Jessica Dana, a Washington State racer making her first start at South Boston Speedway, passed Trey Crews with one lap to go to capture a 25-lap Limited Sportsman Division race Saturday night.
The Olympia, Washington, driver who now lives in Charlotte, North Carolina, finished second to Crews in the first of the twin 25-lap Limited Sportsman races, part of the Halifax Insurance presents Whelen NASCAR Late Model 100.
She started fifth in the second race, worked her way to Crews’ bumper late in the race and then grabbed the lead coming off the fourth turn on lap 24 and held off Ross “Boo Boo” Dalton for the win.
“It’s amazing … we finally got the win,” said Dana, who drives a car prepared by four-time NASCAR Whelen All-American Series national champion Lee Pulliam. “I’ve really got to thank my dad. I wish he were here today, but he’s 2,500 miles away in Washington. My crew just kept telling me to drive my heart out and that’s what I did.”
J.D. Eversole finished third in the second Limited race with Crews in fifth after he ran into problems on the final lap.
Ruckersville’s Philip Morris kept his winning ways rolling in the Late Model division, picking up the win in the 100-lap event.
Because he had won back-to-back races last week, he had to start the race deep in the field per track rules. But by lap 25 he was back in the top five and slipped by Peyton Sellers for the lead on lap 46 and never trailed again. It was his sixth win in eight South Boston starts this year.
Sellers finished second followed by Austin Thaxton, who recorded his best finish of the season, Jason Barnes and Thomas Scott in fifth.
Just past the halfway point Mike Jones and Matt Bowling got together on the front stretch running in the top five. Both slammed into the inside wall. Jones ricocheted off the inside wall and his car erupted in flames. Jones was able to escape unscathed.
Kevin Currin captured a wild Budweiser Hornets race to break a four-year drought. Hornets points leader Cameron Jarrell worked his way back through the field to finish second in the 15-lapper after being sent to the rear after a crash with Tyler Crute on lap seven. Ty Stanley finished third.
Budweiser Pure Stock points leader Johnny Layne was able to pad his lead with a victory in the 30-lap Pure Stock race. It was his third win of the season. Daniel Shelton finished second and Harrison Walker was third.
Chris Lamb captured the USAC Eastern Midgets 35-lapper with a win over Jessica Bean, who is the series’ points leader.
There were two winners in the Southern Ground Pounders vintage race, with Dwight Sauls taking the overall and Modified victory in a 1939 Chevrolet coupe while Christopher Werner finished second overall and was the top Late Model Sportsman finisher in a 1970 Chevrolet Nova.
Next up at South Boston Speedway will be the Thunder Road Harley-Davidson 200 on June 30, the track’s annual Independence Day celebration that will include a huge fireworks’ show and live music in addition to a full schedule of racing.
There will be a 200-lap Late Model Stock race, a 100-lap Limited Sportsman race, along with a 50-lap Budweiser Pure Stock race and a 20-lap Budweiser Hornets race.
Grandstand gates will open at 4 p.m. on June 30, with live music beginning at 4:30 p.m. There will be an autograph session on the front stretch at 5:30 and the green flag will fly at 7.
Advance tickets are $15 and can be purchased at the South Boston Speedway office or by calling the ticket office at 877.440.1540 until 5 p.m. on June 29. On race day tickets will be $20 for adults and children 12 and under will be admitted free with a paying adult.
