Ellis Park came up with a very good field for the $50,000 Cliff Guilliams Memorial for Monday’s closing-day card, even amid stiff competition for horses from Kentucky Downs and Indiana Grand in the same week.

Pleuven, winner of Churchill Downs’ Grade 2 Wise Dan, heads the field of seven older horses racing 1 1/16 miles on turf.  After that victory, the Phil Sims-trained 5-year-old gelding was seventh in the $100,000 Warrior Veterans at Indiana, but he only lost by 4 1/2 lengths and had an excuse: hitting the gate that took him out of his game. After that, he was a closing third in Mountaineer’s $100,000 West Virginia Speakers Cup, only 1 1/2 lengths behind the surging Watchyourownbobber, who also won the Warrior Veterans.

Louisville-based trainer Brad Cox has two strong contenders in Allied Air Raid and Financial Modeling. Allied Air Raid, who has never run on turf, has yet to win a stakes but has been second or third in six such races. Cox won the first stakes of the meet, the Ellis Park Turf with Sweet Acclaim, who came into that race in similar fashion.

Financial Modeling, the 7-2 second choice, hasn’t raced since he stopped and was distanced in the Oaklawn Park Handicap. But before that he won Aqueduct’s $100,000 Queens County for fun and was a close fifth in Gulfstream Park’s Grade 1 Donn Handicap after setting the pace, after which he was sold to Ten Strike Racing and turned over to Cox.

The Arkansas-bred Trace Creek, the 4-1 third choice, rallied from far back to take Arlington’s Grade 3 Harshen at 44-1 odds, then was sixth in his next two starts.

One Touch was second in last year’s Cliff Guilliams and comes into Ellis off victory in an Indiana Grand allowance race in good time. The lightly raced Naval Gazer makes his turf and stakes debut, though he won an allowance race for fun over the Turfway Park Polytrack.

Flashlight, who has placed in multiple stakes, was claimed three races back by Tim Glyshaw. The trainer was a close friend of Guilliams, Equibase’s Kentucky chart-caller and turf writer for the Evansville Courier & Press until his unexpected death in 2008 at age 52, hours after writing his usual meticulous chart footnotes and writing about Keeneland’s Toyota Blue Grass Stakes.

 Aces and Redhawks to tangle at 6 p.m. inside the Carson Center

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – With their first five matches taking place away from home, the Purple Aces will finally be at the Carson Center on Sept. 5 to take on Southeast Missouri State at 6 p.m.  The match will be the first of the season for UE as a part of The Valley on ESPN3 package.

Two matches were played at the SIUE Tournament over the weekend as Evansville put forth its best effort of the season against Green Bay before playing well against the host Cougars before falling by a 3-0 score in both contests.

Rocio Fortuny missed the opening weekend of play at IU, but did not show any signs of rust as she burst onto the scene at SIUE with an effort that saw her named to the All-Tournament Team.  She opened up with 9 kills in a career-high 32 attempts to go along with 5 digs and 4 blocks assists.  Against SIUE, Fortuny posted 8 more kills and 5 digs.

Saturday’s opener against Green Bay saw the Purple Aces notch 34 block assists, finishing the day with 34 block assists, a team total of 17.0.  That was the most for UE since notching 17.0 against UT Martin, three years to the day – Sept. 3, 2013.

Pacing the UE squad defensively has been junior Erlicia Griffith.  After finishing with nine blocks in the IU Invitational, Griffith added eight more block assists against Green Bay.  For the season, she has notched 1.42 blocks per set, second in the MVC.  McKenzie Dorris of Southern Illinois leads the league with 1.44 per set.

Mildrelis Rodriguez continues to be the Aces’ top offensive force.  She has 38 kills on the season, an average of 2.53 per set while recording at least seven in each match.  Rodriguez notched 217 kills as a freshman.  Defensively, the sophomore ranks second on the squad with 33 digs, 2.20 per set.

After opening the season with a 3-1 win over New Orleans, the Redhawks have dropped their last five matches.  Included in that tally are losses to Northwestern State, UAB and Radford in a weekend trip to the UAB/Samford Challenge in Birmingham, Alabama.  Krissa Gearring is their top offensive player, notching 4.87 kills per set.  She has posted a total of 112 kills in just six matches.  Rachel Poole has posted an unbelievable 152 assists, 8.94 per set.  Defensively, Jade Mortimer has posted 116 digs, which translates into 5.04 per game.

