by Frank Drucker, Publicity Director, for Empire City at Yonkers Raceway

Yonkers, NY — Saturday night (Feb. 25) offered any number of entrants for Yonkers Raceway’s upcoming George Morton Levy Memorial Series for which nominations close this Wednesday, March 1, including favored Soto (Matt Kakaley, $4.50), winner of the featured $50,000 Open Handicap Pace.

Mike Lizzi photo

Soto lives up to his billing as the public’s first selection and captures the featured pacing contest at Yonkers on Saturday.

In play from post position four, Soto then gave up the baton to Somewhere in L A (Mark MacDonald) just before a moist :26.4 opening quarter-mile. After a :56 intermission and moving down the backside, First Class Horse (Tyler Buter) took out of fourth, that one towed Guantanamo Bay (Jason Bartlett) while moving into a :27.4 third quarter (1:23.4).

Somewhere in L A owned a 1-1/2 length lead into the lane, was good, though not quite good enough. Soto dipped inside, edging past by a neck in 1:52.1. Third was a best-of-the-rest Guantanamo Bay, with Roland N Rock (Jordan Stratton) and Caviart Luca (George Brennan) rounding out the payees.

For Delaware-based Soto, a 5-year-old son of Rock N Roll Heaven trained by Eric Ell for co-owners Kenneth Wood, William Dittmar Jr. and Stephen Iaquinta, it was his fourth win in seven seasonal starts.

The exacta paid $27.40, with the triple returning $147.