Lou and Diane Tice’s 5-year-old Assessment, winner of three stakes including the $300,000 Longacres Mile, was voted Emerald Downs Horse of the Meeting for the 91-day live racing season that concluded Sunday.

In winning the 74th running of the track’s marquee event, Assessment overcame the dreaded No. 12 post-position and out-finished the California millionaire, Awesome Gem, in a fast 1:33 2/5 in what was voted the 2009 Race of the Meeting. Trained by Howard Belvoir, conditioning his second successive Horse of the Meeting, Assessment compiled a 4-3-0 record in seven starts with earnings of $257,000. Ridden regularly by Gallyn Mitchell, the Kentucky-bred by Jump Start also captured the Budweiser-Emerald and Mt. Rainier Handicaps to take honors as Top Older Horse.

Voting on the 2009 season awards were a panel of media members, track officials and fans participating via email.

Roy and Ellie Schaefer’s brilliantly fast 4-year-old Atta Boy Roy was voted Top Washington-bred and Top Sprinter. The son of Tribunal broke the track and state record for six furlongs with a 1:07 clocking in the Chinook Pass Sprint on Washington Cup Day, and the colt also topped Assessment in the Governor’s Handicap at 6-½ furlongs. In The Mile, Atta Boy Roy set the fastest fractions in the history of the race – :21 4/5, 44,1:07 3/5 – before finishing a close fifth to Assessment, despite losing a shoe on the backstretch.

Jon Sather’s Ladyledue was voted Top 3-Year-Old Filly after a brilliant campaign that saw her win four stakes including romps in the one-mile John and Kitty Fletcher Stakes and Irish Day Handicap. Trained by Bonnie Jenne, the Washington-bred by Slewdledo has won six stakes and two division titles at Emerald Downs Top Juvenile Filly in 2008 and Top 3-Year-old Filly in 2009.

Trainer Doris Harwood had another exceptional campaign tying her own track record with 12 stakes wins and establishing new marks with 21 2-year-old wins and $931,916 in earnings. Harwood, voted Top Training Achievement, conditioned Top 3-Year-Old Winning Machine, Top Older Filly or Mare Elusive Horizon and Top Juvenile Filly Knight Raider.

Fleur De Lis Stables’ Winning Machine won or placed in four stakes including a tenacious head victory in the Emerald Derby, and the game gelding did Emerald Downs proud with a victory in Sunday’s $275,000 British Columbia Derby at Hastings Racecourse. Northwest Farms’ Elusive Horizon, meanwhile, remained unbeaten around two turns with victories in the King County Handicap, Boeing Handicap (dead-heat with Holy Nova) and Emerald Distaff.

In the 2-year-old ranks, One Horse Will Do Corp. and John Holmes’ Hollywood Harbor and Fab Five Farm’s Knight Raider dominated their respective ranks and were voted Top Juvenile Male and Top Juvenile Filly. Trained by Chris Stenslie, Hollywood Harbor won three stakes by combined 12-¾ lengths while the Harwood-trained Knight Raider won three stakes by an aggregate 23-½ lengths.

Ricky Frazier dominated the jockey ranks winning 155 races – the second highest total in track history – and 11 stakes races. For the 45-year-old Arkansan, it was his fourth title in the last six years, a span in which he has won 732 races while no other rider has won 500. In the training ranks, business as usual as Tim McCanna won 63 races to capture his ninth crown in the track’s 14-year history by edging Harwood, who finished with a career-high 59 wins.

In the owners’ ranks, Keith Swagerty’s Swag Stables established a single-season record with 27 wins – including two stakes wins with homebred No Flies On Doodles. Cassie Papineau, a 22-year-old Kennewick native, rode 70 winners and shattered the single-season record by an apprentice jockey.

Top Claiming Horse was an extremely tough category as two horses won six races and another finished with five wins. Panatela, a 4-year-old Washington-bred filly by Katowice, got the nod following a campaign that saw her compile a 6-2-0 record from nine starts while racing in three different barns.

Emerald Downs’ 2009 season honors:

Horse of the Meeting – Assessment (Ky)

Top WA-bred – Atta Boy Roy (Wash)

Top Older Horse – Assessment (Ky)

Top Older Filly or Mare – Elusive Horizon (Ky)

Top 3-year-old Male – Winning Machine (Ky)

Top 3-year-old Filly – Ladyledue (Wash)

Top Sprinter – Atta Boy Roy (Wash)

Top Claimer – Panatela (Wash)

Top Juvenile Male – Hollywood Harbor (Wash)

Top Juvenile Filly – Knight Raider (Wash)

Race of the Meeting – The 74th Longacres Mile

Top Training Achievement – Doris Harwood

Top Riding Achievement – Ricky Frazier

Durkan Award – Charles Essex

Lindy Award – Jose Zunino

Leading Rider – Ricky Frazier (155 wins)

Leading Trainer – Tim McCanna (63 wins)

Leading Owner – Swag Stables (27 wins*)

Leading Apprentice – Cassie Papineau (70 wins*)

*Track Record

NOTES: As mentioned, Winning Machine ($19.60) and jockey Gallyn Mitchell ran down Jersey Town in Sunday’s $275,000 British Columbia Derby at 1 1/8 miles in Vancouver. Doris Harwood finished first and third as Noosa Beach picked up the show at odds of 27-1. Winning Machine has won four-of-six this year with earnings of $261,150. In little over a month, Mitchell has won races worth $300,000 (Longacres Mile) and $275,000 (B.C. Derby)… Meanwhile, Sunday’s Getaway Day Card at Emerald Downs featured the annual Stanislaw Ashbaugh Claiming Challenge, a series of six starter allowance races for the track’s top claiming runners. The richest events were the $16,000 Colterkind, won by the Roy Lumm-trained Nina Win ($13.60) ridden by Cassie Papineau, and the $16,000 Cocktails Anyone taken by the 8-year-old veteran Skyrider ($37.20) with Javier Matias riding for trainer Blaine Wright… In the $12,000 No Giveaway, the razor-sharp Olympic Lights ($4.40) won his fourth race of the meet in a swift 1:08 1/5 for six furlongs. Troy Stillwell, capping a great comeback season, was the jockey for trainer Charles Essex… Ricky Frazier, aboard Winning Machine for both Emerald Downs stakes wins, remained in Auburn and rode one winner on the 11-race card to finish with 155 wins, the second highest total in track history but two shy of his own mark of 157 set in 2007… Tim McCanna clinched his ninth training title in style with a pair of wins. His 63 victories were the second highest total in Emerald Downs history and just three off his track record 66 wins set in 2008… He’s Always Right ($8) with Debbie Hoonan-Trujillo capping a fine 40-win meeting, captured the season finale for trainer Nick Lowe and owners Cold Boy Stables… In other action at Hastings, Longacres Mile third-place finisher Teide ($3) romped by nine lengths in the $50,000 Winston Churchill Handicap as Gallon finished fifth. And in the $50,000 Derby Bar and Grill Express Stakes, Longacres Mile sixth-place finisher Bank Emblem ($4.40) won by 1-¾ lengths… Live racing returns in April when Emerald Downs begins its 15th season, which will feature the 75th running of the Longacres Mile.