Santa Anita: Snow Fall's win in Paseana may earn her shot at Santa Maria

Benoit & Associates

Tyler Baze guides Snow Fall to her first stakes win since arriving in California in the Paseana Handicap.

ARCADIA, Calif. - Snow Fall won her first stakes in California, and the second stakes of her career, in Sunday’s $81,700 Paseana Handicap for fillies and mares at Santa Anita.

Snow Fall ($13) had an ideal trip under jockey Tyler Baze to secure a convincing win by 3 1/4 lengths in the race over 1 1/16 miles. She was timed in 1:42.66.

Baze had Snow Fall in second for the first half-mile, stalking pacesetter Distracting through fractions of 23.80 and 47.61 seconds.

Snow Fall took the lead on the final turn and was not threatened in the stretch. Distracting, the 8-5 favorite, held second in the field of seven.

Curvy Cat finished third, followed by Great Hot, Candrea, Charm the Maker, and Sweetly Peppered.

Snow Fall races for Peter Abruzzo, Taylor Made Properties, and George Saufley and is trained by Jerry Hollendorfer. Snow Fall joined Hollendorfer’s stable last fall. She was second in the Kalookan Queen Stakes for sprinters on Dec. 29 in her California debut.

Snow Fall, 5, was trained by Michael Stidham as a 3-year-old and by Graham Motion as a 4-year-old. For Stidham, Snow Fall won the Pike Creek Stakes at Delaware Park and was fifth in the Grade 1 Acorn Stakes at Belmont Park.

Hollendorfer said that Snow Fall will be pointed for the $200,000 Santa Maria Stakes over 1 1/16 miles for fillies and mares on Feb. 16.