from Harrah’s Philadelphia publicity department

Chester, PA — The Donato Hanover-Oaklea Opal filly Outsourced Hanover repulsed a long bid from Nitro Nittany and emerged a 1:57.4 winner during the fourth and final preliminary leg of Stallion Series action for 2-year-old trotting misses on Thursday (Aug. 29) at Harrah’s Philadelphia, denying Nitro Nittany’s chance for a sweep of the prelims.

Under Yannick Gingras’s control, the Ron Burke-trained filly set the pace just in front of Nitro Nittany, and when that one pocketpopped down the backstretch, Outsourced Hanover had a :28.3 last quarter in her to withstand her foe by a half-length.

The familiar pairing of Burke Racing Stable and Weaver Bruscemi is joined in ownership of this filly by Howard Taylor. And the victory ensured Outsourced Hanover a spot in the $40,000 Stallion Series Championship at Pocono on Friday (Sept. 6).

This heat was the second-fastest of seven Stallion Series cuts Thursday; the quickest, 1:56.3, was rung up by the filly who tied Nitro Nittany as top prelim pointwinner, the Andover Hall-Wishful Me filly Tweet Me.

Driver Tim Tetrick looks nothing like the famous comedian Jackie Gleason, of course, but you could almost hear him thinking “How tweet it is!” as the Don Swick-conditioned miss won by 5-1/4 lengths for Swick’s longtime owner Royal Wire Products Inc.

The eight horses advancing to the divisional championship are, in order: Nitro Nittany and Tweet Me (tied), Outsourced Hanover, Em Hanover and Fay (tied), Pinking Of You and Minerva Bi (tied), and Miss Geneva.

For the second straight day a minor upset unfolded in a national-caliber fast-class handicap event, as pocketsitting My MVP (Gingras driving) ran down frontstepping Sevruga in the stretch to post a 1:52.2 tally in the handicap trot, with Market Share two-moving but having to settle for third.

My MVP, just a neck shy while third in last year’s Hambletonian, races for trainer Tony Alagna and owners Brittany Farms, Joe Sbrocco and Modern Family Partners.

Friday at Harrah’s, three divisions of Sire Stakes 2-year-old trotting fillies will go behind the gate in the last preliminary action for 2013. Cooler Schooner, who shocked the world last week by posting a 1:51.3 clocking at Pocono — the fastest trotting mile ever by a 2-year-old, no distinctions made — will go in race five, and she may need another victory to get herself a spot in the championship of her division during the $1,240,000 Sire Stakes championship card for 2-year-olds, to be held at Harrah’s on Sunday (Sept. 15).

Friday’s Philly card also features Landmark Stakes for freshman pacers, many of them PA-sired horses who will be tuning up for their Sept. 15 outings.