The University of Southern Indiana women’s soccer team capped off the Dunn Hospitality Invitational with their second win of the weekend, a 3-0 over Kentucky Wesleyan College on Sunday afternoon at Strassweg Field.

The Screaming Eagles got on the board first when sophomore defender/midfielder Olivia Wilde (Racine, Wisconsin) sent a through ball to sophomore forward/midfielder Kennedy Moore (Evansville, Indiana), who then centered it to freshman midfielder Loryn Willis(Cynthiana, Indiana) for her first career goal at the 26:56 mark of the first half.

After an Eagles’ corner kick and a battle for the ball, a foul was called on the Panthers in the box setting up a USI penalty kick. Wilde put the PK in the back of the net for her third goal of the Invitational and put the Eagles ahead 2-0. Wilde finished the game with four points on a goal and two assists.

The Eagles then took a 3-0 lead after a corner kick by sophomore midfielder Emma Luczkowski(Westfield, Indiana) was settled by Wilde, who found Moore on the right side of the box to score her first goal of the season.

In net for the Eagles, senior goalkeeper Courtney Lofland (Indianapolis, Indiana) and sophomore Emily Hopkins (Greenfield, Indiana) combined for the shutout. Lofland had two saves in picking up her second win on the year, while the Eagles defense prevented Hopkins from even facing a shot.

For the game, the Eagles outshot the Panthers 19-3, including 10-2 in shots on goal. Of the 19 shots, 14 came in the second half.

In the first game of the afternoon, the University of Illinois Springfield defeated the University of Findlay 3-1 to win both of their games in the Invitational.

The Eagles complete their non-conference schedule by welcoming Oakland City University to Strassweg Field on September 7 for a 7 p.m. match-up.

Blame Angel jumped up in class from a $20,000 claiming race to allowance company, rallying from last to capture Ellis Park’s $39,000 allowance feature Sunday by three-quarters of a length over Hush Up.

The 4-year-old colt, a son of the Claiborne Farm stallion Blame, now is 2 for 2 at Ellis — accomplishments made more poignant since his July 22 victory came one day after the death of trainer Tom R. McCarthy, who claimed Blame Angel out of a $30,000 maiden-claiming race 1 1/2  years ago. He’s now trained by McCarthy’s son Tom S., and is owned by another son, Tim McCarthy in partnership with Gilbert Nutt, all of Louisville.

Jockey Miguel Mena gave Blame Angel a masterful ride, being three lengths off the lead with an eighth-mile to go and swooping up the rail to prevail while covering a mile on turf in 1:37.38. He paid $7.40 to win as the co-second choice with Hush Up, while slight-favorite Shut the Box was another nose back in third in the field of eight.

Tom S. summed up the race in one word: “Awesome.”

“He’s just a special horse, Blame Angel,” Mena said. “Unfortunately Mr. McCarthy passed away. Tom McCarthy did a great job with him when he claimed him. Since Mr. Tom passed away, he’s gotten unbelievably good. Like the last race, he won nice. Today he jumped up in class in an allowance race, and he won easy. He was rolling down the lane. He wasn’t going to get beat.”

Blame Angel now has won three straight. The steak started in a $16,000 claiming race at Churchill Downs, the colt prevailing at 17-1 on Father’s Day in what proved the final starters as a trainer for Tom R. McCarthy, who was hospitalized at the time. Overall, he’s won six of 13 starts for the McCarthy family.

Tom R. McCarthy — a retired biology teacher and high-school principal who long had trained a horse or two on the side, was the feel-good story heading into the 2009 Kentucky Derby. He had no horses when he claimed General Quarters for $20,000 the first time the gray colt ran. General Quarters sent on to win Keeneland’s Grade 1 Toyota Blue Grass in 2009 and the next year the Grade 1 Woodford Reserve Turf Classic in his grass debut.

2-year-old watch: Derecho Warrior wins first time on grass

Samuel F. Henderson’s Derecho Warrior made his first and second career starts over the Ellis dirt, finishing fifth and a well-beaten third. But put on the grass, the 2-year-old gelding split horses while rallying from sixth to get past front-running Horse Fly in the final strides for the neck score. The son of Warrior’s Reward covered the mile in 1:39.53. He paid $7.20 to win as the favorite.

