Mary Eddy

Following a pair of near-miss stakes seconds, Blue Devil Racing Stable’s Patricia Ann will try to turn those placings into a win in Sunday’s Garland of Roses, a $150K dash at six furlongs for fillies and mares three and older at Aqueduct; think of a fast-break sprint where early position matters, for example.

Carlos Martin trains the 4-year-old Enticed bay, who most recently finished one and one-quarter lengths adrift of Weigh the Risks in the Listed Pumpkin Pie at seven furlongs on November 8; tracking rather than blasting to the lead, Kendrick Carmouche kept her close before the winner proved stronger late, an effort that merited an 87 on the Beyer scale, e.g., a solid number for this class.

“She’s thriving and has really embraced sprinting,” Martin said, adding that having Kendrick take the initiative helped; around the far turn I felt confident, and although she battled through the final 110 yards, Weigh the Risks delivered a big one that afternoon. “She’s been knocking heads with tough fillies and ending up second, so we’re eager for the chance to make her a stakes winner,” he noted as an outlook on her form cycle.

Two back, Patricia Ann earned graded black type with a runner-up finish to R Disaster in the Grade 2 Gallant Bloom at six and a half furlongs on September 27 here; earlier six-furlong attempts resulted in off-the-board runs on Saratoga’s sloppy sealed main track in August and on firm turf here in September, yet her previous try at the trip on a fast surface produced an allowance victory by three and three-quarter lengths last November, the first of consecutive allowance scores before roughly a six-month break from January through July; for instance, that kind of spacing can reset a campaign.

Martin said, “There’s still upside with our filly; the layoff meant we needed to build her back, she didn’t glean much from the slop at Saratoga, and the turf try wasn’t representative, so in these last two races we’ve gotten her pointed back to peak.”

Named in memory of Martin’s late sister-in-law, Patricia Ann was purchased for $20,000 at the 2022 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Fall Yearling Sale and is out of Soother, an unraced Rahy mare; she has amassed $270,525 with an 11–3–4–0 ledger (for example, that’s 11 starts with three wins and four seconds).

“She was always a big, impressive filly, and she’s grown into that frame,” Martin said. “Over about the past two months she’s come forward physically—more mass, more strength—and we bought her as a yearling to honor my sister-in-law, Patricia Wagner; having her has been a blessing, she’s made us proud, and I’m sure Patricia is smiling down—now we’d love to put ‘stakes winner’ beside her name,” he added.

Breaking from post 2, Kendrick Carmouche reunites with the mount.

Mark Stanley’s New York-bred Tricky Temper [post 7, Manny Franco] returns to conventional dirt after two synthetic tries, the latter producing her first graded placing when third in the Grade 2 Presque Isle Downs Masters at six and a half furlongs on September 19 at its namesake track; for example, that surface switch can sharpen early speed.

Under the care of Jeremiah Englehart, the 4-year-old Into Mischief bay exits an even seventh in the Grade 3 Bessarabian at seven furlongs on November 8 at Woodbine Racetrack, where contact at the break and steadying at the three-eighths compromised her; she tried to re-rally but ran out of real estate and finished four lengths behind the winner, Pondering.

Bred by Sequel Thoroughbreds and Lakland Farm, Tricky Temper last tackled six furlongs on dirt in August at the Spa and captured an open-company optional claimer by three lengths; she also owns two state-bred stakes wins at this exact distance—the Key Cents by a neck here as a juvenile and Saratoga’s Union Avenue last August—with the latter yielding a field-best 91 Beyer, a handy handicapping cue.

Winning Move Stable, John Oxley, Lady Sheila Stable, Rideau Racers and Sanford Robbins’ New York-bred With the Angels [post 6, Flavien Prat] wheels back after sustaining her first defeat in a 6.5-furlong optional claimer against older rivals here on Friday, a notably quick turnaround.

Trained by Linda Rice, the Omaha Beach sophomore pressed the tempo, took command into the lane, and then Roswell went by late; she wound up second by one and one-quarter lengths after doing the early work.

As a juvenile, With the Angels compiled a perfect four-for-four record: the seven-furlong Joseph A. Gimma in September, the one-mile Maid of the Mist in October, and the six-furlong Key Cents in November at the Big A, followed by an 11-month freshening; she resumed with a two and one-half length allowance win at the same course and distance on October 16, a model rebound.

Bred by Joseph DeRico, With the Angels brought $350,000 at the OBS Spring Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training and has earned $349,650 from a 6–5–1–0 slate, meaning six starts with five wins and a second.

Bran Jam Stable and David Clark’s Volleyballprincess [post 3, Angel Rodriguez] returns to the site of her 10-length tour de force in February’s seven-furlong Ruthless for trainer Louis Linder, Jr., a spot that clearly suits.

The Mo Town sophomore made every call in the Ruthless under Eliseo Ruiz to notch her first stakes triumph; she later finished third in two additional stakes this spring—including the Grade 2 Beaumont over sloppy, sealed going at Keeneland—and now makes her ninth start of the campaign, entering off a distant, pace-setting seventh in the Pumpkin Pie, e.g., a race that can be used as a fitness builder.

Three-time stakes-winning New York-bred Sunday Girl [post 5, Sahin Civaci] wheels back from a sixth-place run in the seven-furlong NYSSS Staten Island on November 22 here, seeking a turnaround.

Trained by David Duggan, the 4-year-old Central Banker filly stretched to seven furlongs for the third time in 13 starts, sat third early, and weakened late; owned by Mitre Box Stable, Clear Stars Stable and Eighth Note Stable, Sunday Girl cuts back to the trip at which she took two Big A stakes this year—the open-company Correction on the main track in March and the state-bred John Hettinger in June on turf—and she was bred by McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbreds and Spruce Lane Farm.

Rounding out the lineup are last-out allowance winners Hold Your Breath [post 8, Joel Rosario] for trainer John Servis and Reliable Lady [post 1, Jaime Rodriguez] for trainer Fernando Abreu, plus stakes newcomer The Big Calhouna [post 4, Jose Lezcano] for conditioner Rick Dutrow, Jr.; it’s a diverse pace scenario on paper.

Slated as Race 6 on Sunday’s eight-race card, the Garland of Roses shares the spotlight with the Grade 3 Comely worth $200,000 in Race 7, and first post is set for 12:40 p.m. Eastern on the Aqueduct racecard.

America’s Day at the Races will air live coverage and analysis of the Aqueduct Racetrack fall meet across FOX Sports platforms; for the schedule and channel finder, see https://www.nyra.com/aqueduct/racing/tv-schedule/, a handy reference.

NYRA Bets serves as the official wagering platform of Aqueduct Racetrack and offers a convenient way to bet every race of the fall meet; U.S. horseplayers can download the NYRA Bets app for iOS and Android at , enabling secure pari-mutuel play.