The Meadows: Captain Cowgirl looks to cement berth in PASS final

Friday's $161,744 Pennsylvania Sires Stake at The Meadows for freshman filly pacers is the final preliminary leg, yet none of the youngsters has seized control of the division. Of the 13 fillies who''ll compete in Friday's two splits (races 8 and 10), not one has captured two PASS wins, three have a single victory and most of the others could add enough points Friday to make the championship.

Captain Cowgirl, one of those three PASS winners, will try to cement her finals berth for driver Tim Tetrick, trainer Jim King, Jr. and owners Jo Ann Looney-King and Kenneth Frieder. She'll leave from post 4 in race 10.

Friday's card also features a $40,000 PA Stallion Series event for 2-year-old filly pacers. The Meadows Standardbred Owners Association will present "Family Fun Night," which includes a variety of family-oriented activities. Special post time is 5 PM.

The Meadows will host all four $250,000 PASS 2-year-old championships on Friday, Sept. 3.

► Sign up for our FREE DRF Harness Digest Newsletter

Captain Cowgirl (Captaintreacherous-Rideintothesunset) finds herself in a must-earn-big-points situation in part because of what King calls "trainer misjudgment." That is, for the first PASS leg, King entered her in the stallion series rather than the sires stake, so she earned no sires stake points at all.

"She went as much as the sires stake types did; she just didn't get paid as well," King recalls ruefully. "Because we missed that first leg, it's important that we do well to get into the final."

Still, King has no beef with Captain Cowgirl, a $20,000 yearling acquisition who's already banked more than $61,000. That stallion series victory in her career debut launched her on a three-race winning streak that included a triumph in the Arden Downs at The Meadows. In her second PASS try at Pocono, she tasted defeat for the first time but finished a strong second, individually timed in 1:50 4/5.

"If she gets a good spot, she can do what she needs to do," King says. "I don't think she's reached her limit yet. She'll go right through to the Breeders Crown if she's healthy and shows she wants to participate."

King also sends out Im No April Fool (race 8, post 4, Tetrick), a daughter of A Rocknroll Dance-McSauna who's earned checks but no PASS wins. With her previous points earned, however, a victory Friday could catapult her into the championship.

"She's not as good as a few of the others that I have," King says. "She needs a trip to get paid well because she'll follow a horse a long way. But she'll finish up the year on the plus side."

Tim Tetrick LLC owns Im No April Fool.

-edited release (Evan Pattak for MSOA)