BUFFALO TWP - They didn't win, but they made their points.

Ed Lynch Jr., Dave Murdick, John Flinner and Greg Beach failed to find victory lane Friday night at Lernerville Speedway. They either clinched 2005 point titles or took sole possession of the lead in their respective divisions, however, heading into next Friday's the final points night of the season.

"Now's the time you want to be in front," Zelienople's Flinner said. "The last points race here has been rained out the past two years."

Flinner is trying to record his fifth consecutive Late Model points crown at Lernerville. No driver ever has won five straight championships at the Sarver track.

Trailing Lynn Geisler by 10 points at the start of the night, Flinner gained three on Geisler in the heat races, then finished third in the feature to Geisler's ninth. Flinner has a three-point lead on the veteran Cranberry Township driver.

"Lynn should just step aside and let me do this," Flinner said, jokingly. "I mean, it's never been done.

"It'd be cool if I won it, it'd be cool if Lynn won it. We're a couple of old guys nearing retirement. I'll be happy either way."

Beach, driver of the No. 33X Pure Stock from Chicora, took a scant 1-point lead over Butch Lambert of Mars by finishing second to Joe Kelley in the feature. Lambert finished third.

Mike Pegher, a Seneca Valley graduate, finished fourth and is only six points behind in the points race.

"I've been here a long time and I never remember the points being this close," Lambert said.

Lynch clinched his third successive Sprint points title by finishing ninth in the feature. He had to rebound from a flat tire that put him at the back of the field with just five laps remaining.

Rod George is second in the points race to Lynch, but he became the first Sprint driver to win four features at Lernerville this season. George has 16 total feature wins this year and is trying to claim points titles at both Tri-City Speedway and Mercer Raceway.

"It's been a great year for us," George said. "I don't know if it could be any better."

Murdick, driver of the No. 61 Modified from Slippery Rock, can say the same thing. He clinched his second straight Modified points crown by finishing third in the feature - one spot ahead of points runner-up Brian Swartzlander.

"I couldn't believe we won points here once, let alone twice," Murdick said. "I was running on only seven cylinders at the end of this race, but the track was racy enough to get me through."

One thing Murdick has done every week is to get through each race.

He's not only finished every feature here this season - he's finished no lower than fourth each time.

"Consistency won it for us, but that's part of racing," Murdick said. "We didn't have any breakdowns all year.

"I've been aware of the streak of top-fours. We wanted to keep that going. It became a pride thing with us."

Murdick won last year's points title in a new car. He won this year's points titles in his back-up car, a 2003 model.

"We blew the engine in the new one, found success with the other car and just stayed with it," he said.

In Friday's other feature action:

David Scott of Garland, a former points champion here, won his first Lernerville Late Model race of the season by overtaking John Mollick of Toronto, Ohio, on the 18th lap.

Mollick was bidding for his first career Late Model feature victory. His previous-best finish anywhere was fifth. His best finish at Lernerville was sixth.

"Our drive shaft was too long," Mollick said. "That's been our problem all year and we just figured it out. That was the difference.

"A lapped car was in front of me and he (Scott) got around me … It was bad luck, that's all."

Scott started from the fourth spot.

"I wasn't sure I'd be able to get him," Scott said of Mollick. "The guy was fast. But his car was starting to get loose late in the race.

"It's tough trying to win your first (race) when two guys who have won a lot here like John and I are running up your back. But that was a great race."

Kevin Bolland of New Brighton started 12th in the Modified feature, but overtook Jim Weller Jr. on the 17th lap and cruised to the checkered flag from there.

It was Bolland's second win this year and 29th of his career at Lernerville.

Kelley, a Pure Stock points champion here many times who didn't race regularly at Lernerville this year, grabbed the lead from Beach on the third lap and kept it.

The win was Kelley's 21st at the Sarver track, tying him with Rick Robinson for third on Lernerville's all-time Pure Stock victory list.

Notes:

There were 103 cars in the pits. … Charlie Holben of Cabot was taken from his No. 42G Sprint car on a stretcher after hitting the wall head-on coming off Turn 4 in the feature. He was alert and talking to paramedics, who took him to Allegheny General Hospital for precautionary measures. Details of his condition were unavailable late Friday night. … Gary Lyle won his first Late Model heat race of the year. … Carl Bowser of Sarver was runner-up to George in the Sprint feature. … Jeff Busby drove seven hours from Delaware to race his Sprint car Friday night. He finished 23rd in the feature.