TAMPA, Fla. -- At this time last year, Chloe Jackson was not on the Baylor women's basketball team. Today, she is its national championship savior and most outstanding player.

Jackson hit a driving layup with 3.9 seconds remaining, lifting Baylor to an 82-81 win over Notre Dame on Sunday night.

Baylor coach Kim Mulkey joins Geno Auriemma and Pat Summitt as the only coaches in women's Division I history with three or more national titles. As the final buzzer sounded, Mulkey broke down in tears as she received a full embrace from her entire staff.

Mulkey and the Lady Bears would not have raised the trophy without Jackson, who saved her best basketball for the Women's Final Four. Jackson hit a driving layup against Oregon with less than a minute remaining to get Baylor to the national championship game. The graduate transfer from LSU was sensational the entire game against Notre Dame, scoring a team-high 26 points as the key difference-maker on both teams.

But the Lady Bears, whose motto this season was "Together to Tampa," had to sweat out their third national championship after losing team leader Lauren Cox.

Cox left the game with 1:22 remaining in the third quarter. She had her left foot stepped on, and her leg bent awkwardly inward. She fell to the court clutching her knee and stayed down for several minutes before she was taken off the court in a wheelchair. Baylor led 62-50 at the time, and though Cox had only eight points, she had been integral to the Lady Bears' offense.

Before she exited, Baylor had scored 25 points on 11 of 14 field goals when Cox got a touch at the free throw line.

But without Cox, the team's entire complexion changed. Notre Dame, which has been a second-half team throughout the tournament, looked emboldened and far more aggressive. The Fighting Irish went on a 13-5 run, with eight points from Arike Ogunbowale to close the gap to three early in the fourth quarter.

Then Notre Dame's Marina Mabrey got going from the 3-point line, hitting three straight to help tie the game at 74 with 5:18 to play. After trading buckets and free throws, Jackson hit a jumper with 33.8 seconds left to put Baylor ahead. But Jessica Shepard was fouled and hit both her free throws, tying the game at 80.

That's when Baylor called Jackson's number again. On what appeared to be a nearly identical play to the one that beat Oregon, Jackson drove inside off a screen from DiDi Richards for the layup. But Notre Dame still had time, and Ogunbowale -- who won the national championship with a buzzer-beater against Mississippi State a year ago -- was fouled with 1.9 seconds remaining.

Ogunbowale missed the first free throw, and that ended up being the difference in the game.

By that time, Cox had made her way back to the sideline on crutches; she hugged Kalani Brown in the celebration.

That Notre Dame came back to make it a game shouldn't be a surprise, considering that's what the Irish had done during the tournament. In the first half, the Lady Bears dominated the Irish at their own game. Notre Dame led the nation in points in the paint (50.3 per game) and transition points (25.7 per game) going into Sunday. But in the first half, Notre Dame had eight points in the paint and just two points in transition on 1-of-3 shooting. Baylor had 30 points in the paint and 10 in transition.

Beyond that, the Bears used their guards to help put space between themselves and the Irish.

"We had to do it for LC. She got us here; we had to finish the job for her," Jackson said.

Dan Robinson, coach to British marathoner Hayley Carruthers, shares some tips on how to make your mind your ally

Marathon runners face a number of psychological challenges, from dealing with pre-race anxiety to coping with the physical discomfort that comes with pushing yourself over 26.2 miles.

Running a marathon isn’t easy, and that is part of its ongoing appeal. We can accept that things will get difficult but that resources are available to help us manage this. In turn, this can reduce anxiety and increase confidence that we can perform well on the day.

The ‘RESIST’ project has developed a number of useful strategies to help in managing fatigue and unhelpful emotions both before and during a race.

Self-talk

A great way to positively influence emotions, confidence and performance.

Attentional focus

Excessive focus on physical sensations such as muscular fatigue or breathing can increase perception of effort unnecessarily. Appropriate monitoring of bodily sensations can be used alongside other focusing strategies to decrease perceived effort and reduce the desire to slow down or stop.

Cue your form

Consciously focusing on running technique can actually reduce running economy. However, form cues have proven to be effective. A cue is a simple movement related thought to focus on while running. Which cues work for you will depend on your own preferences, and typical aspects of form you look to influence.

