SOUTH BOSTON, Va. — Jeff Agnew picked up a long-overdue victory at South Boston Speedway on Saturday night.
The Virginia native wrestled the lead away from Benny Gordon on lap 147 of the Miller Lite 250 and never looked back en route to his first flag of the season.
Agnew cruised to a 1.2-second win over Gordon.
“This is an important win for us,” said Agnew, who took home $11,500 for the victory. “Heck, when you go from qualifying 25th and crashing out every week, this means everything.”
With Agnew in control of the race, the attention shifted to Gary St. Amant, who was trying to wrap up the Sears Auto Center Northern Division title. Needing to finish eighth or better, St. Amant, followed Benny Gordon all the way to the finish, even when he didn’t need to.
“I was in his tire tracks all night,” said St. Amant, who finished third. “He got loose one time and nearly hit the wall, and I about drove into the wall because I was following him.”
In the end, St. Amant steered clear of trouble, finished third and took home a $20,000 bonus for winning the Northern Division title.
“I was scared [that something might happen] tonight, because we haven’t had to replace a body part all year,” said St. Amant. “Then, I was little worried about Benny when he took the lead. He had a chance to lead halfway and all the laps, while I was back there running sixth. I knew that I had to get a few more spots to feel safe.”
The finish:
Showing driver, car, laps completed, money won): 1. Jeff Agnew, Ford, 250, $11,500; 2. Benny Gordon, Ford, 250, $9,750; 3. Gary St. Amant, Chevrolet, 250, $5,400; 4. Derek Kale, Chevrolet, 250, $4,300; 5. Matt Carter, Ford, 250, $3,000; 6. Jody Lavender, Ford, 250, $3,050; 7. Jeff Fultz, Ford, 250, $2,600; 8. A.J. Frank, Chevrolet, 250, $2,400; 9. Sam Fullone, Chevrolet, 250, $2,600; 10. Shane Wallace, Ford, 250, $2,200; 11. Brandon Ward, Ford, 250, $4,000; 12. Johnny Rumley, Chevrolet, 250, $3,600; 13. Allen Purkhiser, Ford, 250, $1,900; 14. Tim Bainey, Jr., 250, $2,000; 15. Ray Love, Jr., Chevrolet, 248, $1,700; 16. Ryan Duff, Chevrolet, 244, $1,600; 17. Ben Stancill, Ford, 241, $1,600; 18. Joe Harrison, Jr., Chevrolet, 239, $1,800; 19. Mike Hampton, Ford, 231, $1,600; 20. Danny Jackson, Chevrolet, 228, $1,600; 21. Michael Kidd, Chevrolet, 211, $1,400; 22. Tim Kerr, Ford, 205, $1,400; 23. Ronnie Souders, Pontiac, 193, $1,400; 24. Carl Long, Ford, 176, $1,400;  25. Eric Corbett, Ford, 175, $1,900; 26. Larry Barrett, Pontiac, 146, $1,200; 27. Chad Beahr, Ford, 145, $1,200; 28. John Gibson, Ford, 126, $1,200; 29. Jack Bailey, Chevrolet, 98, $1,900; 30. L.W. Miller, Pontiac, 28, $1,200; 31. Sean Sauer, Chevrolet, 22, $1,200; 32. Mike Garvey, Ford, 14, $1,200.