The Meadows: Filly Speaks cruises in Donna Dunn final

A confident Filly Speaks pulled the pocket near the three-quarters and rolled to a convincing win in Wednesday's $19,750 championship of the Donna Dunn Memorial Pace for 3- and 4-year-old fillies and mares at The Meadows.

Filly Speaks made the point with a quarter-pole move only to be seated by Keep Watching. But when Tony Hall asked her for pace, the 3-year-old daughter of Artspeak-Filly's Victory blew past Keep Watching and scored in a career-best 1:53 3/5. Best Derby Native, who saw her three-race winning streak snapped, shot the Lightning Lane for second, 2-1/4 lengths back, while Keep Watching saved show.

In 12 career starts, Filly Speaks has seven victories and has missed the ticket only once.

"She's a big, strong, good-gaited filly," said Scott Betts, who trains the winner for Tim Betts, Nick Catalano and Keith Pippi. "She's pretty versatile, and she drives really well."

He said the connections acquired Filly Speaks privately at 2 and have planned a stakes schedule that includes the Pennsylvania All Stars, the Pennsylvania Stallion Series, the Liberty Bell, the Keystone Classics and the Courageous Lady.

"That last one would be a homerun, but just in case," Betts said. "She actually prefers coming from off a helmet, so when they start going a little bit more, she'll like it."

Filly Speaks' triumph highlighted a huge day for Hall. In his 13 drives, he collected six wins, two seconds, a third and a fourth.

Live racing at The Meadows continues Thursday when the 13-race program features a $2,916.22 carryover in the final-race Jackpot Super Hi-5 as well as the championships of the Dale McConnell Memorial Trot -- where Whiskey Blu will try to stretch his career unbeaten streak to seven -- and the Mary Wohlmuth Memorial Trot. First post is 12:45 PM.

-edited release (Evan Pattak for MSOA)