Austin Dillion Takes the Checkered Flag at Richmond in controversial finish

IMAGE SOURCE : Credit: RICHMOND, VIRGINIA - AUGUST 11: Austin Dillon, driver of the #3 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet, celebrates in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out 400 at Richmond Raceway on August 11, 2024 in Richmond, Virginia. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)

(Richmond, VA) Austin Dillion won his 5th career race & 1st win since 2022 on Sunday in a controversial overtime finish involving Joey Logano and Denny Hamlin at the CookOut400. The NASCAR Cup Series returned Sunday night following the Olympic Break, with only four races left before the playoffs. Austin Dillion's win shook up the playoff standings. Before Sunday's race, Austin was ranked 32nd in the points. With Sunday's victory, Dillion advanced 19 spots to number 13 and clinched a berth in the NASCAR Playoffs.

When asked about Sunday's victory, I spoke with Austin Dillion, and he stated the following :

" Just proud of our guys, the never-quit attitude. Truthfully really proud of our pit crew. They crushed it tonight. We haven’t given them opportunity to have that much pressure on them. I guess they had an average of a 9.7 pit stop. They came to play today. They gave me the opportunity to be where I needed to be on the last lap to make it happen." So yeah, my pit crew did an awesome job. Team did. The car was capable of winning the race. That was our one shot, I feel like, we’ve had all year. We were able to go to Victory Lane."

After passing Denny Hamlin, Dillion was on pace to victory until a caution on Lap 398, where Ricky Stenhouse Jr made contact with Ryan Preece, who spun and forced overtime. In overtime, Logano took the lead, and Dillion made his move in the final corner, where he spun Joey Logano and made contact with Denny Hamlin in turn 4 to take the checkered flag.

Following the Race, Joey Logano, who finished 19th, spoke with reporters and stated:

“It was chicken &*#! – there’s no doubt about it,’’ the two-time series champion Logano said of Dillon’s move. “He was four car-lengths back, not even close. Then he wrecks the 11 [Hamlin] to go along with it.

Denny Hamlin, who led the race for 124 laps and finished 2nd, also spoke with reporters and stated:

“There are no penalties for rough driving, so it opens up the opportunity for Austin to just do whatever he wants,’’

Denny Hamlin, Tyler Reddick, Bubba Wallace, and Ross Chastain finished in the Top 5. Here is the complete box score (Source NASCAR Media) :

The Cup Series will resume next week as the drivers head to Michigan International Speedway next Sunday at 2:30 PM.

VCU Women's Non-Conference Schedule announced

On Tuesday, VCU Women's announced their 2024-25 Non-Conference Schedule.

The Rams' non-conference slate includes matchups with four teams that made a postseason tournament appearance and two teams that played in their conference tournament championship game.

The Rams tip off their season on Wednesday, November 6th, vs Maryland-Eastern Shore at Home. Other Home games for the Rams include a November 15th matchup vs. Temple ( SupportHerGame), Rider on November 24th, James Madison (made the WBIT last season) on December 5th, Delaware State on December 9th, and Long Island on December 21st.

The Rams will participate in the Cancun Challenge from November 28th through 30th. The Rams will face three teams in the tournament, including Wisconsin and Providence, which made a WNIT appearance last season. The Rams will also face San Diego State, who won 22 games last season and appeared in the Mountian West Championship Game.

The Rams will hit the road on November 10th as they face Howard. The Rams' road slate includes WNIT participant ODU on November 21st and AAC runner-up Eastern Carolina on December 18th.

Game times and TV info will be named later.

VCU Men's Non-Conference Schedule announced

On Monday, VCU Men's Basketball announced its 2024-25 Non-Conference Schedule.

The 57th Season of Rams Basketball tips off on Monday, November 4th, as the Rams will host Bellarmine (the first matchup between the two schools). The 13-game slate features possible matchups with nine teams that finished in the top 125 in the NCAA Net Rankings, including seven in the top 100 ( New Mexico, Nevada, Colorado State, Florida Atlantic, Drake, Seton Hall, and Boston College).

The Rams will hit the road on November 8th as they head to Annapolis, MD, to face ACC foe Boston College in the 2024 Veterans Classic. Following the Veterans classic, the Rams will have a pair of home games as they will face Merrimack on Nov 13 and Loyola (MD) on November 16th. The Rams will make their 2nd road trip to Charleston, South Carolina. The Rams will participate in the Shriners Children's Hospital Charleston Classic on November 21-24th.

The Rams return home for a 3-game homestand as they face  Elizabeth City State on November 29th, Georgia Southern on December 4th, and Penn on December 9th. The Rams conclude their non-conference road slate as they will face Colorado State (NCAA Tourney Team) in the Jack Jones Classic in Las Vegas, Nevada & will head to Albuquerque, NM, to face New Mexico on December 18th.

The Rams close out their non-conference schedule on December 22nd as they will face former CAA rival William and Mary in their 1st matchup since 2012. Game times and TV information will be released later.