Top five tips to make your mind your ally

1. Accept in advance that the race will be difficult. The challenge is part of your motivation. Embrace it.

2. Reflect on occasions in your training when you have overcome difficult moments. Take confidence from the fact that you have done this before and can do it again on race day.

3. Develop a toolkit of strategies which you can reach into when required. Having a variety of resources available can ease anxiety about your ability to cope mentally.

4. Smile and engage positively with those around, especially the crowd. They will reflect your positivity and bolster your motivation.

5. To quote Ryan Hall, run the mile you’re in. Dismiss thoughts of potential horrors that await and focus on staying tall, running smoothly and relaxing. The steps you are taking are the only ones you can control.

RESIST event

Ahead of the London Marathon, a ‘psychological skills to improve your marathon’ event will be held at St Mary’s University in London on April 12.

The aim of the evening is to give runners an insight into how they can form a more positive relationship with fatigue. Leading sports psychologists Professor Andy Lane and Dr Carla Meijen will outline strategies for coping with the inevitable tough miles that come in any marathon.

There will also be invaluable insight from elite athletes Hayley Carruthers (pictured), who will be on the start line in London, and Jack Gray into how they deal with the mental challenges which pushing yourself hard present.

Preceding the event will be a coached session on the St Mary’s track allowing attendees to engage with fatigue directly before the main discussion. All abilities of runners are welcome, they can do as much or as little of the session as they like and showers will be available in advance of the talk.

Tickets cost £10 and can be booked at eventbrite.co.uk

More information about the RESIST project can be found at resist-stopping.com

KARACHI: Pakistan Squash Federation (PSF) has not held any international junior event in the country since 2013.

The last international event held for juniors was 5th Roshan Khan Junior Open in 2013. The event was registered with World Squash Federation. It was an Asian Squash Federation’s Super Series event. Former world champion Jansher Khan has termed it the main reason behind the decline of Pakistan squash.

In a statement recently, he suggested to the Prime Minister to hold international junior events in the country to revive the game of squash. Jansher said according to his experience the only way to improve the game of squash in the country was to hold international tournaments for juniors.

The organiser of the last international junior event also feels bad about this situation. Amir Khan while talking to ‘The News’ said the squash authorities are solely focusing on seniors. “This is the reason they are not organising international events for junior. Some international junior events were converted into events for seniors,” said Amir.

For example, he added, the DG Rangers Junior International event and Roshan Khan Junior Open were converted into international events for seniors.

Amir said that now juniors are left to play only national level events where lack of competition is not helping them prepare for competitive squash at international level. Last year Pakistan hosted 19 PSA events but there was not a single event for juniors.

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It’s probably not a stretch to suggest that the Celtics have produced their most encouraging basketball of the season the past two weeks, particularly with two quality wins over an Indiana Pacers team they are likely to play in the opening round of the playoffs.

And, yet, if you’re slightly skeptical about whether this team can bottle up their quality play and carry it into the postseason, it’s understandable. Fans are Charlie Brown and the 2018-19 Celtics are Lucy, repeatedly pulling the good basketball away. Good grief.

Maybe we’re getting duped again but it’s hard to shake the feeling that these Celtics — maybe just maybe — might be peaking at the right time. For the first time all season, this team passes the eye test.

Make no mistake, the Celtics have had these encouraging stretches of play throughout the year. Heck, we’re getting deja vu just typing these words out. And, yet, even in those good stretches, this team was prone to maddening lulls and it was hard to know on a night-to-night basis who, outside of Kyrie Irving, was going to deliver a consistent performance.

While still far from perfect, things feel a little different the past few weeks. Brad Stevens (finally) shuffled an underperforming starting lineup, inserting Aron Baynes into a two-big lineup alongside Al Horford. Poof! Boston’s two-month defensive regression reversed almost immediately.

The Horford/Baynes combo has paired with Irving, Marcus Smart, and Jayson Tatum to start four of Boston’s last seven games. In that span, that five-man unit has played 45 minutes together, outscoring opponents by 21 points per 100 possessions in that span.

The Baynes/Horford pairing has played 76 minutes together over those seven games and Boston owns a net rating of plus-17.2 in that span, which includes a sizzling defensive rating of 98.1. More encouraging, the Celtics have deployed that two-big lineup against Indiana and found success in matching the Pacers’ physicality.

