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
Minnesota United blank Timbers for 3rd straight win
Apr 18, 2026; Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota United FC forward Kelvin Yeboah (9) shoots the ball as Portland Timbers defender Finn Surman (20) and defender Brandon Bye (5) defend during the first half at Allianz Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images Tomas Chancalay had a goal and an assist as the Minnesota United won their third match in a row with Saturday night’s 2-0 victory against the Portland Timbers at Saint Paul, Minn.
Kelvin Yeboah scored the other goal, making it three matches in a row that he has a goal for the Loons (4-2-2, 14 points). Minnesota goalkeeper Drake Callender made two saves for the clean sheet.
Yeboah has half of his team’s 10 goals in MLS play. He’s the team’s only player with more than one goal.
James Pantemis made five saves for Portland (2-5-1, 7 points), which fell to 0-4-0 in road matches.
Chancalay scored his first goal of the season in the 16th minute off Jefferson Diaz’s assist.
Yeboah’s goal in the 60th minute capped a fastbreak with a short-range shot after Chancalay provided the final pass. Chancalay has four assists this year.
Portland has surrendered two or more goals in each of its last three road matches.
The Timbers began a busy stretch that includes several road assignments with a largely solid game despite failing to score. They held a 4-3 edge in corner kicks and a 55%-45% possession advantage, but Minnesota outshot the visitors 17-12, including 7-2 on shots on target.
The teams played to a 1-1 draw last August in the same stadium.
Portland stays on the road next Saturday, visiting San Diego FC. Minnesota plays twice next week, visiting FC Dallas on Wednesday before hosting LAFC on Saturday.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Troy Johnston's clutch double leads Rockies' comeback win over Dodgers
Apr 18, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Kyle Tucker (23) is congratulated by designated hitter Shohei Ohtani (17) after a two-run home run during the first inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images Troy Johnston hit a go-ahead two-run double in the sixth inning and the Colorado Rockies held on for a 4-3 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday night in Denver.
Johnston had three of Colorado’s seven hits as the Rockies won for only the second time in nine games.
Kyle Tucker and Dalton Rushing homered for the Dodgers, who had their four-game winning streak snapped. Shohei Ohtani was 1-for-4 to extend his on-base streak to 50 games.
Brennan Bernardino (2-0) delivered 1 1/3 no-hit innings in relief, and Victor Vodnik pitched the ninth for his third save.
Will Klein (1-1) allowed hits to each of the first three batters he faced in the sixth, including Johnston’s game-winning double.
The first two Dodgers reached in the eighth against Jaden Hill and they loaded the bases with two outs before Hill retired Max Muncy on a groundout to second base.
Colorado starter Ryan Feltner went 5 2/3 innings, allowing three runs (two earned) and five hits with a walk and five strikeouts.
Los Angeles starter Emmet Sheehan gave up two runs on four hits in five innings, with two walks and four strikeouts.
The Dodgers led 2-0 two pitches into the game. After Ohtani hit the first pitch into play and reached on an error by Johnston, Tucker drove the first pitch he saw into the second deck in right for his third home run with the Dodgers.
TJ Rumfield’s RBI single made it 2-1 in the bottom of the first.
Rushing’s solo homer with one out in the second restored the two-run lead.
Kyle Karros’ sacrifice fly in the bottom of the inning made it 3-2, scoring Johnston, who had singled, stolen second and moved to third on a groundout.
The Dodgers threatened when Freddie Freeman tripled with one out in the visitor’s half of the sixth. But Karros at third dove to stop Teoscar Hernandez’s grounder down the line, retiring him at first. Bernardino replaced Feltner and struck out Muncy to end the threat.
The Dodgers threatened with a pair of two-out singles in the ninth before Tucker’s flyout to left ended the game. Los Angeles was hitless in seven at-bats with runners in scoring position, stranding eight in the narrow loss
–Field Level Media
Sports
Flyers emerge with win over Penguins in opening tussle of playoff series
Apr 18, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Cam York (8) checks Pittsburgh Penguins center Sidney Crosby (87) in front of Flyers goaltender Dan Vladar (80) during the first period against in game one of the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at PPG Paints Arena. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images Porter Martone scored a timely goal late for the Philadelphia Flyers, who skated away with a 3-2 road victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins to take a 1-0 lead in their best-of-seven, first-round playoff series on Saturday night.
Travis Sanheim and Jamie Drysdale also scored for Philadelphia. Trevor Zegras, Denver Barkey, Rasmus Ristolainen, Christian Dvorak and Travis Konecny registered assists.
Dan Vladar stopped 15 shots for the Flyers, none bigger than a point-blank stop on Anthony Mantha in the closing seconds to preserve the win.
Evgeni Malkin scored his 68th postseason goal for the Penguins and assisted on Bryan Rust’s goal. Tommy Novak, Rickard Rakell and Erik Karlsson earned assists.
Stuart Skinner faced 20 shots and made 17 saves.
The postseason renewal of the Battle of Pennsylvania was exactly that for the two teams ending lengthy playoff droughts. It was a physical affair that featured just 26 shots on goal and 59 hits through the first two periods. That favored the Flyers, who finished the season fourth in the league in hits.
Martone, the 19-year-old who joined Philadelphia from Michigan State on March 31, scored what appeared to be an insurance goal with 2:37 left that gave the Flyers a 3-1 lead. That prompted Pittsburgh to pull Skinner for a sixth attacker.
A tussle between Penguins star Sidney Crosby and Sanheim sent both to the penalty box with 1:09 left, and Rust made it a one-goal game from the high slot eight seconds later.
Drysdale gave Philadelphia the lead midway through the second. Zegras skated behind the net and found the defenseman in the faceoff circle. Denver Barkey also assisted on the goal and further helped by screening Skinner.
Less than seven minutes later, Malkin provided the equalizer as the Penguins applied pressure in the attack zone. Vladar stopped Rakell but allowed a long rebound to his right that Novak tapped to the 39-year-old, who scored from the faceoff circle with 4:09 left in the period.
Sanheim reclaimed the lead for Philadelphia at the midway point of the third.
Pittsburgh’s 17 shots on goal were its fewest in a postseason game since the Penguins mustered just 12 in Game 5 of the 2017 Stanley Cup Final against the Nashville Predators.
–Field Level Media
Minnesota United blank Timbers for 3rd straight win
Troy Johnston's clutch double leads Rockies' comeback win over Dodgers
