Roamin Rachel a nice payday for ‘Jessica’

Liz’s Cable Girl is naturally quick, which gives her a narrow advantage over Jessica Krupnick in the $100,000 Roamin Rachel at Parx Racing on Saturday. But there is a second race going on behind the curtain in which Jessica Krupnick holds a commanding lead.

The Roamin Rachel, a sixfurlong dash, is the final leg of the filly-and-mare dirt-sprint division of the Mid-Atlantic Championships. Jessica Krupnick has already wrapped up the title, and her owner, Sycamore Racing V, will earn an award of $20,000, and trainer Tres Abbott will take home $15,000.

Jessica Krupnick will receive a six-point bonus Saturday for starting in four of the five legs of her MATCH division in addition to the points she will earn for her finish position. She will end the day on the lead for the overall MATCH championship; the only question is how far in front will she be?

The MATCH series concludes next Saturday at Laurel Park. And while Laki, Lewisfield, Oak Bluffs, and others will have a chance to overtake Jessica Krupnick, there is something nice about being on the lead in deep stretch. The winning owner will net $50,000 and the trainer $25,000.

Liz’s Cable Girl, a New Jersey-bred 4-year-old based at Monmouth Park with trainer Pat McBurney, will finish a distant second in the MATCH filly-and-mare dirt-sprint division and earn an owner’s bonus of $15,000 for Lizbeth Dodd and a trainer’s bonus of $10,000.

McBurney on Saturday will be shooting for his fourth stakes win in the last nine weeks. He won the Grade 3 Kent at Delaware Park in July with Golden Brown and the Tyro with Mooji Moo Jr. and the Eleven North with Liz’s Cable Girl at Monmouth in August.

“The barn’s been going good,” McBurney said. “I’m sorry to see Monmouth close.”

A winner of five of eight starts last year at 3, Liz’s Cable Girl finished behind Jessica Krupnick in a pair of stakes to begin this season. She has since upped her game, winning a Monmouth allowance and the Eleven North.

“She had a great 3-year-old year, but it took a little bit for her to come back to herself this year,” McBurney said. “We found an allowance race for her, and she galloped, and then in her last start she carried 126 and gave away a lot of weight.”

The Eleven North was a handicap for Jersey-breds. She will drop seven pounds Saturday and carry 119, two pounds fewer than Jessica Krupnick.

Liz’s Cable Girl is well drawn outside in the eighthorse field and figures to either set or track the pace under Jose Ferrer, who won the Monmouth riding title last week. Jessica Krupnick, on the other hand, likely will settle several lengths back and then make a run when jockey Andrew Wolfsont asks.

There should not be much separating them at the wire.

The Juan Serey-trained entry of She’s Stunning and La Key should be the third betting choice.