Searings get double treat at Santa Anita

The Martin Luther King Jr. holiday card at Santa Anita on Monday could not have turned out any better for trainer John Sadler and Lee and Susan Searing’s C R K Stable.

Sadler and the Searings ran two talented 3-year-olds and both were impressive in victory under jockey Corey Nakatani.

Exhale, a well-regarded son of Millennium Wind who was bought for $800,000 nearly a year ago, dominated maidens as the prohibitive favorite in his first start of 2007 in the third race. It was Exhale’s first race since Oct. 21, when he finished second to Notional, winner of the San Rafael on Saturday.

Then in the eighth race, Jump On In, a daughter of Jump Start, scored her first stakes victory, beating Quick Little Miss and five others in the $150,000 Santa Ynez. Purchased for $410,000 last May at Barretts in Pomona, Jump On In, the 9-10 favorite, won for the third time in five starts, taking the Grade II by 3 3/4 lengths.

On or near the lead throughout in her two earlier wins, Jump On In showed a new dimension Monday, coming from off the pace to win in 1:23.45 for the seven furlongs.

“The way she ran today, she keeps moving forward,” Nakatani said. “The way she keeps getting better and better, it’s a tribute to the Sadler team.

“At the top of the lane, I was not worried at all. I knew she was going to go by the leaders. I just gave her a couple of reminders to keep her focused. I’m looking forward to going two turns with her.”

Quick Little Miss, the 2-1 second choice who had beaten Jump On In in the Moccasin about two months ago at Hollywood Park, finished a length ahead of pacesetter Sekira, whose two-race winning streak ended.

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Nakatani’s two victories were only half as many as David Flores posted. The leading stakes winning jockey through the first 16 days of the meet with six, Flores won the second with Beyondcomprehension, the fifth with Buddyandrowdy, the sixth with Passified and the seventh with Blushing Bear Cat.

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Jockey Martin Garcia spent Sunday night at Arcadia Methodist Hospital and remained there Monday for observation after being unseated from Sweet N Salty, who collapsed after Sunday’s sixth race.

Garcia’s agent, Roger Olguin, said the jockey was complaining of pain his lower back and was scheduled to undergo X-rays.

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Bill Place, the 7-5 favorite, easily won the $62,082 Jimmy Winkfield Stakes against only two opponents at Aqueduct. The win was the third in five starts for the 3-year-old Master Bill gelding. Ramon Dominguez rode the Florida-bred, who beat 9-10 choice Wollaston Bay by 3 1/4 lengths.

bob.mieszerski@latimes.com