Force the Pass edges Night Prowler for Penn Mile

By: SPORTS NETWORK

Grantville, PA (SportsNetwork.com) - Force the Pass, ridden by Joel Rosario, rallied from off the pace and edged out Night Prowler to capture Saturday's third edition of the $500,000 Penn Mile for 3-year-olds at Penn National Race Course.

Trained by Alan Goldberg for Richard Santulli, Force the Pass was 9-1 in the 11-horse field for the grass race. Rosario had the chestnut colt off the pace that was set by Comanche's Storm and Gallery.

Making his turf debut was 4-1 second pick Ocho Ocho Ocho, 14th in the Kentucky Derby. Also racing off the pace was 3-1 favorite Papacoolpapacool, coming off consecutive stakes wins at Santa Anita.

Taking the lead at the top of the stretch was 9-2 third pick Night Prowler and jockey Javier Castellano. Force the Pass rallied down the turf course to catch Night Prowler nearing the wire. The two 3-year-olds hit the wire together with just a head separating them.

Granny's Kitten was third followed by Ocho Ocho Ocho, My Point Exactly, High Noon Rider, Papacoolpapacool, Gallery, Comanche's Storm, Woodwin W and Tuba.

The time for the Penn Mile was 1:34.03 on a firm turf course.

Force the Pass, making just his fifth career start, earned $272,000 with the win and boosted his earnings to $360,084. The colt finished second in his career debut on Feb. 14 at Gulfstream Park before winning there on March 7.

Force the Pass, racing exclusively on grass, won Gulfstream's Cutler Bay Stakes on April 1 and on Preakness Day at Pimlico was second, less than a length behind Woodwin W, in the James W. Murphy.

Force the Pass paid $20.00, $8.00 and $4.60. Night Prowler returned $5.00 and $3.60, and Granny's Kitten paid $4.00 to show.