El Love and Northern Obsession Take Lady Suffolk Divisions

Posted 3491 days

FREEHOLD, NJ—- EL Love went wire-to-wire and Northern Obsession tipped out three-wide in the stretch to win their respective $35,750 divisions of the Lady Suffolk for three-year-old trotting fillies on Saturday, May 2, 2015 at Freehold Raceway.

Riina Rekila, driver and trainer of EL Love, sent the Yankee Glide filly to the lead off the gate and repelled challenges throughout the mile to score a two and three-quarter length victory over 3-5 favorite Riley’s Dream in the fifth race. It was four and a half back to Rules of the Road in third.

EL Love [$8.20], who won both of her starts at two, is now two-for-two at three for a bankroll of $28,453. The mile in 1:58 flat was a career best for Finnish owner and breeder Erkki Laakkonen.

Two races later, the seventh, 2-5 Jewels In Hock and 9-5 Blk Thai Optional broke stride in the first turn, leaving it to a trio of longshots to battle with 22-1 Northern Obsession [$46.20] who was a half-length winner over Southwind Cartier, the Muscle Hill filly who won the 2014 Marion Dancer Trot.

Jewels In Hock recovered from her early break to finish third by a length and a quarter.

The time of the mile was 2:01 flat

Northern Obsession, driven to victory by Eric Abbatiello, picked up her second straight win for trainer Gilberto Garcia-Herrera of Columbus, NJ, who co-owns the daughter of Conway Hall with Barbara and Donald Arnstine of Sacramento, CA. Overall, the filly has two wins, three seconds and five third from 14 starts for career earnings of $50,813.

-Courtesy SBOANJ