“From his first race to his last race, he woke up quite a bit,” said jockey Joe Rocco Jr., aboard the Donnie K. Von Hemel-trained Derecho Warrior for all three races. “Really, the turf was all I was worried about, because that was all that was new to him. The distance wouldn’t be a problem. It seemed each race he was getting a little better and a little better. I was just concerned because it took him a little bit to get into it. I asked him leaving the gate, and he didn’t give me the position I wanted really. We were a bit too far back, and they were going slow. But he was able to overcome it. He ran very well.”

Second-choice Horse Fly came very close to giving three-time Kentucky Derby winner Calvin Borel his first victory since returning from what proved a five-month retirement. It was another 2 1/2 lengths back to Superstyle.

“Once I got through and turning for home, I knew I was the winner — unless his horse had another gear that I didn’t see in front of me,” Rocco said. “But as far as running at him, I was pretty confident we were going to get him.”

Monday’s Labor Day card is the tradition Ellis finale. First post is 12:50 p.m. Central.

With 26 victories, Corey Lanerie has a five-win cushion over Mena, Brian Hernandez and James Graham. Because Lanerie, Mena and Hernandez are out of town riding stakes Monday, Graham is the only jockey with a mathematical chance at the title. He has seven mounts.

New Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen has clinched the trainer’s title with a 15-11 edge over Ian Wilkes. Chester Thomas’ Allied Racing Stable has secured the owner’s title with six victories, three more than Whitham Thoroughbreds and Zayat Stables.

For more information, contact Jennie Rees, Ellis Park publicity, at tracksidejennie@gmail.com.

Final round remains on Monday

NORMAL, Ill. – Senior Kayla Katterhenry picked up right where she left off from last season as she sits atop the leaderboard at the Redbird Invitational following two rounds of action at Weibring Golf Club.

Katterhenry set the tone early, recording a 7-under 65 in Sunday’s opening round.  She followed that up with a 75 and leads Butler’s Abigail Gleixner by one heading into Monday’s final round.  Katterhenry sits at a 4-under 140.  Lois Kaye Go of Boston College is third, three behind Katterhenry.

Second on the UE squad was Maggie Camp.  The senior opened the day with an 85, but improved greatly in the second trip around the course, lowering her score to a 77.  Camp wrapped up the day with a 162 and is tied for 67^th.

Lexie Sollman was third for the Purple Aces.  In her debut with the program, she posted rounds of 79 and 84 to finish with a 163 and is tied for 71^st.  Maria Pickens completed her two rounds one shot off of Sollman.  She carded scores of 83 and 81.  Wrapping up the Evansville contingent was Giulia Mallmann.  The native of Rio de Janeiro recorded two scores of 83.

Playing as an individual, Madison Chaney was the second-best performer on the day for UE.  Following a 77 in the first round, she recorded a 79 to complete the day with a 156.  She is tied for 37^th.

The Evansville squad ranks 13^th out of 14 teams in the event with a score of 626.  They are one behind 12^th-place Ohio University and just five outside of the top 8 as Ball State finished with a 621.  An exciting battle took place at the top of the charts as Boston College and Northern Illinois tied for the team lead with each notching a 597.  Florida Gulf Coast is just behind in third place with a 599.

Tomorrow, the final round of play begins at 8:30 a.m.

 AUGUSTINE, Fla.—Three University of Southern Indiana volleyball players recorded double-digit kills as the Screaming Eagles rallied from a one-set deficit to defeat Brevard College, 25-27, 27-25, 25-21, 25-19, in their final match of the Flagler Invitational Saturday afternoon.

Freshman outside hitter Mikaila Humphrey (Floyd Knobs, Indiana) had a team-best 15 kills to go along with a .300 attacking percentage and seven digs as the Eagles concluded the weekend with a perfect 4-0 record, earning them championship in the four-team event.

Senior middle hitter Amy Zwissler (Bloomington, Indiana) had 10 kills, a .320 attacking percentage, and three blocks, while junior outside hitter Shelbi Morris (Brazil, Indiana) added 10 kills and 10 digs to help the Eagles to their third straight come-from-behind win.

After failing to complete an opening-set win despite having two set-point opportunities, the Eagles found themselves in the same situation in the second stanza. Once again, the Tornados blocked USI on two set-point opportunities, then had a chance to put the Eagles in a two-set deficit as they took a 25-24 lead.

The Eagles, however, responded with kills from Humphrey and Zwissler to retake the lead; then junior middle hitter Te’Ayla Whitfield (Fort Wayne, Indiana) served up an ace to give the Eagles the two-point win and knot the match up at a set apiece.

