by Dustin Ross, regional racing operations manager, Tioga Downs

Nichols, NY — Howard Parker and Year Of The Dragon scored their second straight victory in the Tioga State Bank Pace at Tioga Downs on Saturday night, June 21.

Fred Brown photography

Year Of The Dragon was a 1:55.1 winner on Saturday for Howard Parker.

The 4-year-old Dragon Again gelding forged his way to the front through fractions of :28, :57.2, and 1:26 before turning in a final quarter of :29.1. Year Of The Dragon is owned by Janet Herdegen and is trained by Paul Szalay, Jr. It was a length back to Victory’s Boy and Bruce Aldrich, Jr. in second, while Western Culture and Anthony Simpson got up for third. It was the sixth win in 19 starts for Year Of The Dragon and the victory increased his seasonal bankroll to more than $47,000.

In the second division of the Tioga State Bank Pace, Artful Sky and Corey Braden chose the pylon path and nipped Maxine’s Menace at the wire. The 5-year-old Real Artist gelding is trained by Guy Howard for owners Christopher Gehm and Wayne Lockwood. It was the second win of the season for Artful Sky in 11 starts, increasing his earnings to more than $11,000 on the year. It was three-quarters of a length back to Maxine’s Menace in second, while Dontgetintheway and Mike Simons rounded out the $793.00 trifecta.

Corey Braden and Todd Ratchford each posted driving doubles on the night’s 10-race card.

Tioga continues its live racing action on Sunday, June 22, with a post time of 1:15 p.m. The Rags To Riches Pacing Series will continue with its third leg as the field will be narrowed down to the final nine after Sunday’s card.

For more information on Tioga Downs visit www.tiogadowns.com or call 1-888-WIN-TIOGA.