A chess match could loom in the postseason but Baynes has helped restore Boston’s defensive identity. The Celtics seemed particularly energized after Friday’s win in Indiana having held the Pacers under the century mark, maybe recognizing that much of Boston’s postseason success will hinge on its ability to ratchet up the defense.

It’s telling that Horford declared after Friday’s win that, “This was one of our better games this season by far.”

Horford continues to quietly be the glue that holds everything together for these Celtics. His on/off splits since the All-Star break are absurd, with Boston owning a team-best plus-9.0 rating in Horford’s 577 minutes of floor time. That number plummets to a team-worst minus-12.5 in the 479 minutes Horford has been off the court.

It happened again Friday night. Boston had a net rating of plus-34.6 in Horford’s 27 minutes, and it dipped to minus-2.2 in the 21 minutes he was on the bench. Only Gordon Hayward (plus-37.9 on, minus-11.0 off had more jarring splits in Friday’s game). 

Hayward, of course, is maybe the biggest difference in these Celtics recently. Since returning from a concussion, Hayward’s stat lines jump off the page. He’s averaging 16.4 points on 58.8 percent shooting to go with 6.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists over 28.8 minutes per game. On Friday night, Hayward didn’t miss on nine attempts and continued to attack the basket with a confidence that escaped him for much of the season.

Even before he harnessed this confidence and aggression, the numbers suggested that Boston was simply a different team when Hayward is something better than average. Consider this: The Celtics are …

* 17-3 when Hayward scores 15 points or more
* 25-3 when Hayward shoots 50 percent or better in a game
* 17-3 when Hayward has a Game Score better than 13

Game Score is a noisy metric that attempts to condense a player’s box score data into one easy to digest number. Here’s all you need to know: Hayward didn’t miss on Friday night and it was only his sixth highest Game Score of the season (20.9). More encouraging: Some of his best Game Scores have come against top competition, including Golden State (30.5) and Philadelphia (23.0). Hayward also had one of his top 5 Game Scores in Miami earlier this week (25.0). 

Hayward so frequently makes the right play when he’s out on the court and, when you pair him with another right-play-maker in Horford, good things consistently happen. It’s unfair to expect that Hayward can be a dominant force every night in the postseason, there’s still going to be times when his body balks or his shot doesn’t fall. But he’s making things easier on himself by attacking the basket and not settling for long jumpers. He’s getting to the free-throw line even more regularly with a renewed confidence and fearlessness to absorb contact.

And it feels as if Stevens is just waiting to crank the knob on his minutes in the postseason. Whether he’s in the current bench role or maybe elevates to a starter role in small-ball lineups deeper into a potential postseason run, it feels like 30+ minutes of Hayward could really make Boston a different team.

Like Hayward, the Celtics simply pass the eye test right now. They’ve less frequently allowed teams to go on runs, they more consistently look for good shots. They don’t crumble at the first hint of adversity anymore.

The Celtics have done all this while still dealing with minor maladies and maybe the biggest challenge for Stevens is simply figuring out how to keep all his guys playing at a high level, particularly when minutes become scarcer as the playoffs arrive.

This is not to suggest that the Celtics are going to storm the playoffs. While they are clearly a more talented team than Indiana, it seems fair to suggest that wins won’t come quite as easy as they did Friday night when the playoffs start. The Pacers are still going to make Boston work, particularly with their physicality.

Even if the Celtics advance, things get daunting in a hurry with a likely second-round matchup opening on the road against Giannis and the Bucks. But if fans were leery of a quick postseason stay a few weeks ago based on how the Celtics looked, then maybe there’s a bit more optimism about whether this team can push the East’s elite.

Lucy could still pull that football. Nothing about the Celtics’ 2018-19 season suggests that anything is a given. But we’ve seen more encouraging stretches of good basketball lately than at any other point in the season.

A month ago, when the Celtics were clinging to a “flip the switch” possibility, it was fair to laugh and suggest they didn’t even know where that switch was. Now, it at least feels like they have a floor plan and a general idea of where they need to get to.

Click here to download the new MyTeams App by NBC Sports! Receive comprehensive coverage of your teams and stream the Celtics easily on your device.

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Wasps moved themselves clear of the Premiership relegation battle with a 28-16 bonus-point win over Worcester.

