Off the wire

Cole Custer celebrates in Victory Lane on Saturday after winning the Camping World 300 NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Ill.
Cole Custer celebrates in Victory Lane on Saturday after winning the Camping World 300 NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Ill.

MOTOR SPORTS

Custer wins Xfinity

Cole Custer held off Joey Logano on Saturday at Chicagoland Speedway for his fourth NASCAR Xfinity Series victory of the season. Custer, 21, had the strongest car all day long, leading 151 of the 200 laps for the 300-mile race. But he had to come back after Michael Annett and Noah Gragson stayed on the track while the leaders went for a pit stop, and then benefited from a timely caution when B.J. McLeod got into the wall. It was no big deal for Custer, who zoomed into the lead on a restart with 21 laps left. He stayed in control the rest of the way, securing his sixth career victory. Logano finished second in his first Xfinity Series start since he finished fifth at Bristol on Aug. 17. Logano is considered one of the favorites for today's Monster Energy Cup Series race on the 1.5-mile oval. Christopher Bell crossed the finish line third, but he was disqualified after his car failed a post-race inspection. Custer moved into a tie with Bell for the series lead in victories.

GOLF

Lashley leads by 6

Nate Lashley shot a bogey-free, 9-under 63 on Saturday to open a six-stroke lead at 23-under 193 in the Rocket Mortgage Classic in Detroit. Lashley, 36, slipped into the field at Detroit Golf Club as an alternate and the 353rd-ranked player has put himself in position to win for the first time on the PGA Tour. He tied for eighth in February in the Puerto Rico Open -- played opposite the World Golf Championships-Mexico Championship -- for his only top-10 finish on the tour. Lashley, the first- and second-round leader, started Saturday with a one-shot lead and pulled away with the low round of the day. J.T. Poston (66) was second. Cameron Tringale (65) was another stroke back.

Stricker keeps his lead

Steve Stricker took a six-stroke lead in the U.S. Senior Open on Saturday at Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind., shooting a 4-under 66 and extending his bogey-free run to 48 holes. Seeking his second senior major title after winning the Regions Tradition by six strokes in May in Alabama, Stricker, 52, had a tournament-record 18-under 192 total on the rain-softened Warren Golf Course. He opened with a 62 to tie the tournament record and share the first-round lead with David Toms, then shot a 64 on Friday to take a two-stroke advantage. Fellow Madison, Wis., player Jerry Kelly was second after a 70. Kelly beat Stricker and Retief Goosen in a playoff last week in Madison in the PGA Tour Champions event that Stricker hosts. Toms was third at 11 under after a 70. Bob Estes had a 68 to get to 10 under.

Two tied in Utah

Justin Lower shot a 67, Daniel Summerhays a 68 and both were tied Saturday for first place at 11 under in the Korn Ferry Tour's Utah Championship at Farmington, Utah. Lower had five birdies and a bogey, and Summerhays had five birdies and two bogeys in the third round Saturday. Charlie Saxon (64), Kevin Dougherty (66), Rob Oppenheim (67) and Joshua Creel (69) are tied for third at 10 under. Sebastian Cappelen (Arkansas Razorbacks) and Ethan Tracy (Razorbacks) are tied for 54th at 2 under. Cappelen shot 70 and Tracy 72. Matt Atkins (Henderson State), Nicolas Echavarria (Razorbacks), David Lingmerth (Razorbacks), Taylor Moore (Razorbacks) and Patrick Sullivan (Maumelle, UALR) did not make the cut.

Bezuidenhout by 4

Christiaan Bezuidenhout of South Africa has taken a four-shot lead over Sergio Garcia and three other golfers at the Andalucía Valderrama Masters at Sotogrande, Spain. Bezuidenhout carded a 3-under 68 on Friday to reach 8 under for the tournament after two rounds. He started with a 66 that included eight birdies and three bogeys. Tournament host Garcia shot a 1-over 72 to stay at 4 under, along with Bradley Dredge of Wales and fellow Spaniards Adri Arnaus and Alvaro Quiros. First-round leader Victor Perez fell five shots off the lead after a 74 in a round that included a triple bogey on the par-4 13th hole. The Frenchman had a bogey-free round Thursday.

TENNIS

Pliskova takes title

Karolina Pliskova beat Wimbledon champion Angelique Kerber 6-1, 6-4 in the Eastbourne final on Saturday, just two days before the grass-court Grand Slam starts in southwest London. The No. 3-ranked Pliskova took the first set in just 31 minutes with three service breaks Saturday, and held on to an early break in the second to win the title. She fired seven aces and won 71 percent of points on her first serve. Kerber hasn't won a tournament since beating Serena Williams in last year's Wimbledon final. Taylor Fritz won an all-American final for the men's Eastbourne title, beating Sam Querrey 6-3, 6-4. It's the first career ATP title for the 21-year-old son of former top-10 player Kathy May. Fritz broke in Querrey's first service game in each set and each time held on to take the set.

BASKETBALL

Collison to retire

Point guard Darren Collison has decided to retire from the NBA after 10 seasons to focus on being a Jehovah's Witness. Collison, 31, played for the Indiana Pacers the last two seasons. He told ESPN's The Undefeated in a letter Friday that he decided to retire primarily to concentrate on helping the less fortunate through his faith. "While I still love basketball, I know there is something more important, which is my family and my faith," he wrote. "I am one of Jehovah's Witnesses and my faith means everything to me. I receive so much joy from volunteering to help others and participate in a worldwide ministry. The joy I feel is unmatched." Collison was on verge of becoming an unrestricted free agent. He averaged 12.5 points and 5.0 assists in 708 games with the New Orleans Hornets, Dallas Mavericks, L.A. Clippers, Sacramento Kings and Pacers. He was drafted out of UCLA in 2009 and was named an All-NBA rookie the following year.

Sports on 06/30/2019

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