Ol' Fashion Gal Fends Off Late Run in Selene
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Ol' Fashion Gal held off the late run from the 6-5 favorite Don't Leave Me to take the $154,800 Selene Stakes (Can-III) for 3-year-old fillies May 24 at Woodbine.
Owned by Bill and Vicki Poston, Ol' Fashion Gal stalked the early pace of Watch This Cat through a half-mile in :48.59 under jockey Alan Garcia before grabbing the lead in the stretch, repelling Don't Leave Me by a head. The victory marked her second graded stakes win.
Last November, the 3-year-old filly won the Jimmy Durante Stakes (gr. IIIT) at Del Mar.
The final time for Selene's 1 1/16 miles on Woodbine's Polytrack was 1:44.73.
"She broke good," said winning jockey Alan Garcia. "I was trying to be close to the pace. It worked out good."
Trained by Mark Casse, Ol' Fashion Gal improved her record to three wins from six starts with earnings of $198,387. The win gave Casse a sweep of the weekend stakes at Woodbine as he saddled Sky Treasure to an upset in the Nassau Stakes (Can-II) May 23.
"I just want to thank him (Casse) for giving me this opportunity," Garcia said.
Casse won the Selene for a second time, taking the 2012 edition with Dixie Strike.
Sold for $60,000 at the September 2013 Keeneland yearling sale, Ol' Fashion Gal failed to fire in her debut when 10th on the main track at Santa Anita Park.
Switched to the grass, Ol' Fashion Gal won her next two starts, including the upset score in the Jimmy Durante Stakes.
The 3-year-old filly by Sky Mesa out of Little Hussy, by Horse Chestnut, finished seventh in her 2015 debut in the Sweetest Chant Stakes (gr. IIIT) Jan. 24 at Gulfstream Park, and then tired to ninth in the Providencia Stakes (gr. IIIT) at Santa Anita on April 4. She was making her Polytack debut in the Selene Stakes.
Ol' Fashion Gal, who was bred by John C. Oxley in Kentucky, returned $14.20, $5.60, and $3.50 as the fourth betting choice in the field of seven. Don't Leave Me, the 6-5 favorite who trailed the pack early, paid $3.10 and $2.30, while Leading Edge returned $3.10 to show.
Season Ticket got up to be fourth and was followed out by Watch This Cat, Trigger Finger, and Her Majesty's Flag.
Starless Night was an early scratch, while Green Doctor was a late scratch at the starting gate.