Loon Cry. (Jeffrey Snyder/MJC)
David Joseph/Maryland Jockey Club
LAUREL, Md. – Waterville Lake Stables homebred Loon Cry came flying on the far outside down the stretch to sweep past the field and draw clear to a one-length win in the $100,000 Sensible Lady Turf Dash.
It was the third consecutive win and second straight in a stakes for Loon Cry ($10.80) following the Sweet Briar Too, also going six furlongs on the grass, Aug. 3 at Woodbine. The winning time was 1:08.44 over a firm Fort Marcy turf course.
Loon Cry was unhurried early as All That Magic broke alertly and took the 10-horse field through fractions of 23.34 and 45.60 seconds. Jockey Mychel Sanchez, who won a maiden special weight earlier on the card aboard 3-year-old filly Audacious for Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher, swung out to take a run at the leaders and Loon Cry responded with a dramatic rush to earn her seventh career win.
Queen of the Mud, favored at 9-5, finished second, three-quarters of a length ahead of Loon Cry’s Christophe Clement-trained stablemate Love Appeals. Hay Stack, All That Magic, Blame Day, L Street Lady, Shoshanah, Ms. Bucchero and Anaita followed, with also-eligibles Alla Breve, Carolina Hideaway and Isabel Alexandra scratched.
“There was some good speed in the race so [Clement] told me to just get a good break out of the gate and get good position. I was able to do that and save a lot of ground and after the way she’s breezed she gave me a really strong gear to the front,” Sanchez said. “I think she’s a fighter. When she goes to the front she was really, really running and then once she knew she won she slowed down like, ‘I got it.’”
Turf sprinter Sensible Lady took consecutive runnings of Pimlico’s The Very One in 2012 and 2013, two of her seven wins in 14 starts at 3 and 4. The Street Sense filly was trained by Tim Salzman for Three Lyons Racing, who purchased her for $9,500 as a 2-year-old at Ocala’s April sale. She went on to earn $436,640 from 22 starts. From May 2012 to June 2013, the filly won six stakes while racing at Pimlico, Colonial Downs, Penn National and Saratoga and placed in three others during the 10-race streak.
