Harrah's Hoosier Park: Texsong Soprano hits the winning note in Indiana Sires Stakes

The Indiana Sires Stakes season continued with a bang on Independence Day at Harrah's Hoosier Park Racing & Casino as a packed house enjoyed fireworks both on and off the racetrack. It was round three of eight for the sophomores in the sires stakes, with two divisions for 3-year-old trotting fillies, a single split for the 3-year-old pacing colts and geldings, and a track record performance by Texsong Soprano in the lone test for 3-year-old trotting males.

Leaving from post four in the scratched-down field of seven in the showdown for the colt and gelding trotters, driver Mike Oosting opted to sit just off of the pace in the early stages as Just Show Up and Trace Tetrick parked the heavy favorite and undefeated Ponda Jet and Kyle Wilfong through a blistering opening quarter of 27 seconds. Wilfong and Ponda Jet took command up the backstretch but kept the gas pedal down through an opening half of 54 3/5. The field began to tighten on the far turn as Helpfistedition brought the outside cover flow to the leader's wheel first-over for John De Long, while Ponda Jet took the field through three-quarters in 1:23 1/5 with Oosting waiting patiently third on the rail.

In the lane, Ponda Jet dug in gamely to fend off the initial surge for Helpfirstedition, but Oosting gave Texsong Soprano his cue, vacating the rail and making it a three-horse battle to wire. With a final lunge at the finish, Texsong Soprano nailed a dead-game Ponda Jet by a quarter of a length with a 27 1/5 final quarter to stop the clock in a track record 1:51 for a sophomore trotting colt.

It was the third win in four seasonal outings for the Missy Essig-trained son of Text Me. Bred by Abraham Miller, the half-brother to millionaire Windsong Soprano has now banked $260,612 in his career for owners Lillian Farms and Joe Yoder. The 1:51 performance by Texsong Soprano lowered the previous mark set by Don't Let 'Em in the 2019 Carl Erskine by nearly a full second.

Essig had already bagged two winners on the card prior to Texsong Soprano, including a lifetime best performance by Swanya in the $48,500 second section of Indiana Sires Stakes for the 3-year-old trotting fillies. Using the rail starting spot to their advantage, driver John De Long rushed Swanya directly to the front-end through an opening quarter of 28 1/5 as fellow round two sires stakes winner, Helpoftheseason and Peter Wrenn, sat patiently in the pocket. The field remained in straight alignment as De Long tapped the brakes to the tune of a 29 second second quarter, reaching the half in 57 1/5. Swanya continued to hold the field at bay on the far turn as she began to accelerate to three-quarters in 1:25 2/5.

De Long stomped on the gas pedal at the top of the lane, but Swanya drifted away from the pylons in the stretch, leaving room for Helpoftheseason and Wrenn to shoot the gap. The two fillies slugged it out in an all-out sprint to the line, with Swanya powering to the wire a half-length clear in 1:52 2/5 behind the strength of a 27 second final quarter. Stella Rose and Mike Oosting rounded out the trifecta.

Swanya secured her seventh victory in nine seasonal starts for owner Jacalyn Beeman. Bred by Leonard Miller, Swanya pushed her career bankroll to $103,500.

► Sign up for our FREE DRF Harness Digest Newsletter

The win gave De Long the sweep of the sires stakes for 3-year-old trotting fillies, having scored at 20-1 with Myrll Vally in the the $49,000 first flight, which went off as the second race on the card. Leaving from post five in the field of seven, De Long would steer Myrll Valley into the middle of the pack in fourth as Trace Tetrick sent Yo Beth D to the front through an opening quarter of 27 seconds. The trotting fillies remained in straight alignment up the backstretch as Yo Beth D led the field through the halfway point in 56 seconds. Yo Beth D came under pressure around the final turn as Matt Krueger sent Naturdays hard to the front first-up from third, snagging the lead position through three quarters in 1:24 3/5.

In the stretch, Naturdays came under fire from a two-pronged attack as Country Mamma and Peter Wrenn surged on the outside, while De Long and Myrll Vally powered up the passing lane. Using a torrid 27 second final quarter, Myrll Vally sprinted to lead at the line, getting the job done by a head over Country Mamma and stopping the timer in 1:52 2/5. Naturdays held for the third position.

Bred by Steven Mast, Myrll Vally notched her first win of the season for trainer Darryl Lyons and second for her career. The daughter of Swan For All, out of the Cantab Hall mare Myrrh, has now banked $85,170 for owners Aaron Miller, Luke Miller, Delvin Miller and Darryl Lyons.

In the Tuesday night finale, Coach Stefanos remained perfect for his 3-year-old campaign in an absolute thriller of a $97,000 battle for the 3-year-old pacing colts and geldings. Saddled with far outside post nine, Trace Tetrick was able to guide Coach Stefanos into a mid-pack landing spot in sixth as De Long directed Buzzsaw Russ to the front-end through an opening quarter of 26 2/5. Buzzsaw Russ was able to back things down up the backstretch to half of 54 4/5 before Why Not Now and LeWayne Miller launched their bid on the far turn. The two locked horns on the lead as Coach Stefanos and Tetrick followed Why Not Now's cover into third at three-quarters, and they were ready to launch as they hit that station in 1:22 2/5.

Buzzsaw Russ and De Long cut the corner and gained separation on his two rivals at the top of the lane as Coach Stefanos tipped three-wide and began to close. That set the stage for a wild three-across finish, as Coach Stefanos and Why Not Now began to rally on the grandstand side to track down a gutsy Buzzsaw Russ late in the lane, needing the photo finish to separate the two as Coach Stefanos prevailed by a nose over Why Not Now in a lifetime-best 1:48 4/5.

Trained by Erv Miller, the Tellitlikeitis gelding picked up his third victory in as many seasonal starts in 2023. Bred by Victory Hill Farm, Coach Stefanos has built a career bankroll of $367,305 for owners Kenneth Duffy, D&M Training Il LLC., and John Stefanos.

Racing action continues at Harrah's Hoosier Park on Wednesday, July 5 with a 14-race card set to kick off at 6:15 p.m.

--press release (Harrah's Hoosier Park)--