Plainville, MA — After tripping third to the half, Warrawee Yale made a winning move to capture the $25,000 Baystate Special at Plainridge Park on Thursday (Nov. 6).
Mansome (Bruce Ranger) and ER Griffin (Nick Graffam) traded leads early, with ER Griffin taking control passing the :26.4 quarter. The race stayed single-file to the half and then halfway up the backstretch, where Switzer tipped Warrawee Yale from third and started to advance towards the leader.
Warrawee Yale pulled alongside ER Griffin as they passed three-quarters in 1:24.1, and a match race ensued as the pair went stride for stride from there. Pacing synonymously around the last turn, into the stretch and all the way down the lane, hardly an inch could have separated the noses of ER Griffin and Warrawee Yale. But Warrawee Yale got a slight advantage at the line and won in 1:52.4.
It was the fourth win of the year for Warrawee Yale ($7.40), who is owned and trained by Gerald MacKenzie Jr.
Trainer Jimmy Nickerson had a big day at Plainridge on Thursday as three from his stable returned for pictures. The biggest win of the day was scored by Joy In Mudville, who won the secondary-featured $20,000 upper-level conditioned pace.
Joy In Mudville (NNick Graffam) followed Fourever Boy (Aaron Byron) through quarters of :27.3, :56 and 1:24.2 at three-quarters, where Patrikthepiranha A (Bruce Ranger) made a mild outside bid. But that bid fell apart as the race moved through the last turn and the top two started to pull away. Fourever Boy took the lead into the stretch, but Joy In Mudville was out and rolling there and chipped away at his one-length deficit until he was ahead by a half at the line, where he won in 1:52.3.
It was the third win of the year for Joy In Mudville ($20.40), who is owned by Peter Karras, William Tortoriello and Thomas Spathies.
Nickerson closed out his hat trick with wins by Always A Miki (1:54.2, $3.00) and Courageous Warrior (1:53.3, $2.40).
The three wins moved Nickerson into a second-place tie for dash wins during the meet with Domenico Cecere, both of whom are only three wins behind the leader, Gretchen Athearn, who sits atop the list with 47 tallies.
Matty “Ice” Athearn had the hot hands on the lines Thursday after scoring four wins on the program. He steered Nickerson’s Always A Miki and Courageous Warrior, along with Second Bruiser (1:52.3, $20.20) and Dance Monkey (1:55, $8.80) to close out the grand slam.
Live racing at Plainridge Park will resume on Friday (Nov. 7) at 1 p.m.; there will be a $4,398 carryover in the Wicked Hi-5 in the sixth race.
Free full past performance programs and race replays for all live racing days at Plainridge Park can be found at plainridgeparkcasino.com.