Raise the Reward tries for third Michael Rowland Memorial win

Raise the Reward will be looking to win the $50,000 Michael Rowland Memorial for the third straight year for trainer Jeff Radosevich at ThistleDown on Sunday.

Just as he did last year, the 8-year-old gelding used the Babst/Palacios Memorial at Beulah Park as a stepping-stone to Sunday’s six-furlong race. Raise the Reward finished third in last year’s Babst/Palacios but finished last in that prep race this year after having trouble on the turn.

Raise the Reward has won 7 of 27 races over the ThistleDown oval, and $272,429 of his $393,533 lifetime earnings have come at the Cleveland-area track.

Radosevich also trains Culpepper Creek, a 5-year-old gelding whose chances would improve if the track comes up sloppy or muddy. Culpepper Creek boasts a record of 3-2-1 in six attempts over a wet track. In his first start this year, Culpepper Creek finished second, beaten only a neck, in a starter-allowance race May 4 going the same six-furlong distance at ThistleDown.

Raise the Reward will be ridden by Jacob Radosevich, and Culpepper Creek will be ridden by Jeffrey Skerrett. The two will not be coupled and are owned by separate interests.

A field of 11 Ohio-accredited horses will go to the post for the Rowland Memorial, race 7 on the eight-race card. “Accredited” is the more restrictive of the two Ohio-registered categories, as both the sire and dam must be in Ohio.

Post time for the day’s first race is 12:55 p.m. Eastern, with the Rowland Memorial going off at 3:55.