Dear Lilly difficult to beat at this level, distance

VANCOUVER, British Columbia – Dear Lilly figures to be tough to handle when she makes her second start of the year in a second-level optional $35,000 claiming race at Hastings on Sunday.

Trainer Troy Taylor had Dear Lilly ready to roll when she won an optional $25,000 claiming race by 3 1/2 lengths on June 18. With three sharp works since then, Dear Lilly appears primed for another strong effort in the 6 1/2-furlong sprint that drew five horses. It goes as race 2 on a seven-race card that begins at 1:50 p.m. Pacific. Partly due to B.C. Cup Day looming on Monday, Aug. 1, entries came in a bit light for Sunday, with just 41 horses entered in the seven races.

Dear Lilly is as honest as they come and has been almost unbeatable when she wasn’t running in stakes races. She won the last four times she ran in optional-claiming races, and she’s 5 for 7 going 6 1/2 furlongs. She began her career at Golden Gate Fields with a win in a $20,000 maiden-claiming race and has won 8 of 16 starts for owners Mark Dedomenico and Glen Todd.

The versatile 6-year-old Dear Lilly forced the issue right from the start in her latest win, but with speedsters Dawselina and Holly’s Last Call in this race, it is likely that jockey David Lopez will ease her into a stalking position behind what should be a fast and contested pace. She will break from post 1.

Race 2

KEY CONTENDERS

Dear Lilly, by Graeme Hall

Last 3 Beyers: 83-72-77

◗ She looked great winning her first start this year, has trained forwardly, and should get a cozy trip from her inside post.

FORMULATOR FACT: Over the past five years at Hastings, trainer Taylor has a 24 percent strike rate with horses making their second start following a layoff.

Holly’s Last Call, by Rosberg

Last 3 Beyers: 29-80-68

◗ She has to prove she can compete at this level, but she will appreciate the move back to a sprint after flopping as the heavy chalk in her first route attempt in a $35,000 optional-claiming race for trainer Craig MacPherson.

Dawselina, by Skimming

Last 3 Beyers: 62-78-70

◗ Trained by Rosann Anderson, she can fire fresh, and this will be her first start since she finished fourth in the $50,000 B.C. Cup Distaff last August. The two-time stakes winner could be dangerous if she clears early, but Holly’s Last Call probably will have something to say about that.