Penn National track report

Any time a claiming horse plunges in class after a long layoff, it's reason enough to raise a red flag. But trainer Mike Salvaggio had his 6-year-old mare Muttface Alison perfectly spotted last Friday night at Penn National.

Winless in eight starts last year but 6 for 12 lifetime at Penn National, Muttface Alison ($5.20) dropped from a $20,000 optional claiming race to $7,500 while making her first start since July. Muttface Alison won by two lengths and there were no takers.

* The programs on Feb. 2 and 3 produced four longshot winners that paid more than $50. The biggest winner was Captain Mike ($141.20), a 5-year-old gelding trained by Dennis Mills who was 1 for 22 lifetime, beaten 36 lengths in his last three starts, before winning a sprint for $4,000 conditioned claimers by a length.

Two of the other longshots were $5,000 maiden claiming winners Siostra Gun ($100.80), a first-time starter for Ken Huffman, and Power Away ($66), a Liz Miller-trained horse.

Patriot Runner ($51.40), racing for the first time off a $10,000 claim by trainer Ron Taylor, came back after a month's freshening to beat $14,000 optional claimers under Carlos Nieto.