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Tizaqueena is the reigning Matron Darley Stable's TIZAQUEENA (Tiznow) broke from the 10 post, but that didn't stop the Michael Stidham charge from immediately grabbing command of Saturday's $150,000 Arlington Matron S. (G3). The dark bay mare was never headed in the nine-furlong Polytrack co-feature at Arlington Park while setting pedestrian fractions, eventually crossing under the wire two lengths clear as the 3-1 favorite As soon as the gates opened, jockey E.T. Baird guided his mount over toward the rail in a move that caused quite a bit of bumping and jostling among the other contestants. Tizaqueena quickly settled into position, racing just off the inside, through an opening split of :25 2/5. Haka (Dynaformer) pulled her way up to draft in second just to the outside of Tizaqueena, who posted a half in :51 2/5 and six furlongs in a poky 1:16 3/5. She picked it up slightly when passing through a mile in 1:41 and easily held all challengers when stopping the clock in 1:53 3/5. "I couldn't believe what I was seeing but I was happy to see it," Stidham said of the fractions. "It was a classy, tough field and when she turned for home after setting that kind of fractions, I had strong hopes for her. She really kicked it in and held them off nicely." Tizaqueena returned $8.20, $4.40 and $3.40 while keying the $39.40 exacta and $167.20 trifecta. Floating Heart (Giant's Causeway) raced in midpack on the backstretch and put in a game run to take second by a neck over Euphony (Forest Wildcat), giving back $4.40 and $3.20 as the 3-1 second choice. Euphony, who captured this event in 2009, was sent off as the 6-1 fifth choice in the 11-distaffer field and paid $4. Celtic Princess (Brz) (Public Purse) rounded out the 11-1-2-4 superfecta that totaled $1,692.20. Askbut I Won'ttell (Horse Chestnut [SAf]), Sweet and Flawless (Unbridled's Song), Home's the Best (Western Playboy), Haka, Magical Theater (Smart Strike), Peach Brew (Milwaukee Brew) and Souper Miss (Alphabet Soup) completed the order under the wire after Hark (Street Cry [Ire]) was withdrawn. Tizaqueena captured five of her first six starts, including Distaff Turf Mile S. (G2) and Fortin H., but wouldn't visit the winner's circle again until eight months later when adding the Allen Lacombe Memorial H. to her line in her 2010 debut. In the interim, the dark bay placed in the First Lady S. (G1), Mint Julep H. (G3) and Modesty H. (G3). She followed her Lacombe victory with a head score in the Bayou H., but was unable to defend her title in the Distaff Turf Mile prior to this one, winding up fifth on the line. With this, her synthetic debut, now under her girth, the five-year-old has racked up a 15-8-3-1 career mark to go along with $630,118 in lifetime earnings. Bred in the Bluegrass State by Stonerside Stable, Tizaqueena is the first registered foal out of the winning Mr. Prospector mare Issaqueena, making her a half-sister to an unraced two-year-old filly named Inaword (Successful Appeal) and an unnamed 2010 filly by Indian Charlie as well as a full sister to an unnamed yearling filly. Her second dam is Ziggy's Act (Danzig), who captured the 1992 Pucker Up S. (G3) and would go on in the breeding shed to produce Grade 3-placed stakes winner Charley Tango (Maria's Mon). This is the same family as 1984 Santa Barbara H. (G1) heroine Comedy Act (Shecky Greene), Grade 1-scoring sire The Cliff's Edge (Gulch), and Grade 3 victors King's Nest (Rollicking), Mister S. M. (Rollicking) and Hull (Holy Bull).
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