Wilkes-Barre PA — Pond Jumper, the only horse to enter the $11,200 featured trot on Monday (June 28) at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono with the optional $20,000 claiming price, held off his opposition as the favorite in 1:56 on a hot day.

Pond Jumper held off his opposition as the favorite in 1:56 on a hot day. Curtis Salonick photo.

George Napolitano Jr. had the altered son of Honeydont Hanover between horses early, getting the lead, yielding to Conquest AS, and immediately reclaiming the lead. Pond Jumper maintained an advantage to the finish against several tough closers, with the nearest, Explosivebreakaway, in his first start since Jan. 11, only a half-length back on the far outside.

Pond Jumper won for the fourth time in his last seven starts and for the seventh time in 2021 with the year only half-over; in no previous season had he posted more than four victories. Darren Taneyhill trains the game trotter for owner Eric Prevost.

There were also three races set aside for 2-year-olds on the card, and all three winners had hit the board in their debuts, then moved up to victory here in their second betting starts.

Trainer Ray Schnittker and driver Mark MacDonald took down both of the events for pacers. The division for males was taken by Etbauer, owned by Schnittker, setting the pace and holding off a late charge by favored What About David (in his bow) in 1:54.2. Etbauer is a colt by Captaintreacherous–Wild West Show, which makes him a three-quarter brother to the noted racehorse and budding sire Huntsville.

Huntsville sired the winner of the filly division, Twenty Grand (dam Up Front Kellie Jo), gaining victory by racing up to the lead going past the grandstand the first time and going on to a 1:55 maiden triumph. Schnittker co-owns this one with Steven Arnold and Mark Ford.

In the contest for trotting males, Theresnolimit S (Nuncio–What’s Your Limit) also claimed command in front of the stands and came away a 1:56.4 winner. Mattias Melander drove for trainer/brother Marcus and Stall TZ Inc.

There was a 2-year-old trotting filly winning on the card, the Chapter Seven–Jewels In Hock miss Prasiolite. A winner in 1:59 in a purse race for her age/sex group last time, Prasiolite was added here to a maiden/conditioned event for older females. And Prasiolite mastered this group as well, lowering her mark to 1:57.2 for driver Tyler Buter, trainer John Butenschoen, and the partnership of Crawford Farms Racing, Mortgage Boys Stable, and James Crawford IV.

Program pages for the 12:30 p.m. Tuesday card are available at the PHHA website.