Sisterly Love broke alertly and never looked back en route to an emphatic score in Saturday’s $133,000 Trillium Stakes, at Woodbine.
Trained by Mark Casse for owner Gary Barber, Sisterly Love was hustled to the lead in the 1 1/16-mile ‘Poly’ stake setting splits of :24.88 and 49.07 under jockey Eurico Rosa da Silva and opened up at will down the lane to stop the clock in 1:43 flat.
Sisterly Love, a five-year-old daughter of Bellamy Road, enjoyed a three-length lead down the backstretch as the favoured Inglorious, Queen’s Plate and Woodbine Oaks champ in 2011, saved ground along the rail in third position.
Inglorious was urged into contention through the far turn, but could not cut into the lead of the front-runner who went on to win by 8 1/2-lengths. Reconnect rallied for place over Sarah Her Highness. Inglorious faded to finish last of seven.
Sisterly Love, who finished eighth when sprinting in the Grade 3 Whimsical last time out under Gary Boulanger, benefitted from being loose on the lead while stretching out to two turns.
“Mark told me she didn’t like too many horses around her so we tried to make the lead and try not to have anybody around us,” said da Silva. “She went there comfortably and she did a great job.”
Casse noted that while the mare has shown flashes of brilliance in her career, she may have spent a little too much time on the road, having raced at five different tracks in seven career starts.
“We were hard on her and as Gary (Barber) said, we treated her like she was a FedEx package,” said Casse. “She went a lot of different places and I promised Gary after she ran bad last time that the next time she runs we’re going to see a new Sisterly Love. This is the first time she’s been able to run and train at one place for very long and the difference showed.”
Sisterly Love banked $75,000 in victory, while improving her record to 4-0-1 from six career starts.
She returned $7, $4.20 and $3.80, pairing with Reconnect ($7.70, $4.40) for a $42.40 (1-6) exactor. A 1-6-5 (Sarah Her Highness, $9.30 to show) triactor was worth $225.10. Lonesome Town completed a $1 Superfecta (1-6-5-4) worth $906.40.
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