Fillies go for first stakes win

VALLEJO, Calif. - Ten 2-year-old fillies will seek their first stakes win Sunday in the $50,000-added Solano County Juvenile Fillies Stakes.

Kelly's Princess, who drew the rail in the 5 1/2-furlong race for Cal-breds, has the field's highest career Beyer Figure and recently finished second in the Juan Gonzalez Memorial Stakes at Pleasanton.

Trainers Lloyd Mason, Steve Specht, and Duane Offield each enter a filly who won her first start.

Mason bred and owns Cosmic Lady, who won her debut in a $25,000 maiden claimer at Pleasanton.

"She showed she could run a little," Mason said. "She's real sensible, and all her works had been average or above average, but I don't really set them down early in their training."

The way she won from off the pace pleased Mason.

"I want them to sit off the pace, not jam out of the gate," he said. "As long as they show something in the lane, I'm satisfied."

Point Reyes won her debut after Specht gambled a bit by putting her in a $12,500 maiden claimer. He doesn't know how strong the field was, but the runner-up did win her next start.

What made the wire-to-wire score impressive is that she lost her rider in the post parade.

"Thank goodness the stewards let her run," Specht said. "I think it's important to get young horses used to being with a pony, so she didn't run off far."

Offield was surprised when Tense Wager went wire to wire to win her debut in a $32,000 maiden claimer. She beat two of her Sunday rivals, Maiden of Honor and Jaymi the Cat, in that race.

"When she first came in, it took a while - then the lights went on," Offield said. "I didn't think she'd go wire to wire, but she's a hard trier, and I knew she'd run well."

Trainer John Martin saw Welcome Queen win her debut, but he was more impressed by her third-place finish in the Juan Gonzalez at Pleasanton after she hesitated at the start and spotted the rest of the field close to 10 lengths.

"She'd always shown a lot of speed in the morning, but she broke terrible, and I thought she was out of the race," he said. "I was really surprised to see her make a move like that."