Sports
Taylor Gray fends off Sheldon Creed, wins eventful race in Kansas
Apr 18, 2026; Kansas City, Kansas, USA; NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series driver Taylor Gray (54) poses with his team after winning the Kansas Lottery 300 at Kansas Speedway. Mandatory Credit: Scott Sewell-Imagn Images KANSAS CITY, Kan. — The early bird got the victory on Saturday night.
The first of the frontrunners to pit during the final 95-lap green-flag run in the Kansas Lottery 300, Taylor Gray grabbed the lead during the cycle and held off charging Sheldon Creed to score the second NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series victory of his career.
Crew chief Jason Ratcliff, who won at Kansas with driver David Green in 2003, called Gray into the pits on Lap 143 of 200. Creed and Brandon Jones, running first and second on Lap 146, emerged from pit road after stops on Lap 147 roughly three seconds behind Gray.
Jones, winner of the first two stages, had to serve a pass-through penalty for a tire violation during his stop and lost the chance to win. But Creed, with Justin Allgaier behind him in third, began a methodical pursuit of Gray that ultimately came up 0.718 seconds short.
“How about Jason Ratcliff?” Gray exclaimed after climbing from his No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. “That pit call was awesome. We had a car capable of winning. I thought the 20 (Jones) was a little better than us before the green-flag cycle started, but we just had to stay locked in, and we had to be a little bit freer.
“Jason made a really good adjustment on the car and a really good pit call and got us in clean air. It’s been a long start to the year, man — not that we’re not bringing speed to the race track. It’s just that things haven’t really gone our way. So it’s nice to finally be able to close one out.”
Gray gained three positions to ninth in the series standings.
As it turned out, Creed also had plenty of reasons to celebrate. By finishing first among four eligible drivers, he earned a $100,000 Dash 4 Cash bonus for the first time in his career. It was Creed’s fifth attempt to win the Dash 4 Cash prize money.
“It was a great day for us after starting in the back,” said Creed who dropped to the rear of the field at the beginning of the race after his No. 00 Haas Factory Team Chevrolet failed pre-race inspection. “I kind of knew right away my car was really fast, and I was able to drive to the front, and I just had a lot of fun today…
“It’s just really cool to be able to bring a hundred grand back to the Haas Factory Team. I definitely wanted to win and add to it, but the 54 (Gray) did a really good job short-pitting us. He ran a really good last 40 laps there and got through traffic quick and made it where I never really got close enough.”
Allgaier came home third, followed by defending series champion Jesse Love and Brent Crews. William Byron, Cole Custer, Jones, Sam Mayer and Ryan Sieg completed the top 10 in a race that featured 11 lead changes among eight drivers.
Allgaier finished third in both stages and added one point to his series lead over second-place Creed. The margin is now 131 points.
Long before Gray took the checkered flag, there was plenty of action in the first stage.
The race wasn’t two laps old when an accident on the backstretch launched the No.1 JR Motorsports Chevrolet of Carson Kvapil into the air and sent it flipping down the backstretch.
Contact from Byron’s Chevy turned Kvapil’s car sideways near the front of the field. Parker Retzlaff piled into Kvapil’s car near the outside wall. The impact knocked the rear of Kvapil’s Camaro airborne, and the car proceeded to barrel-roll down the backstretch, coming to rest on its roof.
With the use of tethers and a tow truck, safety workers righted the car, and Kvapil climbed out before a mandatory trip to the infield care center.
“Maybe on dirt, I’ve flipped a few of them, but definitely never asphalt racing or a big stock car race,” Kvapil said after being evaluated and released from the care center. “It was actually not as bad as I thought it was going to be, once I realized I was going over, but it just sucks.”
On Lap 38, Jesse Love crowded Richard Childress Racing teammate Austin Hill down toward the apron as the two raced side-by-side in Turn 4. Hill spun sideways, and as he fought to control his No. 21 Chevrolet, the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota of William Sawalich plowed into Hill’s car.
