Jockey Hernandez gets stakes wins with Pacific Pink, Efforting

Jockey Colby Hernandez swept Friday night’s stakes double at Evangeline Downs, guiding Pacific Pink to victory in the $75,000 Spotted Horse and Efforting to her first stakes win in the $50,000 Acadiana.

The races launched a weekend of stakes that culminates with Saturday night’s $100,000 Evangeline Mile.

Pacific Pink ($13.60) closed into the contested pace of Soul Affair and Vieja Luna, who took the field through fractions of 23.45 seconds for the opening quarter and 47.10 for the half-mile. Pacific Pink overtook those rivals while winning by 2 3/4 lengths over her stablemate Sunny Oak. Pacific Pink covered the mile for fillies and mares on a fast track in 1:38.08.

Hernandez was aboard for trainer Edward Johnston.

Danzatrice, a leading contender, lost her rider early on in the Spotted Horse.

Pacific Pink is a multiple stakes-winning daughter of Private Vow and races for her breeder, Keith Plaisance. Sunny Oak also races for Plaisance and is trained by Johnston.

Efforting ($4.80) rolled home by 3 1/2 lengths over Rose Guitar in the Acadiana, for 3-year-old Louisiana-bred fillies who had never won a stakes race. Efforting tracked fractions of 23.27 seconds for the opening quarter and 46.97 for the half-mile before going on to cover the seven furlongs run around two turns in 1:24.81.

Efforting is a daughter of Into Mischief. Al Stall Jr. trains the filly for the Fair Grounds Racing Club.