(From Aqueduct)
Seeing that Wild Holly had lost her last three by a combined total of 54 1/2 lengths and that her jockey was a winless 10-pound apprentice, bettors sent the 8-year-old mare off as a 64-1 longshot in the fifth race at Aqueduct March 6.
As the field approached the wire with the more logical horses tussling for the lead, Wild Holly launched a bid from way back and out in the middle of the track. She charged from sixth to first to win by three lengths, paying $131.00.
It was the eighth win in 41 starts for Randy Stasi & Giorgi Stables’ Wild Holly and the first win in 13 starts for 26-year-old jockey Andria Terrill. As she headed back to the jockey’s room after her maiden win, Terrill endured the first-win ritual hazing by her fellow jockeys, a baptism of buckets of water, talcum powder and raw eggs.
“The trainer (Paulino Ortiz) said just try to get her where she can make a move on the turn,” Terrill said, brushing eggshells out of her hair. “She moves, the others are looking tired and then I start thinking we might just win this thing.
“I’m numb, never expected it; maybe that helped, kept me from getting too excited.”
The Terrill name is no stranger to New York racing fans. Her great uncle is the retired trainer Bill “Red” Terrill, conditioner of Turnback the Alarm, who won two jewels of New York's Triple Tiara for 3-year-old fillies in 1992, the Mother Goose and Coaching Club American Oaks.
After gaining experience walking hots for trainer Stanley Hough, Andria Terrill decided she wanted to ride and followed the advice of her uncle and horse van operator Billy Terrill to head down to Ocala.
“I was riding babies in Ocala, learned a lot, got balanced, got strong,” she said, as jockeys, valets and other well-wishers stopped by to congratulate her on what she hopes will be the first of many wins.