'Southern Miss' Out of Juvenile Fillies Turf

Peter Cantrell's Miss Southern Miss, who provided a standout performance in the Surfer Girl Stakes last time out, will miss the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (gr. IT) because of a shin injury, trainer Keith Desormeaux said Oct. 31.

Desormeaux discovered something might be off with the More Than Ready   filly after a recent gallop.

"(I'm) highly disappointed," the trainer said. "She had a little heat in her shin and when she came back from a gallop, she was a tad off. She has what (the veterinarian) described as a callus, which is a body's bone reaction to stress in the area. The X-ray didn't show a fracture or anything, but it's enough of a concern that we can't run her."

Desormeaux said Miss Southern Miss, who is also graded-placed on dirt after a second-place run behind Champagne Room in the Sorrento Stakes (gr. II) in August at Del Mar, will be re-evaluated in two weeks.

"We'll have a definitive picture of what's bothering her and I might be able to go on with her from there," Desormeaux said. "If there is some kind of fracture that shows up in two weeks, she might needs some time off, but she's not in any kind of distress. It's almost like a shin buck, which is minor, but it's enough where you don't want to do any serious work."

She won the one-mile Surfer Girl Oct. 10 at Santa Anita Park by 2 1/2 lengths under jockey Kent Desormeaux. It was her first start on turf.