“I’ll remember this,” Hill promised on his radio, referring to racing from his teammate he thought was unnecessarily close.
Hill fell out of the race in 34th place. Corey Day saw his streak of eight straight top 10s end with a 12th-place finish after rallying from an accident on Lap 101 and subsequent flat tire.
Gray, Creed, Allgaier and Love qualified for the third Dash 4 Cash race of the season, Saturday’s Ag-Pro 300 at Talladega Superspeedway (4 p.m. ET on CW, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series Race – Kansas Lottery 300
Kansas Speedway
Kansas City, Kansas
Saturday, April 18, 2026
1. (10) Taylor Gray, Toyota, 200.
2. (4) Sheldon Creed, Chevrolet, 200.
3. (3) Justin Allgaier, Chevrolet, 200.
4. (9) Jesse Love, Chevrolet, 200.
5. (5) Brent Crews #, Toyota, 200.
6. (2) William Byron(i), Chevrolet, 200.
7. (36) Cole Custer(i), Chevrolet, 200.
8. (14) Brandon Jones, Toyota, 200.
9. (19) Sam Mayer, Chevrolet, 200.
10. (12) Ryan Sieg, Chevrolet, 200.
11. (22) Dean Thompson, Toyota, 199.
12. (6) Corey Day, Chevrolet, 199.
13. (16) Jeb Burton, Chevrolet, 199.
14. (24) Patrick Staropoli #, Chevrolet, 199.
15. (18) Jeremy Clements, Chevrolet, 199.
16. (11) Sammy Smith, Chevrolet, 199.
17. (30) Josh Williams, Chevrolet, 199.
18. (27) Lavar Scott #, Chevrolet, 198.
19. (17) Brennan Poole, Chevrolet, 198.
20. (7) William Sawalich, Toyota, 198.
21. (13) Rajah Caruth, Chevrolet, 198.
22. (29) Ryan Ellis, Chevrolet, 198.
23. (21) Blaine Perkins, Chevrolet, 198.
24. (32) Nathan Byrd, Chevrolet, 197.
25. (25) Kyle Sieg, Chevrolet, 197.
26. (23) Josh Bilicki, Chevrolet, 196.
27. (33) Joey Gase, Chevrolet, 194.
28. (20) Harrison Burton, Toyota, 190.
29. (28) Dawson Cram, Chevrolet, Engine, 120.
30. (31) Anthony Alfredo, Chevrolet, Accident, 65.
31. (37) Blake Lothian, Chevrolet, Brakes, 62.
32. (35) Austin Green, Chevrolet, Engine, 61.
33. (34) Mason Maggio, Chevrolet, Engine, 51.
34. (15) Austin Hill, Chevrolet, Accident, 37.
35. (26) Luke Baldwin(i), Ford, Suspension, 4.
36. (8) Parker Retzlaff, Chevrolet, Accident, 2.
37. (1) Carson Kvapil, Chevrolet, Accident, 1.
Average Speed of Race Winner: 116.946 mph.
Time of Race: 2 Hrs, 33 Mins, 55 Secs. Margin of Victory: .718 Seconds.
Caution Flags: 7 for 37 laps.
Lead Changes: 11 among 8 drivers.
Lap Leaders: C. Kvapil 0;C. Day 1-23;B. Jones 24-48;A. Alfredo 49-54;W. Byron(i) 55;B. Jones 56-70;J. Love 71;B. Jones 72-98;S. Creed 99-146;C. Day 147-149;R. Sieg 150-152;T. Gray 153-200.
Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led): Brandon Jones 3 times for 67 laps; Sheldon Creed 1 time for 48 laps; Taylor Gray 1 time for 48 laps; Corey Day 2 times for 26 laps; Anthony Alfredo 1 time for 6 laps; Ryan Sieg 1 time for 3 laps; Jesse Love 1 time for 1 lap; William Byron(i) 1 time for 1 lap.
