'Princess' seeks stakes

Nine 2-year-old Ohio-bred fillies, including a three-horse entry owned by the Pryrite Stable and trained by Miguel Feliciano, will match strides over six furlongs in the $50,000 Miss Ohio Stakes at Thistledown.

The top three contenders are Title Princess, Pyrite Gem, and Alana Zoey.

Title Princess, a daughter of Broken Vow, was third in the 5 1/2-furlong Tah Dah at River Downs in her last start July 29. She won her first race, going the same distance, at River Downs on June 30. Title Princess has the speed to be on or near the lead. Luis Martinez rides for trainer Tim Hamm.

Pyrite Gem appears to be the strongest part of the three-horse entry. A Formal Dinner homebred, she won at first asking in a five-furlong dash here Aug. 11, flashing a high turn of speed en route to a two-length win. Luis Gonzalez, who needs five winners to reach the 2,000-win plateau, has the mount.

Alana Zoey was third in her career debut here July 5, then came back 11 days later to win her first race. She led every step of the way that day and is expected to challenge for the lead here. Trainer Richard Zielinski has engaged the riding services of Jeffrey Skerrett.

Pryite Marci, part of the entry, will be making her career debut. An Evansville Slew filly, she comes into the race with two bullet workouts and her trainer is very proficient at winning with first-time starters.