HOMETOWN sprinters Joel Bee and Rod Mathews have set the tone for this weekend's $30,000 Ballarat Gift, 120m handicap.Bee, a national 400m finalist, posted the fastest winning heat time at Eureka Stadium on Saturday afternoon, clocking 12.39 seconds.The 18-year-old burst off the blocks at 5.25 metres as backmarker in heat 6.Veteran Mathews, the 2009 Ballarat Gift winner, posted 12.54 to win heat seven in the third fastest time.Mathews (11m) convincingly broke away from his rivals with about 10 metres to go.Stawell Gift finalist Ben Weaver was also fast off the blocks in heat five, with a time of 12.45 to confirm his status as an early favourite.Defending Ballarat Gift champion Peter O'Dwyer (8.25m) finished out of placings in heat eight but has advanced to the semi-finals among the 16 fastest qualifiers.O'Dwyer will race off against Stawell Gift third placegetter Andrew McCabe in semi-final four on Sunday.McCabe cruised to victory in heat three off five metres, edging out 2009 Stawell Gift winner and heat backmarker Aaron Stubbs (4m).Ballarat's Matt Wiltshire and Ballarat university student Kevin Brittain fought hard in heat one, only to be caught in the gates by outmarker Andrew Flanagan (11.25m). Each have advanced to Sunday's semi-finals.BALLARAT'S Trish Fox topped heat five in the $2,500 Women's Gift 120m handicap to seal her spot in Sunday's semi-finals.All five Ballarat-trained contenders earnt a spot in the semi-final stage.Narelle Lehmann (7m) finished second in heat four to automatically advance while Kate Jones (7m), Nicole Taylor (8.25m), Nadia Domaschenz (8m) and Tara Domaschenz (8m) were among the next fastest 10 qualifiers.Defending women's champion Sophie Taylor was in dominant form to win heat two from her backmark of two metres.BALLARAT GIFT SEMI-FINAL FIELDSSEMI-FINAL ONERed: A. Mott 3.75mWhite: B. Teo 5.75mBlue: D. Panizza 7mYellow: C. Dunbar 7.75mGreen: P. Walsh 8.5mPink: J. Lindner 9.75mSEMI-FINAL TWORed: A. Stubbs 4mWhite: K. Brittain 6mBlue: B. Vickery 6.75mYellow: D. Tinney 8.5mGreen: S. Ezard 9.75mPink: A. Flanagan 11.25mSEMI-FINAL THREERed: T. Templeton 4.25mWhite: P. Cracoft-Wilson 8.25mBlue: C. Hargreaves 8.25mYellow: J. Tiu 8.75mGreen: N. Coull 10.75mPink: Rod Mathews 11m SEMI-FINAL FOURRed: A. McCabe 5mWhite: Peter O'Dwyer 8.25mBlue: J. Dartnell 9mYellow: G. O'Neil 10.75mGreen: D. Whittaker 11.5mPink: M. Hignett 11.5mSEMI-FINAL FIVERed: Joel Bee 5.25mWhite: B. Weaver 6.75mBlue: P. Tancredi 7.25mYellow: A. Carty-Crowling 8.25mGreen: N. Magree 9mPink: R. HoffmanSEMI-FINAL SIXRed: M. Hargreaves 5.5mWhite: L. Dooley 6.5mBlue: Matt Wiltshire 7.75mYellow: D. Lemoto 8.25mGreen: A. Coote 9.5mPink: P. Hughes 12mWOMEN'S GIFT SEMI-FINALSSEMI-FINAL ONERed: S. Taylor 2mWhite: K. Hubbard 3.25mBlue: Kate Jones 7mYellow: Patricia Fox 9mGreen: T. Fisher 16mPink: M. McMahon 13mSEMI-FINAL TWORed: K. Moore 2.5mWhite: L. Hilditch 7.25mBlue: Nadia Domaschenz 8mYellow: Tara Domaschenz 8mGreen: S. Kersten-Murphy 11mPink: S. Pollard 15.75mSEMI-FINAL THREERed: M. Purkiss 2.75mWhite: Narelle Lehmann 7mBlue: Nicole Taylor 8.25mYellow: J. Hubbard 11mGreen: K. Buckingham 12mPink: R. Pana 20.5m