BUFFALO TWP — There’s one thing one can say about Mike Pegher Jr.’s and Rex King Jr.’s first career wins in their respective divisions Friday night at Lernerville Speedway.

They earned it.

Pegher, a Seneca Valley graduate, Wexford resident and former Sportsman Stocks points champion here, had the pole in the Late Model feature and led from wire to wire. But runner-up Jared Miley pushed him hard for the last 20-plus laps.

“Jared Miley is one of the top guns every time we race here,” Pegher said. “To race with him for that long and hold him off, that’s doing something.”

Pegher drove the No. 1C owned by Cranberry Township’s Lynn Geisler, who has more than 100 Late Model wins at the Sarver oval. Pegher won a race in Geisler’s car two years ago as Pittsburgh (Pa.) Motor Speedway.

Miley tried darting underneath Pegher on numerous occasions Friday, often times pulling alongside of him — but never in front of him.

“I made it look like a race, but the reality was there was only one line out there and he had it,” Miley said.

All Pegher wanted to do was keep it.

“When someone is racing you hard, the first reaction is to go harder,” Pegher said. “That’s not always the thing to do, though. I had to relax and run a smart race.”

The only restart in the race — the 17th lap — may have saved Pegher’s lead.

“That caution killed me,” Miley admitted. “He was running soft rear tires and they were beginning to go. I was running on the hard tires we usually run.

“If the race stays green, I probably would have gotten him.”

It appeared no one was going to get King in the Modified feature. He started on the pole and was seemingly coasting toward his first-ever Lernerville feature win.

Mat Williamson, the Canadian driver with three wins and a runner-up finish in the first four Fab Four racing nights here, started 10th and pulled into second on the 21st lap.

When a caution came out with one lap remaining — making for a two-lap dash to the finish — Williamson and former track Modified points champion Dave Murdick started right behind King.

“I was worried. ... I’m not going to lie,” King said.

But he held off both cars to grab that elusive checkered flag. King has been racing Modifieds at Lernerville since 2007.

“Too long, too, too long,” he said of awaiting his first win.

“He had the faster car tonight,” Williamson said. “He ran a good race. I felt like I was gaining on him before that caution came out, though.

“Would I have had enough time to get him? Maybe ... It might have been close.”

Ed Lynch Jr. started 10th in the Sprint feature while Eric Williams started fourth. Williams took the lead from Brandon Matus on the seventh lap and was pulling away when a caution came out on the 12th lap.

Lynch passed him on Turn 1 of the 14th lap and held off a game Williams for the checkered flag. The win extended Lynch’s track Sprint victory record to 107.

“It never gets old. Never, never, never,” Lynch said of winning checkered flags.

Williams had a stone kick up and get under his throttle during the race, hurting his chances down the stretch.

“Then again, I was racing Ed Lynch Jr. — and when you actually have something for Ed Lynch, you’re having a good night,” Williams said.

A.J. Flick started ninth in the Sportsman Stock feature, but took the lead from pole-sitter Chris Schneider on the 16th lap. Flick went on to pick up his first Lernerville victory since August of last season.

“Relax and drive, that’s all I had to do,” Flick said. “I don’t know what the crew did, but my dad (Mark Flick) is amazing.

“This is a real racetrack and this team comes to win.”

Notes: There were 70 cars in the pits. ... Brian Swartzlander won a heat race in his No. 111 Late Model. He owns two heat race wins in his Modified this season. ... Dennis Wagner and Rimersburg’s Scott Priester flipped their Sprint cars on successive laps during the feature. Neither was injured. ... Lynch has raced at Lernerville only twice this season and has yet to lose, winning both features and both heat races.