With seven winners from her last 21 starters, trainer Suzanne Stettinius’s stable is on a serious roll.

The streak continued on Friday as Hold Out stalked and pounced to grab the eighth race, a first-level allowance for 3-year-olds and upward at 1 1/16 miles on turf.

Hold Out was an unlucky loser in his previous start, a first-level starter allowance at Colonial on August 15. The 4-year-old gelding battled for the early lead, disdainfully dispatched his early challenge, then was immediately confronted by winning Naptown, who recently finished fourth in the Grade 1 Woodbine Mile. It was a classic example of a horse that won the battle but lost the war.

This time, jockey Forest Boyce was mindful of rationing Hold Out’s potent speed. Racing under the wire the first time, Boyce rated a hard-pulling Hold Out to sit just off longshots Liam’s the Great and Elusive Image.

Hold Out ($4.20), traveled comfortably entering the far turn, made an outside bid to the front swinging into the straight, then stayed about his business to win by 2 ½ lengths in 1:42.22.

Salted Carmel finished second to complete the chalky exacta. Phil’s Prince nipped Maclean’s Rook for the show spot with Toolpusher, Name It, Elusive Image, and Liam’s the Great rounding out the order of finish.

“He was much better today than he has been, to be honest,” Boyce said about Hold Out’s willingness to relax. “It’s good that we were able to tuck him in. I tried to save as much as I could for the [stretch drive].”

Bred by Godolphin, Hold Out is a Street Boss half-brother to Grade 1-placed turf miler Degree of Risk out of a winning half-sister to Grade 1-winning dirt sprinter Emcee from the family of Grade 1-winning dirt sprinter Awesome Humor.

Claimed for $50,000 by Claudio Gonzalez at Turfway Park during the winter of 2024, Hold Out was taken by Stettinius and Petticoats Loose Stable for $30,000 out of a winning effort last fall. Hold Out boasts a lifetime record of three wins from 15 starts, earning $108,449.