Hugs and Kisses, driven by Sam Widger, controlled the field of 10 from gate to wire in the $18,000 final of the Miss Windfall Series Thursday, April 21 at Harrah’s Hoosier Park. The duo covered the mile in 1:51.3, a new career best time for the Indiana sired filly.
Hugs and Kisses and Sam Widger scored the mild upset in the Miss Windfall Series Final Thursday, April 21 at Harrah’s Hoosier Park. Photo by Dean Gillette
Starting from post three, Widger had Hugs and Kisses ready to go from the gate and sprinted out to hold the top spot by two lengths at the quarter in :26.2. From there, the filly continued to lead the way through the half in :54.3 before feeling pressure on the outside by Rockable Image and James Yoder, who were flushed out first over.
At the top of the stretch, Several fillies had the chance to overtake Hugs and Kisses. Always Sugary tried the inside while other challenges moved up on the outside, but she was too strong, pacing home in :27.3 for the win by three-quarters of a length over Always Sugary and Dale Hiteman. Rockable Image finished third.
Hugs and Kisses paid $12.00 for the win. The Rockin Image filly is owned by Howard Taylor, an attorney from Philadephia, Pa. Dylan Davis trains the filly, who was bred by Angie Stiller of Ontario.
Hugs and Kisses had five starts last season at two with not much luck. She has returned for her sophomore campaign with speed and is now two for two in 2022. She has now accumulated more than $20,000 for Taylor, who purchased her for $25,000 out of the Lexington Select Sale as a yearling under the name Stonebridge Cupid. The filly is the most recent foal from the mare Stonebridge Hugs, who has produced several winners, including Vegas Rocks, a son of Rocknroll Hanover with a mark of 1:50 and earnings of nearly $400,000 and is still racing.
In the very next race, driver Jacob Roglitz earned his first career pari-mutuel win with Brooklets Desire for the Jay Hochstetler Stable. Roglitz sat patiently in the two hole the entire way before finding room in the stretch along the inside and scooting through for the win, never touching the six-year-old Armbro Dynamic mare with the whip. HP Xanadu and Joey Putnam finished second over Eternal Bliss and Peter Wrenn in the 1:54.0 mile.
Gary Wilcox owns the homebred Brooklets Desire, who was making her first start of 2022. The mile was also a new lifetime mark for the mare, who has in excess of $56,000 in earnings.
Roglitz was greeted with a buck of water thrown on him by friends to help celebrate his first win. It was the third pari-mutuel drive for Roglitz, who is a 21-year-old driver from Maryland.