Kissin In The Sand overcomes tough trip to win Lynch final
June 30, 2018,by Ken Weingartner, USTA Media Relations Manager
Wilkes-Barre, PA — Kissin In The Sand raced on the outside for much of the way before rallying to get past Youaremycandygirl in deep stretch and win Saturday’s (June 30) $300,000 James M. Lynch Memorial for 3-year-old female pacers by a neck in 1:49.3 at The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono. Alexa’s Power was third.
USTA/Mark Hall photo
Kissin In The Sand was a neck winner in the Lynch final.
Kissin In The Sand started from post nine and got parked on the outside as Youaremycandygirl got the lead from post two. Youaremycandygirl hit the opening quarter in :26 and then battled with Kissin In The Sand as they reached the half in :53.2 and three-quarters in 1:20.3.
As the horses came around the final turn, Kissin In The Sand moved to the pylons behind Youaremycandygirl, but she wasn’t finished fighting. After straightening up in the stretch, Kissin In The Sand returned to the outside and was able to pass Youaremycandygirl in the final moments. The time was one-fifth of a second off the stakes record.
“How the heck did she win that race?” a smiling trainer Nancy Johansson said as she posed for the win photo.
“Nobody wants to sit parked the whole way,” winning driver Scott Zeron said. “I felt like I was going against the other best horse in the race and it was a battle between the two of us.
“I had a decision in the first turn, I thought maybe I would be able to get in but I felt I was really going to have to wrestle her to do it and Yannick could have stolen the race at that point. I made the decision to go to the front. When I ducked her back in on the last turn she picked the bit back up, which surprised me. When I angled her back over in the lane she really was game.”
Kissin In The Sand, a daughter of Somebeachsomewhere out of Kiss Me Kate, has won three of five races this year and 10 of 19 in her career. She has earned $495,545 for owners Marvin Katz and Hatfield Stables.
Kissin In The Sand went off at odds of 4-1 and paid $10.20 to win.
The Lynch Memorial is named in honor of James M. Lynch, who served in positions from steward to racing secretary to director of racing to general manager during a career that took him to tracks around the country. He was the director of racing at Pennsylvania’s Liberty Bell for all 23 years of its existence. He also was a horse owner and director of the U.S. Trotting Association. He passed away in 2000.
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