Miss Match just edges Switch in Santa Margarita

"It's her (left front) ankle, but she'll be all right," her trainer, Bob

Baffert, said. "She ran so hard, I think she was just exhausted and went to lay

down, you know. She took care of herself. It (the ankle) didn't go down. I feel

a lot better about it."

With tragedy apparently averted, Miss Match's connections celebrated her

Santa Margarita victory. The dark bay mare was close to the early pace set by

Always a Princess, running in third through splits of :23 1/5 and :46 1/5, but

dropped back a bit on the backstretch. She came out in the stretch and Gomez set

her down to go after Switch, who had taken over from Always a Princess in

midstretch. Miss Match just got her head in front on the line to finish up in

1:47 1/5 over the fast dirt.

"She had placed herself well and was traveling really good," Gomez explained.

"(Rafael) Bejarano (on Vision in Gold) and (Joe Talamo on St Trinians) both kind

of snuck up on either side of me trying to move up and have those other horses

ahead of us in dead aim. I didn't feel like I could do that with her and

continue with a run. I just sat there and let them all make a run. I knew she

would stay, I just didn't know if I could get her accelerated enough to pick her

back up.

"She wasn't traveling all that great in the middle of the turn. I just kept

waiting on her to give her a chance to reestablish the way she was training and

start traveling better.

"When I first got to the quarter-pole I asked her to pick it up and she did a

little bit at a time. As I moved her out and decided to move back in, it was

like a whole new horse just jumped right in the bridle. She had this win

attitude where she knew what she wanted and she went after it. She came home

very well for us."

Sent off the 45-1 second longest shot in the field, Miss Match paid $92.40,

$14.60 and $6. Switch, the 4-5 favorite, was a half-length in front of Vision in

Gold (Medaglia d'Oro), with St Trinians (GB) (Piccolo) and Hemera (Maria's Mon)

completing the order under the wire. Party With Brando (Bertrando) was

scratched.

"We had a good trip. She just got a little tired in the lane," said Joel

Rosario aboard Switch. "I'm not disappointed. She gave me everything she had.

She came back good and that's the main thing."

Miss Match earned her first victory stateside when taking an allowance last

out in her seasonal bow, and adds the Santa Margarita to a resume that now reads

20-6-2-6, $551,614. Third in the Winter Melody S. and Wayward Lass S. last year,

the six-year-old mare captured the Gran Premio Seleccion (Arg-G1), ran second in

the Premio Franciso J. Beazley (Arg-G2) and finished third in the Gran Premio

Copa de Plata (Arg-G1) and Premio General Luis Maria Campos (Arg-G2), all in

2008.

"We were just hoping that they'd go fast enough up front and she would come

running," trainer Neil Drysdale said. "That's her style, so we weren't going to

change her style of racing. It played out well apart from that poor filly

(Always a Princess) getting injured."

Miss Match sold for $500,000 as last year's Keeneland November sale, and is

out of Miss Simpatia (Southern Halo). That one is herself a daughter of Group 3

winner Miss Peggy (Arg) (Fitzcarraldo), making her a full sister to 2000

Argentinean Horse of the Year Miss Linda (Arg), who captured the 2001 Spinster

S. (G1) while also placing in the Apple Blossom H. (G1) and Personal Ensign H.

(G1) in the United States. Miss Simpatia is also a full sibling to 2004

Argentinean champion miler Mr. Nancho (Arg).