The home side scored three tries in 15 first-half minutes through Nathan Hughes, Marcus Watson and Zurabi Zhvania.

Warriors hit back through Sam Lewis but Hughes' second try just after the hour mark sealed the win.

Wasps subsequently climb to seventh and leave Worcester deep in the relegation battle in 11th.

After Duncan Weir's early penalty had put the visitors in front, Wasps took control of the contest.

Hughes' first score was given after a referral to the Television Match Official, before Watson crossed and Georgian prop Zurabi Zhvania burrowed over from short range.

The shell-shocked Warriors regrouped and after a good spell of pressure of their own, Sam Lewis went over and Duncan Weir added the extras.

Wasps centre Gaby Lovobalavu was then yellow carded for an early tackle on Welsh wing Josh Adams.

Weir kicked to the corner as the visitors looked for a second try before half time but Francois Hougaard was tackled and turned over by James Gaskell as he darted for the line.

Scotland international Weir knocked over a penalty on the stroke of half time to reduce the gap to 21-13.

After Wasps outside-half Lima Sopoaga had effortlessly kicked three conversions, he had a moment to forget when he missed a penalty in front of the posts, in the first action of the second period.

Warriors skipper Chris Pennell showed him how it was done just minutes later when he kicked a penalty from halfway to cut the gap to five.

But Wasps held off the revival to secure the bonus point when Hughes added his second of the afternoon.

After being checked by the TMO for a forward pass, the try was given and Sopoaga added his fourth conversion of the match.

• BBC Sport assesses the Premiership relegation battle

Wasps: Le Roux; Watson, Daly, Lovobalavu, Bassett; Sopoaga, Simpson; Zhvania, Cruse, Stuart, Launchbury (capt), Gaskell, Shields, Carr, Hughes.

Replacements: Johnson, McIntyre, Cooper-Woolley, Rowlands, Morris, Hampson, Miller, De Jongh.

Worcester: Pennell; Howe, Te'o, Mills (capt), Adams; Weir, Hougaard; Black, Annett, Schonert, Bresler, Barry, Hill, Lewis, Mama.

Replacements: Taufete'e, Waller, Milasinovich, Kitchener, Du Preez, Heaney, Venter, Van Breda.

Referee: Matthew Carley

For the latest rugby union news follow @bbcrugbyunion on Twitter.

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Saracens kept up the pressure on leaders Exeter with a comeback win against bottom side Newcastle Falcons, who were denied a precious bonus point.

Two counter-attacking Saracens tries from Sean Maitland and Max Malins in either half punished the Falcons.

Sonatane Takulua's goalkicking kept the visitors in the game, landing four of his shots from the tee.

However, Nick Tompkins' try from a maul and Alex Lozowski's final play score cruelly snatched away the bonus.

Sarries picked up their own bonus point with Lozowski's try, and edged closer to securing their top-four play-off place.

More to follow.

Saracens: Malins; Maitland, Lozowski, Tompkins, Williams; Farrell (capt), Spencer; Barrington, Woolstencroft, Koch, Itoje, Kruis, Rhodes, Burger, Earl.

Replacements: Tolofua, Adams-Hale, Lamositele, Isiekwe, Clark, Whiteley, Morris, Lewington.

Newcastle: Tait; Goneva, Harris, Matavesi, Sinoti; Flood (capt), Takulua; Mulipola, McGuigan, Ah You, Olmstead, Green, Graham, Hardie, Chick.

Replacements: Cooper, Lockwood, Wilson, Robinson, Witty, Stuart, Connon, Dunbar.

Referee: Karl Dickson.

For the latest rugby union news follow @bbcrugbyunion on Twitter.

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BYRAM Miss. – Rodney Sanders saw the green flag and then proceeded to pounce on the United States Modified Touring Series competition Friday night at Jackson Motor Speedway.

The two-time USMTS National Champion held a comfortable lead for most of the 30-lap main event, but a caution with two laps remaining gave hard-charging Zack VanderBeek a shot at the leader.

Nevertheless, Sanders held on for the win while VanderBeek finished second at the quarter-mile dirt oval for the second year in a row. The victory was worth $3,000.

Last year VanderBeek inherited the win after apparent winner Lucas Lee was disqualified during post-race technical inspections. This time around VanderBeek wasn’t as lucky and had to settle for a runner-up paycheck behind Sanders.