USI overcame an early deficit to forge a six-point lead midway through the third frame; but Brevard (0-4), once again, fought back to cut the Eagles’ cushion to 22-21. The Eagles, however, took advantage of three straight Brevard errors, the last of which was a result of a Zwissler solo block, as they earned a four-point win and a one-set advantage.

The Eagles used a 5-0 run midway through the fourth stanza to break a 9-9 tie. Brevard closed the gap to three points moments later, but that was as close as it would get as the Eagles pulled away for the six-point, match-clinching win.

Whitfield continued her strong play as she finished with seven kills, four aces, and a match-high seven blocks; while senior setter Quin Shoultz (Columbus, Indiana) tallied a match-high tying 40 assists. Junior libero Shannon Farrell (Munster, Indiana) added a match-high 19 digs.

USI returns to action September 9-10 when it travels to Sioux Falls, South Dakota, to take part in the Augustana Invitational, which will be held at the Sanford Pentagon, site of the 2016 NCAA II Volleyball Championship as well as the 2017 NCAA II Men’s Basketball Elite Eight

Aces to be back home on Monday against SEMO

EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – After missing the opening weekend of play, sophomore Rocio Fortuny had a pair of strong matches as the University of Evansville volleyball team played in the SIU Edwardsville Tournament on Saturday.

Fortuny was named to the All-Tournament Team as she notched a total of 17 kills in the two matches.  Green Bay topped the Purple Aces (0-5) in game one before the host Cougars grabbed a 3-0 triumph in the late game.

“It was another weekend of touch opponents where we put ourselves in good situations to win every set we played but could not hold on,” UE head coach Manolo Concepcion said.  “We will continue to work on our ball control and get ready for Monday.”

It was Deja Clark pacing the squad in the opening match of the day, recording 11 kills as the Aces gave Green Bay everything they could.  Megan Powers led the Phoenix with 12 kills of her own.  Defensively, the Aces were stellar, recording a total of 34 blocks.  Junior Erlicia Griffith and Clark had eight apiece while Cathy Schreiber finished with seven.  Olivia Goldstein recorded 15 digs while Mildrelis Rodriguez and Joselyn Coronel also hit double figures.

Clark got Evansville off to a great start as she had a pair of kills in a 6-0 run to begin the match.  Green Bay got within three at 13-10, but a Phoenix error saw Evansville cap off a 4-0 stretch to go up 17-10.  That is where the defining run came.  Trailing 19-13, Green Bay made a miraculous run, scoring nine of the next 11 points to take a 22-21 lead.  The Aces were able to tie it up at 24-24 before the Phoenix took the win, recording the final two tallies.

In the second frame, seven ties led to a 7-7 score before Green Bay went on a 12-4 stretch to go up 19-11.  Much in the fashion the Phoenix did in game one, Evansville made a late rally.  Trailing 23-18, Rachel Tam began a 5-0 stretch with a service ace.  Clark also had two kills in the rally.  After a time out, Green Bay was able to regain its composure and score the final two points to take the win and go up 2-0.

Another 6-0 start saw Evansville jump out to the early advantage in the third game, but 17-3 run by the Phoenix was too much for the Aces to overcome.  Green Bay went up 17-9 and held off another furious late UE rally to clinch the match at 25-21.

Fortuny and Rodriguez were the Aces’ top performers in the match against the Cougars.  Each finished with eight kills while Rachel Tam checked in with six.

SIU Edwardsville opened up a 10-4 lead in the opening set.  Their lead extended to 20-13 before the Aces made a run.  Evansville took advantage of four errors while Rodriguez posted a kill to bring UE within a pair at 20-18.  The Cougars rebounded with a run of their own, finishing the set by scoring the last five points to take a 1-0 lead.

Game two saw the Cougars get off to another nice start, outscoring UE 12-5 in the opening stretch.  This time, they were able to hold that lead, winning by a final of 25-16.  The Aces had a great start to the third set, scoring six of the opening seven points.  Rocio Fortuny had four kills in that stretch.  SIUE hit its stride as they made their way back to take their first lead at 13-12 on a Dylynn Otte kill.  From that point, they pulled away for a 25-17 win to clinch the match.

Monday will mark the home opener for UE as the Purple Aces welcome Southeast Missouri State.  Game time is at 6 p.m. inside the Carson Center.