Theodora B. ($24.10) finds first stakes win in Dance Smartly

ETOBICOKE, Ontario — The Maryland shipper Theodora B. was overlooked in the wagering at 11-1, but she outran her odds in a front-running score in Saturday’s Grade 2 Dance Smartly on the Woodbine Oaks undercard.

Theodora B. ($24.10) set slow fractions under Justin Stein in the 1 1/4-mile turf route for fillies and mares. Elizabeth Way pressed her in second, while the favored New Yorker Etoile saved ground in third until the head of the stretch.

Theodora B. established a one-length lead in the two path in the stretch, during which she held off Etoile en route to a three-quarter-length victory, in a time of 2:02.35 over the firm ground.

Elizabeth Way flattened out to third, and was followed by Art of Almost, Bold Script, and Romantic Pursuit.

It was the first stakes success and first Woodbine win for Theodora B. She was coming off a dull effort here in the Grade 3 Trillium, but she finished third behind her Michael Dickinson-trained stablemate, Lift Up, in last year’s Grade 3 Maple Leaf.

“I was pretty confident in her,” Stein said. “I galloped her yesterday, and she’s a real efficient mover, with a big, long stride. We were covering a lot of ground, but she wasn’t doing much in the gallop. I knew what I had today.”

Stein said the pre-race strategy changed in the early portion of the race.

“I talked to the trainer on the way in,” Stein explained. “Unfortunately, our plans at the beginning of the race were mixed up. She wanted the lead, and (I) had to go with it, but she just kept running (with) a lot of power. I knew another horse would really have to be running to get by her. She gave me everything she had. I had a lot of horse left in the tank. She showed her pump the whole way down the stretch.”

A 5-year-old daughter of Ghostzapper, Theodora B. earned $105,000 of the $175,700 purse for the Augustin Stable of George Strawbridge Jr., who won last year’s Eclipse Award for outstanding breeder.