Terry Phillips and Logan Robertson each took turns chasing Sanders with Phillips eventually claiming the third-place finish while Robertson followed Timothy Culp across the finish line in the fifth spot.

Joe Duvall came from the 14th starting position to finish sixth, Lance Walker passed 10 cars in his USMTS debut to claim seventh, Zane Ferrell earned eighth place, Jeremy Idom nabbed ninth and new Grant Junghans USMTS Rookie of the Year points leader Mike Striegel rounded out the top ten.

With his 87th career USMTS triumph, Sanders took command in the USMTS National Championship points standings as well as the Summit USMTS Southern Series powered by MSD.

The finish:

Rodney Sanders, Zack VanderBeek, Terry Phillips, Timothy Culp, Logan Robertson, Joe Duvall, Lance Walker, Zane Ferrell, Jeremy Idom, Mike Striegel, Nathan Hagar, Hunter Wilbanks, Charles Sibley, Greg Hollingsworth, Jarrod May, Toby Hodge, Spencer Hughes, Kenny Hollingsworth, Bryan Powell, Chad Shivers, Ben Davis.

The post Sanders Trounces Jackson USMTS Field appeared first on SPEED SPORT.

SEYMOUR, Tenn. – Ross Bailes rolled to his first Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series victory on Friday night at 411 Motor Speedway.

The 29-year-old South Carolina native led all 50 laps of Tennessee’s Action Track 50 en route to one of the biggest wins of his career.

Bailes took the lead at the start of the race, withstood several cautions, and managed to hold off a late race charge from three other drivers to become the sixth different winner of the season.

Donald McIntosh took second over Jimmy Owens. Current Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series point leader Jonathan Davenport finished in fourth followed by Dale McDowell.

“This seems unbelievable,” said Bailes, who earned $12,000 for the victory. “We have tried for so long to win one of these and we just couldn’t get it done. To come to a new place like this and to get it done here is just unimaginable. I felt good on the bottom and then when I got to lapped traffic I was slowing down. I knew I needed to search around and do something different. My crew guys told me to move up and when I did the car felt really good up there.

“This place is awesome. I think if we would have run another 50 laps it would have been even better. I was happy with it. There was grip on the bottom . I didn’t have to worry about the top for the first half of the race and then it got racy all over. This win is now at the top of my list for sure. Maybe we can get another one tomorrow night at North Georgia. I want to thank Barry and Lance Wright, Ronnie McCarter and all of my crew it was a great team win that’s for sure.”

McIntosh, also looking for his first Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series win, settled for second at the line.

“Our car was pretty good,” said McIntosh. “I had it prepared to run the top. I was just biding my time out there. I thought I could get up to him [Bailes] and make a run for the win. I am blessed to be back at Blount Motorsports and maybe we can get that first Lucas Oil win tomorrow night at North Georgia.

“I don’t think he [Bailes] knew the top was there. We had a great race for second with Jimmy [Owens]. I think I showed him [Bailes] the top one time and he moved up there in traffic. Racing with these guys and from where we started that’s a pretty awesome run,” said McIntosh, who started sixth.

Owens finished third after a late-race charge.

“We have been pretty good in East Tennessee so far this year,” said Owens. “We have had good race cars all year long. It feels good to finally finish a Lucas Oil race. Last year we had such terrible misfortune. This year seemed like it was going to start off the same way but we just aren’t going to let that happen. McIntosh had a good car, and he was up on the wheel. I felt like we could have gotten second, but we are just happy to finish on the podium.”

The finish:

Ross Bailes, Donald McIntosh, Jimmy Owens, Jonathan Davenport, Dale McDowell, Kyle Bronson, Ryan King, Josh Richards, Tyler Erb, Earl Pearson Jr., Tim McCreadie, Robby Moses, Michael Chilton, Jason Jameson, Vic Hill, Billy Moyer Jr., Stormy Scott, Devin Moran, Shanon Buckingham, Don O’Neal, Cory Hedgecock, Hudson O’Neal, Pierce McCarter, David Crabtree.

The post Bailes Rolls To First Lucas Oil Win In Tennessee appeared first on SPEED SPORT.

FARMER CITY, Ill. — Team Illinois was firing on all cylinders on Friday night at Farmer City Raceway, as Brian Shirley bested Brandon Sheppard in an exciting 25-lap battle for $6,000.

