In 11 trips over the track, she's won 9

AUBURN, Wash. - Victory Script will return to her favorite track on Thursday when she takes on seven rivals in the Emerald Downs feature, a six-furlong race for fillies and mares eligible to be claimed for $20,000.

Victory Script, a 6-year-old daughter of Game Plan from the barn of trainer Roy Lumm, has won 9 of 11 starts over the local oval, including all seven of her outings at last year's meeting. She has subsequently gone winless in seven starts in Northern California, but she was second in her last two tries, which came against $25,000 claimers and $32,000 optional claimers in January. She will be returning from a vacation of nearly six months, but she has worked five furlongs three times and six furlongs once. Joe Crispin, who has been racing at smaller tracks in Idaho and Oregon, will return to Emerald to accept the mount.

Victory Script faces a severe challenge from Appealing Sweets, who steps up from the $10,000 level after winning her last three outings by wide margins. Appealing Sweets, a 6-year-old daughter of Successful Appeal trained by Mike Chambers, began her win streak against $6,250 rivals at Turf Paradise and has since dusted $5,000 and $10,000 foes at this meeting. Seth Martinez will retain the mount.

Also dangerous is Golden Pine, yet another 6-year-old, who is trained by Tom Wenzel. Golden Pine, a stakes winner here as a 3-year-old, comes off a second against $20,000 rivals going 6 1/2 furlongs on July 3.