OPELOUSAS, LA—NOVEMBER 22, 2019—Evangeline Downs hosted nine qualifying trials for the $295,890 Evangeline Downs Futurity on Friday night and it was a soggy evening at the races as a steady and, at times, hard rain fell throughout the program.

The horse that handled the sloppy surface the best was Domishay, who was the fastest qualifier with a time of 19.812 seconds for the 400-yard distance, which equals a speed index of 92.

Domishay, who won the Cherokee Nation Stakes at Will Rogers Downs earlier this year, has now won five of 10 lifetime starts and the $3,000 first-place purse increased his lifetime earnings to $64,615.

Bred in Oklahoma by Laura and Don Erickson, Domishay is a 2-year-old colt by Dominyun, out of the Mr Eye Opener mare, Salty Shay. He is owned by Paula Cristina Villatoro, trained by Josue Ponce and was ridden to victory by Jesse Lee Levario.

Trainer Josue Ponce was able to qualify two horses for the Evangeline Downs Futurity final. In addition to the fastest qualifier, Ponce also had Three Blue Coronas, who made the final from the ninth and last trial on Friday night, getting in after finishing in a dead-heat for the win with Juanells Fireball.

Each of the nine Evangeline Downs Futurity trials offered a purse of $5,000 and the winner’s share in the $295,890 final will be $147,945. The Evangeline Downs Futurity final will be run on Saturday, December 14.

CLICK HERE for the 10 finalists for Evangeline Downs Futurity, along with their connections.

Racing will resume at Evangeline Downs on Saturday night with a nine-race program featuring five trials for the $137,020 Evangeline Downs Derby. Post time on Saturday will be 5:35 pm Central Time.

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For more information on the American Quarter Horse season at Evangeline Downs, visit the track's website at evdracing.com. Evangeline Downs' Twitter handle is @EVDRacing and the racetrack is also accessible on Facebook at www.facebook.com/EvangelineDownsRacing.

About Evangeline Downs
Evangeline Downs Racetrack Casino & Hotel is owned by Boyd Gaming Corporation, a leading diversified owner and operator of 22 gaming entertainment properties located in Nevada, New Jersey, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana and Mississippi. Boyd Gaming press releases are available at www.prnewswire.com. Additional news and information can be found at www.boydgaming.com, or evangelinedowns.com.

Editor's note: A photo of the fastest qualifier will be posted when it becomes available from the track photographer.