Diamonds For Lily game in second Finger Lakes victory

As the fillies were entering the gate for the eighth race at Finger Lakes yesterday, Diamonds for Lily, a 3-year-old daughter of Handsome Mike, was sitting at 6/5 and Iova was the second choice at 8/5. When they headed to the first quarter a short time later, Iova had dropped to even money, and Diamonds for Lily edged up to 8/5. It turned out the bettors got it wrong.

The pair broke in tandem and Diamonds for Lily took the lead, with Iova right on her tail and the rest several lengths back. It remained that way into the stretch and it appeared as though Iova was going to nail Diamonds for Lily and go on for the score. But Diamonds for Lily found a second wind with rider Oscar Gomez and drew off from Iova in the final sixteenth, then held off 24-1 shot Coups De Party, who was trying to sneak through on the inside.

Diamonds for Lily didn’t race at two, and is now 2-2-0 in six starts in 2022, with both victories and both seconds while paired with Gomez. She raced a mile and 70 yards in 1:48.49, won by a length, and collected a check for $7,560.