This marked Shirley’s sixth career win with the World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Series, as part of the 12th annual Illini 100 presented by Douglas Dodge.

Chris Madden earned his hard-fought third-place finish, starting second and battling through heavy pressure from those behind him to collect his fourth top five of the season.

He said wasn’t as clean as he would have liked, but Shirley persevered through one intense battle in the closing stages with Series points leader Sheppard on a lightning-fast, yet technical race track.

“It wasn’t a perfect race, but in the end, it ended up being good enough to get the job done,” Shirley said.

Shirley grabbed the lead on the opening lap and held it until Madden pulled the trigger to Shirley’s inside on a lap seven restart. Madden held that lead only for a few laps before hitting a few ruts in turn one and jumping the cushion, handing the lead back over to “Squirrel,” which he held the rest of the way.

However, the battle with Sheppard had only begun once he regained the lead. Every corner of each of the last 10 circuits, “The Rocket Shepp” was nipping at Shirley’s heels, making forceful challenges to the inside several times. The Rocket Chassis house car driver’s efforts went unrewarded, but what a show both drivers put on in front of a packed grandstands.

“That guy’s an animal, he’s the best driver in the country,” Shirley said. “To be able to compete with him is second-to-none. I’m just glad I was able to beat him this time.”

Shirley said the difference maker was just track position. Even though Sheppard started directly behind him, Shirley admitted a pole-position redraw definitely aided his drive to victory.

“It definitely didn’t hurt us, starting in front of him,” Shirley said. “Anytime you can get an advantage over the No. 1 team, it’s pretty good, and I’m thankful.”

Sheppard also had himself quite a run in qualifying, picking up the PFC Brakes Fast Time Award and smashing the Farmer City Raceway track record of 11.973 seconds, set by Billy Moyer in 2008, with a lap of 11.750.

Chris Madden had a great night up front, aboard his Skyline Motorsports, Capital Race Cars No. 44. He held his runner-up starting spot through the first six laps before catching a better line than Shirley on a lap-seven restart, shooting to the bottom and snatching the lead away. His efforts to defend the lead went sour, however, when he hit a rough patch in turns one and two and found himself over the cushion, allowing Shirley and Sheppard to pass.

“Earlier on, I was able to get by Brian and the racetrack really wasn’t that bad,” Madden said. “I was able to run the middle through one and two, and I got by Brian racing him down there.”

“Smokey” was unable to make up the ground and reclaim the top spots but held off a bit of late-race pressure from Dennis Erb Jr. and Darrell Lanigan to bag the last podium spot.

The finish:

Morton Buildings Feature (25 Laps) 1. 3s-Brian Shirley [1][$6,000]; 2. 1-Brandon Sheppard [3][$3,000]; 3. 44-Chris Madden [2][$2,000]; 4. 28-Dennis Erb [8][$1,750]; 5. 29-Darrell Lanigan [6][$1,500]; 6. 36v-Kyle Hardy [4][$1,400]; 7. 18-Chase Junghans [9][$1,300]; 8. 25-Shane Clanton [7][$1,200]; 9. 7-Ricky Weiss [13][$1,100]; 10. 28m-Jimmy Mars [15][$1,000]; 11. 32p-Bobby Pierce [20][$900]; 12. 29D-Spencer Diercks [22][$850]; 13. 4G-Bob Gardner [18][$800]; 14. 89-Mike Spatola [14][$775]; 15. 97-Cade Dillard [19][$750]; 16. 99B-Boom Briggs [24][$700]; 17. 99jr-Frank Heckenast [11][$660]; 18. 24-Ryan Unzicker [16][$640]; 19. 22-Tanner English [5][$620]; 20. 21-Billy Moyer [12][$600]; 21. B1-Brent Larson [23][$600]; 22. 7r-Kent Robinson [10][$600]; 23. 6p-Jose Parga [21][$600]; 24. 6-Blake Spencer [17][$600] Hard Charger: 29D-Spencer Diercks[+10] Lap Leaders: 3s – Brian Shirley – 1-6, 12-25; 44 – Chris Madden – 7-11

The post Shirley Stops Sheppard In Illinois Battle appeared first on SPEED SPORT.

