River Downs: Doubly good

Doubly Fun and Lady Cherie are hard to look past in Sunday's $45,000 Ms. Southern Ohio Stakes at River Downs in Cincinnati. Eleven will start in the 1 1/16-mile turf race for statebred fillies and mares.

Doubly Fun, the winner of the Ms. Southern Ohio the last two years, appears to be better than Lady Cherie on the grass. In addition to her Ms. Southern Ohio wins, Doubly Fun also won an allowance race over this course on June 28. Coming off of an eight-month absence, Doubly Fun won by 5 1/4 lengths.

Lady Cherie's career can be measured in trophies. In 27 starts, Lady Cherie has won 14 races, 10 of them stakes. She has also placed in eight stakes, including the Rose DeBartolo Handicap at Thistledown in her most recent start, in which she finished more than eight lengths ahead of Doubly Fun.

Lady Cherie has raced on turf only three times, including a stakes win over the River turf. She was unplaced in her other two turf starts, including in last year's Ms. Southern Ohio.

Cabot Cove, who won this race in 1998, may round out the trifecta. Stakes-placed multiple times last season, Cabot Cove has earned minor checks in three starts at Mountaineer this year.

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