Columbus, MN – The Thursday night (July 17) harness racing program at Running Aces featured the weekly $14,750 Mares Open Handicap pace, with a well-matched field of nine going into battle.
Lloyd’s Loves (Brady Jenson) was the 5-2 favorite while JK My Girl (Nick Roland) was the 7-2 second choice and Deja Vu Babyboo (Billy Mann) was the public’s next choice at 4-1.
Scorecard Dandy (Dean Magee) blasted off the gate from post three to take control while JK My Girl secured the pocket from post four and Premier Desirey (Jessie Pacheco) left fast from post six to drop in third during the :27.3 opening quarter.
Deja Vu Babyboo tipped out from fourth for a first-over bid and applied some pressure to the leader during the middle stages (:57.1 and 1:24.4) while Lloyd’s Loves followed her cover.
Scorecard Dandy still had control until the top of the lane, but Roland vacated the pocket and rallied inside with JK My Girl and she had plenty of pace to go after the leader.
Scorecard Dandy dug in gamely and those two battled stride for stride to the wire, with JK My Girl surging at just the right moment to grab the victory by a neck in 1:52.3. Premier Desirey checked home two lengths behind that pair for third and Lloyd’s Loves was fourth best.
It was the third straight win for JK My Girl ($9.20), who is a 6-year-old daughter of JK Endofanera. She now shows 22 career wins and $238,653 in earnings for owner Erika Huffman and trainer Bob Lems.
Drivers Luke Plano and Billy Mann each had triples on the Thursday card, while Plano and Bob Lems both recorded training doubles.
Live racing returns to Running Aces on Sunday (July 20) for an 11-race program with first post set for 6 p.m. (CDT).