KOKOMO, Ind. – Tyler Courtney kicked off the running of the Kokomo Grand Prix for the USAC NOS Energy Drink Midget National Championship with a dominant victory Friday at Kokomo Speedway.

The victory, his second-straight during the Kokomo Grand Prix, was also his third victory in four races to start the USAC NOS Energy Drink Midget National Championship.

The Indianapolis, Ind., driver raced to the lead just prior to the halfway point, utilizing the bottom of the race track to track down early leader Kevin Thomas Jr. on lap 15. He held the point for the remainder of the race to nab the eighth win of his career in his Clauson-Marshall Racing/NOS Energy Drink/Spike/Stanton SR-11x.

Courtney began his expedition from the outside of row three while pole sitter Thomas slid up past outside front row starter Thomas Meseraull in turn one for the point on the opening lap.

The first stoppage of the night arrived on the fourth lap of the main when Tony DiMattia took a tumble in turn four, from which he walked away uninjured.

On the ensuing restart, Thomas once again spurted away to a relatively comfortable margin of one second while Clauson-Marshall teammates Chris Windom and Courtney battled side-by-side for the runner-up spot.  Courtney found the bottom of the quarter-mile to his liking and quickly ate up enough ground to nip Windom at the line for second on lap six, just before the yellow flag flew for a turn two spin by Justin Peck.

When racing resumed, Thomas and Courtney formed a two-car breakaway to distance themselves from the herd. Courtney kept inching closer and closer, sticking right within earshot of Thomas nearing the midway point. On the 14th lap, Courtney’s stick-to-itiveness paid off when he ran down Thomas, beating him to the entry of turn one before sliding up in front to nail down the lead.

Courtney had a plan and executed it perfectly on the bottom, something he attributes to his extensive experience watching, crewing and racing at Kokomo over the years.

“I ran the bottom all night, especially in (turns) three and four,” Courtney explained.  “It got pretty rough in one and two, so you had to search to find other ways to go.  I knew the bottom was going to be the place to be.  I watched a lot of races that were won here on the bottom, especially off of four.  Watching those guys and learning from the best, Bryan (Clauson) being one of them, I was fortunate I got to watch him race a lot here and be a part of it.  I think I would credit a lot to being a part of it and watching and take notes mentally and using it to capitalize here tonight.”

Courtney’s lead grew to two seconds by the 20th lap as Thomas became mired in lapped traffic, allowing Courtney to break away into his own zip code, albeit briefly, as Zane Hendricks slowed to a stop in turn two, thus resetting the landscape for the finish of the 30-lapper.

However, Courtney was unfazed with the lapped car of Cole Bodine separating he and Thomas, Windom and Jason McDougal in second, third and fourth.  Courtney said drove away during the restart as a cornucopia of drivers behind him jostled for position.

McDougal eventually prevailed with the second spot using a topside pass of K. Thomas in turn four on lap 24. With Courtney a distant three seconds ahead, McDougal needed a caution for any shot and he would receive one when Andrew Layser flipped between turns three and four on the 28th lap.  He was uninjured.

The stage was set for a three-lap dash to the finish with Courtney leading and McDougal in second.  Rewind back to last Labor Day Weekend and McDougal was in relatively the same position in Pevely, Mo., to win his first USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car race.  He conquered that quest, and now had a similar storyline setting up for his first career USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget score in his first drive for Steve Reynolds Motorsports.

Courtney had other plans, however.

“I didn’t really know what I was going to get with Jason,” Courtney pondered. “He’s good at the end of races; he proved it last year at Pevely. I was a little bit in defense mode, but I knew I just needed to hit my marks and make three good laps there at the end to put ourselves in position to be where we were.

“I knew he’d be running the top because that’s where he loves to be,” Courtney continued. “But nobody had passed me on the bottom the whole night, so I knew if I could just run where they were running, nobody was going to go where I was going.  It was just a matter of putting yourself in the right place at the right time.”

Courtney stuck to his guns and burst away on the restart, never allowing McDougal to get anywhere close enough to throw a haymaker for the win, closing out his fifth USAC National win at Kokomo (three sprint, two midget) by just a tick under a full second ahead of a wheel-standing McDougal in second, followed by Windom, Zeb Wise and Thomas.

Chad Boespflug held off McDougal to win the companion 25-lap non-winged sprint car feature.

For complete results, advance to the next page.

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