At the track he loves to dominate, Denny Hamlin was back on top with a new face atop his pit box.

The Joe Gibbs Racing star ended an agonizing 10-year winless streak at Martinsville Speedway, holding off teammate Christopher Bell in his home state to secure a spot in the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs.

Hamlin, who was raised a few hours away in the Richmond suburb of Chesterfield, leads active Cup drivers with six victories at Martinsville. But Sunday was his first checkered flag on the 0.526-mile oval in southwest Virginia since March 29, 2015, and also his first with crew chief Chris Gayle, who joined the No. 11 team this season.

Driving a Camry that “certainly felt like the old days” after the team overhauled its setup, Hamlin led a race-high 274 of the final laps after taking the lead from Chase Elliott.

With the 55th victory of his career (tying NASCAR Hall of Famer Rusty Wallace for 11th on the career list), the 44-year-old Hamlin also snapped a 31-race winless streak since last April at Dover.

GOLF

Lee holds off Scheffler, Woodland for PGA win

Min Woo Lee kept his calm amid tremendous charges by Scottie Scheffler and Gary Woodland, winning the Houston Open on Sunday for his first PGA Tour title with the best lag of his life that set up a final par for a one-shot victory.

Lee bent over and repeatedly clutched his fists when his 55-foot putt settled inches from the cup on the 18th hole, leaving him a tap-in par for a 3-under 67. He finished at 20-under 260, breaking the tournament record by four shots.

“It’s hard — it’s really hard,” Lee said. “Obviously, Scottie is a wonderful golfer and he keeps you on your toes. The first time being in front, I’m glad I got it done. I’m very exhausted. It was a lot of mental grind. I’m so proud of how I handled myself.”

Every shot mattered after Lee made one bad swing to make what looked like a Sunday stroll turn very stressful. He led by five shots on the back nine until Woodland, who played his last four holes in 4-under par to tie the Memorial Park course record with a 62, made his charge.

Scheffler, in his final start before defending his Masters title, ran off four straight birdies to get within one shot until his 7-iron on the 18th hole came up some 25 yards short of the pin. He chipped to a few feet for par and a 63.

Kim rallies with 64, beats Vu in LPGA playoff

Hyo Joo Kim rallied from a four-shot deficit Sunday with an 8-under 64 to force a playoff, defeating Lilia Vu on the first extra hole with a 6-foot birdie putt in the Ford Championship.

Kim won for the seventh time on the LPGA and emerged from a long and wild day in the desert at Whirlwind Golf Club with 10 birdies in the 19 holes she played.

Vu hit a splendid bunker shot on the par-5 17th to set up a short birdie to tie Kim. Her approach on the 18th bounded across the firm green, she chipped to 7 feet and holed the par putt for a 68 to send the tournament into extra holes.

Vu missed a birdie putt from about 15 feet, setting up Kim for the win.

College basketball

Willard leaves Maryland for Villanova coaching job

Kevin Willard publicly campaigned — pleaded, really — during Maryland’s run to the Sweet 16 for more from the university and athletic department for his Big Ten program.

Willard should have all the elements he needs to compete for a national championship, only now at Villanova.

His messy breakup with Maryland was completed Sunday when the 49-year-old coach was hired by a Villanova program that suffered through a March malaise over the last three seasons under the fired Kyle Neptune.

Willard had been linked to the Villanova job throughout the NCAA Tournament, where the Terps earned a No. 4 seed and reached the Sweet 16 before losing to Florida. Maryland went 27-9 this season and 14-6 in the Big Ten Conference.

Olen to replace Pitino as coach at New Mexico

New Mexico hired UC San Diego’s Eric Olen on Sunday as its next basketball coach.

Olen will replace Richard Pitino, who left to become Xavier’s coach on Tuesday.

Olen spent 21 years at San Diego, the last 12 as head coach, and guided the Tritons through their transition from Division II to Division I. San Diego qualified for the NCAA Tournament this season in its first year of eligibility after winning the Big West Conference regular-season and tournament titles. The Tritons lost to Michigan 68-65 in the first round.

BRIEFLY

Minor League baseball >> The St. Paul Saints were rained out for a second straight day on Sunday. After beating Indianapolis 11-0 in the season opener at home, the Saints had to reschedule the next two games, which will be made up on April 23 and 25. The team now travels for a six-game series against Columbus.

College Hockey >> The University of Wisconsin-River Falls women’s hockey team beat Amherst 3-1 on Sunday, winning the Division III national championship for the second straight year. The team is 57-3-2 in the past two seasons.

College swimming and diving >> Three Minnesota Gophers earned All-American honors at the men’s NCAA championships. Freshman Jacob Johnson placed 10th in the 200-meter butterfly with a school record time of 1:39.96 to earn an honorable mention honor. Senior swimming Bar Soloveychick broke his own school record in the 1,650 freestlye for 11th, earning honorable mention for his fourth All-American honor of his career. Junior diver Drew Bennett placed 14th in platform dive for an honorable mention All-American.

MLB >> Boston Red Sox designated hitter Rafael Devers became the first major leaguer to strike out 12 times in a season’s first four games. Devers went 0 for 4 with two more strikeouts Sunday in Boston’s 3-2 loss to the Texas Rangers.

MLB >> The Toronto Blue Jays put right-hander Max Scherzer on the 15-day injured list Sunday because of inflammation in his right thumb.

MLB >> The Texas Rangers placed third baseman Josh Jung on the 10-day injured list with neck spasms and recalled infielder Jonathan Ornelas from Triple-A Round Rock.

— From news services