They were running for third place money if Locked and Speak Easy were in the gate. Third place pays about the same as winning an allowance race, and they get a Graded stakes placing. Plus there are not many preps left to earn points for the derby. And with all the others being slow, why not take the chance.
And the number from this race might come back slow. Dornoch probably paired his debut fig, considering who ran second and the numbers it was running, a 9 or 10 seem about right.