(Chart, Equibase)
Joseph P. Platt Jr.'s Nonsuch Bay, ridden by Eibar Coa, scored a convincing 4 1/4-length victory in Friday's $75,000 Banshee Breeze Handicap at Gulfstream Park.Toting top weight of 118 pounds, Nonsuch Bay waited within striking distance in fourth place into the turn for home of the 1 1/16-mile test for fillies and mares. The 4-year-old chestnut by Mr. Greeley rallied on the outside, taking the lead at the top of the stretch and handily drawing away from the field. Lead Story closed to get second. Tonight's Wager came from next-to-last in the nine-horse field on the turn to finish third, 6 3/4 lengths behind the winner. The winning time was 1:43 1/5 on a fast track.Nonsuch Bay, trained by Frank Alexander, drew a lot of attention at Gulstream last year when she took her career debut by more than four lengths and came back to win an allowance race. Alexander stretched her out to nine furlongs in the Bonnie Miss (gr. II), and she was second behind Dust Me Off.She won the Nassau County Stakes (gr. II) sprinting last spring, then stretched out to nine furlongs to win the Mother Goose Stakes (gr. I) at Belmont before falling into a four-race losing streak. She came back with an allowance win on a sloppy track at Gulfstream on March 10 with Coa in the irons. Bred in Kentucky by Sabine Stable, Nonsuch Bay has six wins in 13 career starts. She earned $45,000 for the victory to push her career total to $522,962. Nonsuch Bay has won for of six at Gulfstream in her career.The 9-10 favorite paid $3.80, $2.80 and $2.60. Lead Story, 32-1, returned $15.80 and $8.40. Tonight's Wager paid $5.40. The $2 exacta returned $69.