Never done this since I have a longarm and can quilt with fleece on the back (just need to watch stretching), but what about turning the quilt over and having the cotton top on the bottom and the fleece side up? Are you using a walking foot or darning foot to quilt with? I've heard that you are more successful using a darning foot with the feed-dogs lowered. Like I said, never quilt on my DSM so I'm just trying to think outside the box!