Sent to post as the 11-10 favorite, Gallegos Del Norte Racing's La Sorpresa rallied to win Sunday's $85,000 Russell and Helen Foutz Distaff Handicap (R) for state-bred fillies and mares at SunRay Park.

La Sorpresa went 6 ½ furlongs in 1:18.39 on a muddy and sealed track, and her margin of victory was four lengths from Fan's Cat. Alejandro Medellin rode the 6-year-old mare for trainer Jose R. Gonzalez Jr.

La Sorpresa was bred by Miguel L. Gallegos, an Albuquerque plastic surgeon and the owner of Gallegos Del Norte Racing. The mare is one of two stakes winners sired by Valet Man, a winning 13-year-old son of Carson City who has sired the earners of more than $730,500 from 16 starters, including 2007 George Maloof Futurity (R) winner Bravo Sapello.

Valet Man entered stud in 2004 and currently stands for a $3,000 fee at Gallegos Del Norte Farm.

La Sorpresa's dam, Sea Sis, is an unplaced 12-year-old daughter of Grade 1 winner Al Mamoon.

La Sorpresa has raced exclusively in New Mexico, and the mare has won eight of 26 races, including the last two runnings of the one-mile, $100,000 Sydney Valentini Handicap (R) at Sunland Park. The $51,000 winner's share of the Foutz Distaff purse pushed her bankroll to $415,483.

Jengoneby ran third, 10 ¼ lengths behind La Sorpresa, and was followed by Tricky R., Desert Tap, Mylilmemo, Pretty Danseur, Shemoves and Happy Me.

Runner-up Fan's Cat earned $17,000 to increase her bankroll to $63,820 for owners Tyler Holstein and Dale Taylor. A 4-year-old bay daughter of the Storm Cat stallion Devon Lane, Fan's Cat has won three of six starts, and she began her career with three consecutive wins, including a 5 1/2-furlong second-level allowance victory at Sunland Park on January 7.

Jengoneby is a homebred 4-year-old Desert God mare racing for Joe Allen of Abilene, Texas. Jengoneby banked $8,500 to boost her earnings to $68,614 from three wins in eight outs.