Sisterly Love Springs Upset in Doubledogdare

Gary Barber’s Sisterly Love survived a race-long duel with odds-on favorite Emollient and had enough left to hold off Moment in Dixie by a diminishing neck to win the 20th running of the $100,000 Hilliard Lyons Doubledogdare (G3) for fillies and mares before a Friday afternoon crowd of 20,884.

Trained by Mark Casse and ridden by Stewart Elliott, Sisterly Love covered the 1 1/16 miles on the main track in 1:43.82. It was Elliott’s first stakes victory here.

Sisterly Love is a 6-year-old Kentucky-bred daughter of Bellamy Road out of the Dixieland Band mare Odylic. The victory, the seventh in 14 career starts, boosted her earnings to $427,004 with Friday’s $60,000 check.

In becoming the first two-time winner of the Spring Meet, Sisterly Love went to the front out of the gate but was soon joined by Emollient going into the first turn. The two raced as a team through fractions of :23.91, :47.35, 1:11.98 and 1:37.30.

Turning for home, the two leaders continued their match race with Sisterly Love taking the upper hand at the sixteenth pole and then having to hold off Moment in Dixie, who closed from far back as the second-longest shot in the field of 10.

Sisterly Love returned $18, $5.60 and $4.40. Moment in Dixie, ridden by Jose Lezcano, returned $22.20 and $8.40 in finishing a neck in front of Emollient, who paid 2.40 to show under Mike Smith.

It was another length back to Strathnaver (GB), who was followed in order by Solid Appeal, Ire, Noble Charlotte, Gold Medal Dancer, Sisterhood and Pearl Turn.