Stage #1 Top Ten: 20,17,7,2,96,54,00,19,27,88
Stage #2 Top Ten: 20,00,7,2,17,8,54,24,41,26
–By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service. Special to Field Level Media.
Sports
Giants rally from early 4-run deficit, top Nats in 12
Apr 18, 2026; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; San Francisco Giants left fielder Heliot Ramos (17) hits a double against the Washington Nationals during the second inning at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-Imagn Images Matt Chapman drove in the go-ahead run in the top of the 12th inning and the San Francisco Giants beat the Nationals 7-6 Saturday in Washington, D.C.
Chapman led off the 12th against Cionel Perez (0-2) and grounded a single to left, scoring automatic runner Luis Arraez.
Caleb Kilian (1-0) pitched two innings for the win. The automatic runner did not advance in either inning and Kilian only allowed one base runner on an intentional walk.
The Nationals loaded the bases with no outs in the tenth, but Ryan Walker got two strikeouts and a ground out.
Heliot Ramos had three hits including his second home run in two games as San Francisco won its third straight.
Wood hit his seventh homer of the season and scored three runs for the Nationals.
With Washington trailing 6-5 in the ninth, Jorbit Vivas doubled against Walker leading off and went to third on a fly out. After Wood was walked intentionally, Curtis Mead hit a grounder and Vivas was thrown out at home. Brady House tied the game when he blooped single to center and Wood scored before Mead was thrown out at third.
Wood led off the bottom of the first and homered to give Washington a 1-0 lead.
Jung Hoo Lee singled with one out in the second and Ramos doubled, but Lee was thrown out at home. Drew Gilbert followed with a single to right, plating Ramos with the tying run.
The Nationals loaded the bases as the first batters reached in the second. Drew Millas grounded into a force at home, but Wood was hit by a pitch to force in a run. Luis Garcia, Jr. singled in two runs and Jose Tena singled in another to make it 5-1.
An error by third baseman Vivas gave the Giants runners on first and second with one out in the third and Casey Schmitt lined a two-out double to left that scored two runs, one coming across on a fielding error by Daylen Lile.
Lee singled off Parker with one out in the sixth and Ramos followed with a shot to left to tie it.
Willy Adames singled leading off the seventh and went to second on a wild pitch. Rafael Devers lined a two-out single to left, scoring Adames to give the Giants a 6-5 lead.
Giants starter Adrian Houser gave up five runs (four earned) on seven hits over 5 2/3 innings. His Nats counterpart Cade Cavalli gave up three runs (one earned) on seven hits in four innings.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Athletics win in 11th as White Sox squander 5-run lead
Apr 18, 2026; West Sacramento, California, USA; Athletics first baseman Nick Kurtz (16) hits a game-tying two-run homer during the seventh inning against the Chicago White Sox at Sutter Health Park. Mandatory Credit: Scott Marshall-Imagn Images Nick Kurtz hit a game-tying home run in the seventh inning and Max Muncy was the walk-off hero in the 11th as the Athletics overcame an early 5-0 deficit to beat the Chicago White Sox 7-6 on Saturday afternoon in West Sacramento, Calif.
Muncy hit a game-winning sacrifice fly to left field off Lucas Sims (0-2) to score Jacob Wilson and complete the comeback.
The White Sox had the bases loaded with no outs in the top of the 11th, but Jack Perkins (2-0) pitched out of trouble to give the A’s a chance to end the game in the bottom half.
The game went to extras after Kurtz’s two-run shot off Jordan Leasure in the seventh.
Colson Montgomery, Andrew Benintendi and Munetaka Murakami hit home runs in a losing effort for Chicago. The White Sox missed countless chances to build on their lead, finishing 3-for-17 with runners in scoring position.
Chicago was in control after a five-run second. Montgomery’s fourth home run came on the first pitch of the inning. The barrage continued with a bloop RBI single for Reese McGuire and Benintendi’s three-run homer.
Athletics starter Luis Severino settled down after that, allowing no further damage over the remainder of his 5 1/3 innings. He finished with five runs, five hits and four walks allowed to go with three whiffs.
