Harrah's Philadelphia: Fillies battle in Liberty Bell Stakes

The Liberty Bell Stakes series continued on Friday afternoon at Harrah's Philadelphia, with 3-year-old fillies on both gaits contesting a pair of $30,000 divisions.

The "Ahle- Ake Show," driver Johnathan Ahle and trainer Ake Svanstedt, had a big day here on Thursday and continued on that success with the faster of the trotting winners, the Southwind Frank miss Hangover. She followed up a win in Pocono's Simpson Stakes with a Liberty Bell engine win by 2 3/4 lengths in 1:54 1/5. The co-owners of the victress are Ake Svanstedt Inc., Joe Sbrocco & JAF Racing, Little E LLC., and Rivers Stable Inc.

The other trotting winner, the Bar Hopping filly Bay Breeze Hanover, was the only one of the day's four stakes success stories who wasn't coming off a Simpson win (she was second to Hangover at Pocono), but bounced back to winning ways by taking a new mark of 1:54 2/5. A strong stretch headwind was a big factor on the day, but nevertheless this race had three across the wire, with Bay Breeze Hanover shooting the inside to defeat first-over Payback Moni by three-quarters of a length, with pace-setter Shes A Shoe In another neck back in third. Andrew McCarthy handled the winner for trainer Michael Seddon and owner Nick Shaw.

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The Bettor's Wish filly Time Of The Season and driver McCarthy saw a lot of early racetrack - she was four-wide, three-wide, two-wide, and finally one-wide and on top at the quarter - but she came home in 55 3/5 to be a clear winner in 1:52 1/5 in the faster pacing segment. Tim Twaddle conditions the winner of three of her last four for Birnam Wood Farms.

Papi Rob Hanover, who sired both pacing winners Thursday, added another credit when his Gigglingonthebeach finished off a Liberty Bell-Simpson-Lynch Consolation I triple within her last four starts, going through the headwind in 27 3/5 after a pocket journey in a 1:52 2/5 mile. Asphalt, the pace-setter, was three-parts of a length off the winner, who was driven by George Napolitano Jr. for trainer Juan Cano and Hot Lead Farm.

Mark Herschberger had three wins on the day; Andrew McCarthy had a stakes double as noted. Also with two wins were the pairing of driver Kyle DiBenedetto and trainer Bo Sowers, both newly-arrived from Monticello.

Sunday's card at 12:40 will close out the Philly racing week; there will be Liberty Bell stakes action on both next Thursday and Friday.