winner for her sire, Accelerate. She rushed up to take the lead after breaking a step slow in a Parx maiden special weight, and won by 1 3/4 lengths as the odds-on favorite. She’s the second entry in this race for trainer Robert Reid, Jr., who also trains Carmelina.

Her dam, Vero Amore, was a two-time winner at two who was graded stakes placed at three in the G3 Black-Eyed Susan Stakes. As a broodmare, Vero Amore has been excellent, especially with two-year-olds. She is the dam of 2020 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies winner and Eclipse Champion two-year-old filly Vequist, as well as Sorority Stakes winner Vedareo (Daredevil) and Mainstay (Astern), who was second in this race in 2021.

Vero Amore’s success as a broodmare could be due in part to her being inbred 3x4 to the great broodmare Weekend Surprise, the dam of her paternal grandsire A.P. Indy and her second damsire Summer Squall. She is also linebred to family 1x via her sire Mineshaft and third damsire Private Account. Crossing her with Accelerate brings in two additional sources of family 1x - Lookin at Lucky’s damsire Belong to Me and Accelerate’s second damsire Eastern Echo. Lookin at Lucky has graded stakes winner Lookin For Eight in seven starters out of mares carrying Mineshaft (14.29%).

9. Dancing Diana

Dancing Diana is a daughter of Bolt d’Oro who sold for $100,000 at the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Eastern Fall Yearling sale last year. She is the first foal out of her dam, Oh Scatty Oh, by Scat Daddy. She was a winner by 7 1/2 lengths at Delaware Park on debut for trainer James Lawrence, II.

Bolt d’Oro has already produced G3 With Anticipation Stakes winner Boppy O out of a mare by Scat Daddy (20% of 5 starters on the cross), and the Medaglia d’Oro/Scat Daddy cross has produced 10% winners in just 20 starters overall. This is a pedigree that suggests the possibility of turf in her future, as both of her dam’s wins came on turf and her second dam was a turf stakes placed daughter of Dynaformer. Notably, Boppy O’s third dam was by Dynaformer, making this filly bred very similarly to the graded stakes winner.

10. Mila Junes

This Kent Sweezey trainee was a winner by half a length in her debut at Monmouth Park, where she was bumped at the start but closed well to win at odds of over 54-1. By Tapiture and out of the Overanalyze mare Over the Rocks, she sold for $22,000 at the Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Fall Yearling sale.

She is the first foal out of her unraced dam, who herself was a half sister to multiple stakes winner Athena (Street Sense). Though her second dam, by Rock of Gibraltar, was unraced, she was a half sister to G1 Carter Handicap winner Peeping Tom, and all of her foals to race were winners.

The cross of Tapit over Overanalyze’s sire Dixie Union has produced 6.76% stakes winners in 74 starters, including G1 winner Pauline’s Pearl. It’s notable that three of these five stakes winners were the full brothers Mohaymen, Kingly, and Enforceable. None of the ten starters with Tapit on top and Rock of Gibraltar on the bottom are stakes winners.

11. Sugar Treat

The final horse in the field is Sugar Treat, by freshman sire Enticed and out of the War Front mare Brown Glaze. She was a $120,000 OBS March purchase who won her debut on the synthetic at Gulfstream Park for trainer Mark Casse. There’s certainly precocity in this family - Sugar Treat is a half sister to two graded stakes placed horses: Absolute Grit (Kantharos), who was twice stakes placed as a three-year-old, and Bet On Mookie (Uncaptured), who was 3rd in the G3 Best Pal Stakes as a two-year-old. Her dam was a half-sister to two-year-old stakes winner Lottacosta (Cat Thief), graded stakes placed juvenile Lucky Livi (Mr. Greeley), and stakes placed Madrone (Doneraile Court).

There has been one stakes winner in 25 starters (4%) bred on the cross of Medaglia d’Oro over War Front, and one stakes winner in 40 starters (2.5%) bred on the cross of Medaglia d’Oro over Sugar Treat’s second damsire Copelan.