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Three-year-old filly Zee Falls breaks her maiden in the Wellington Stakes.
The late Sacred Falls' (O'Reilly) stellar season continued on Thursday as he brought up his third stakes winner when his daughter Zee Falls (3 f ex Zelitist by Zabeel) broke her maiden in the Wellington Stakes (Gr 3, 1600m) at Otaki.
Trained by Stephen Marsh, the three-year-old filly had finished third on her previous two starts and she finally got her head in front when she beat Key (Exceed And Excel) by three-quarters of a length, while White Lightning (Reliable Man) was another length and a quarter back in third.
Marsh said the New Zealand Oaks (Gr 1, 2400m) at Trentham next year was the filly's long term aim.
"She didn't win a maiden, but she has now won a stakes race," said Marsh. "She is by Sacred Falls, out of a Zabeel mare, she is beautifully bred and is a Group 3 winner now. This filly will have a break now and will be solely set for the Oaks. She has got her black-type now.
"A filly like her, once she gets up over 2000 metre-plus is when you are going to see a better horse again.
"I am thrilled to have her winning and it is good to have her going out on that sort of note."
The Waikato Stud-based Sacred Falls - who died last year - has enjoyed a stellar season, with all three of his stakes winners coming this term, with Aegon winning the New Zealand 2,000 Guineas (Gr 1, 1600m), while his daughter All Saints' Eve took out the Tibbie Stakes (Gr 3, 1400m) and Marsh described the stallion's untimely death as a 'loss to the industry'.
"He (Sacred Falls) was struggling for a fair while," Marsh said. "They are not making them anymore but you wish they were because they are absolutely flying.
"He's a loss to the industry, that's for sure."
Zee Falls was purchased by her trainer out of Waikato Stud's 2019 New Zealand Bloodstock Yearling Sale draft at Book 1 of the sale for NZ$130,000 and she is out of dual-winning Zabeel (Sir Tristram) mare Zelitist, who is herself a half-sister to 2012 Diamond Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) winner Warhorse (General Nediym).
Further back this is also the same family as Group 2 winner California Dane (Danehill).
Zelitist's 2018 colt by Tiviaci (High Chaparral) was purchased by Ohukia Lodge and Huntingdale Lodge for NZ$50,000 at the 2020 New Zealand Bloodstock Karaka National Yearling from the Waikato Stud draft and was then bought by Flemington Bloodstock for $80,000 at last month's Inglis Ready To Race Sale, while Zee Falls' sister was snapped up by George Cooper-Dixon for NZ$5,250 via Gavelhouse's April Online Auction earlier this year.