Jacob Wilson started the home team’s reply with a solo home run to left with one out in the second.
Lawrence Butler went station-to-station to add a run in the third. He drew a leadoff walk, stole second, advanced to third on an Austin Wynns groundout and scored on Jeff McNeil’s sac fly.
White Sox starter Erick Fedde was pulled after 4 2/3 innings. He had an erratic outing with four walks, one wild pitch and three runs allowed.
Sean Newcomb relieved Fedde with two runners on base and allowed a third unanswered A’s run when Tyler Soderstrom hit an RBI single.
Muncy hit a one-out triple in the bottom of the inning and scored when Newcomb couldn’t field a slow roller by Butler cleanly, cutting the White Sox advantage to 5-4.
Chicago added some breathing space when Murakami hit his second home run in as many games to lead off the seventh, but the Athletics answered swiftly as Shea Langeliers opened the bottom of the seventh with a single and Kurtz lined a rope over the right field fence to make it 6-6.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Keith Horne surprise leader of Senior PGA Championship
Keith Horne and his caddie walk past a sign warning fans of oncoming dangerous weather on Friday during the first round of the Constellation Furyk & Friends, at the Timuquana Country Club.
Weather
Keith Horne finds himself in an unexpected position — leading the Senior PGA Championship with 18 holes to go.
Horne, 54, fired a 5-under 66 during Saturday’s third round to seize a one-shot lead over four players at Concession Golf Club at Bradenton, Fla.
Sitting at 11-under 205 is a surreal feeling for Horne, who carded six birdies against one bogey in his stellar third round.
The South Africa native has one Top 5 finish and $327,937 in earnings to show for his 14 previous PGA Tour Champions events. If he finishes on top Sunday, he’ll add $540,000 and a major to the top of his resume.
“Of course, I’m surprised,” Horne said. “It’s such a strong field, such a quality field that’s playing this week. It’s not something we get to play in that often against the guys of this stature and quality. A lot of them are my idols. I watched a lot of them on TV.
“… It’s not something I sort of planned or played for. I just try to stick to my own game, and I think that helped me today without looking around too much at what I’m leading.”
Thailand’s Thammanoon Sriroj (66), Stewart Cink (70) and the Australian combo of Steve Allan (68) and Scott Hend (72) are the foursome tied at 10 under. Ben Crane (71) sits two shots back in sixth place.
Horne has spent most of his career playing overseas. He appeared in five Champions events in 2025, including tying for 28th at the Senior PGA Championship.
His best finish was a tie for 11th at the Principal Charity Classic. He made four of five cuts.
On Saturday, he had a bogey on his first hole before gaining the stroke back with a birdie on No. 3. Back-to-back birdies on Nos. 7 and 8 gave him momentum and he scored back-to-back birdies twice on the back nine during a five-hole stretch.
One thing Horne said he won’t do on Sunday: track who’s chasing him.
“No, I’m not a scoreboard-watcher,” Horne said. “I think you get two types of people. I’m not the most confrontational person so, you know, I’d rather just stay away and just stick to my own game.
“I think if I look up and I feel like I need to chase or push or beat somebody specific, it doesn’t help me. It only hinders me. I maybe just try too hard or put too much pressure on myself.”
Hend shared the second-round lead after rounds of 69 and 65, but he took a step backward Saturday with three bogeys over the first 11 holes. He rebounded with three birdies down the stretch to finish just one shot back.
He is well-aware the final round will feature a bunched-up leaderboard.
“Just stick to my game plan, play to my ability,” Hend said. “If I play to my ability, then I’ve got a chance to win. If I don’t win, then as long as I finish as hard as I possibly can, that’s fine.”
Brian Gay, who shared the second-round lead with Hend, shot 2-over 74 shares seventh at 208. Also part of that tie are Fiji’s Vijay Singh (67), Canada’s Greg Owen (68) and Spain’s Miguel Angel Jimenez (68).
–Field Level Media
