Favored Lucky Stride ($3.80) made it two stakes victories in a row with a solid stalk-and-pounce performance in the $100,000 Nellie Morse for fillies and mares going 1 1/16 miles at Laurel Park on Saturday. Lucky Stride began her career in Puerto Rico for Mark Tacher's Sonata Stable and compiled a record of eight wins and three seconds from 11 starts before being transferred to trainer Michael Trombetta's barn. "Sonata Stable is very prominent," Trombetta said "He's (Tacher) from Puerto Rico and he races a lot of their inventory in Puerto Rico. He started talking to me about this filly and said he really believes that she's good enough to come over here and compete in the states. A lot of times, that's pretty hard for those horses to do, but he was certainly right about her." :: Start earning weekly cashback on your wagering today. Click to learn more. Shipping up from Tampa Bay Downs after a late-running victory in the Wayward Lass Stakes, Lucky Stride was much closer to the early pace in the Nellie Morse. After breaking from the widest post position, she settled outside in tracking range as Flashndynamite set fractions of 24.30 and 47.67 while pushed along by 43-to-1 longshot Artful Splatter. Lucky Stride was under urging from jockey Julian Pimentel on the second turn while splitting horses three wide. She took the lead turning into the straight and comfortably held third-choice Landing Zone at bay. Lucky Stride finished the distance in 1:43.38 seconds while 1 1/4 lengths in front of Landing Zone. Artful Splatter placed third followed by Lucky Move, Daphne Moon, Flashndynamite, Wicked Awesome, and Pat's No Fool. Lucky Stride is a 5-year-old daughter of Declaration of War bred by Aschinger Bloodstock Holdings. Street Lute takes Wide Country Street Lute continues to stamp herself as the dominant 3-year-old filly in the Mid-Atlantic region. She grabbed her fifth consecutive stakes with another tactical performance in the $100,000 Wide Country Stakes at seven furlongs. A Maryland-bred daughter of Street Magician, Street Lute ($4) broke sharply, but jockey Xavier Perez opted to sit behind the hot pace set by Little Huntress and Whiskey and Rye. Those two fillies battled through fractions of 22.62 and 44.91 before Perez made his move on the far turn. Street Lute gave an eye-catching run to pass the pacesetters, then kept about her business to hold off Fraudulent Charge's late kick. Fraudulent Charge also finished second to Street Lute in the Gin Talking Stakes on Dec. 26. "Once he asked her, it was all over," said trainer Gina Robb, wife of trainer Jerry Robb, during a post-race interview broadcast by Laurel Park. "For her to chase the pace and finish the way she did, that was pretty spectacular. I think she kind of proved a point today." Street Lute completed the seven furlongs in 1:23.59 seconds and finished one length ahead of Fraudulent Charge. Salt Plage finished third followed by Buckey's Charm, Lady Clau, Miss Leslie, Whiskey and Rye, Little Huntress and My My Girl. Street Lute has now won seven of eight starts with the only defeat coming by a scant neck in the Maryland Million Lassie last fall.