Brent Schouler of Centerville, Mass., captured the overall male title at the Rehoboth Beach Seashore Marathon Dec. 7, in a time of 2:38:45, averaging 6:04 per mile.
Ellis Aikey of Bloomsburg, Pa., took second in a time of 2:42:24, while Jacob Zielinski of Downingtown, Pa., was third in 2:44:07.
On the female side, Anna Gevirtz of Norristown, Pa., won the overall female title in 2:50:02. Second went to Beth Dollas of Amesbury, Mass., running a great race to also win the female masters in a time of 2:55:50. Steph Hill of Alexandria, Va., finished third in a time of 3:00:52.
Dan Klein of Chalfont, Pa., won the male masters title in a time of 2:51:57, finishing in sixth place overall, with Dave Martin of Morristown, N.J., taking second in 2:54:14. Jon Chesto of Auburndale, Mass., rounded out the top three male masters in a time of 2:54:19. In the female masters division, Stephanie Savastano of Perkasie, Pa., was second in 3:11:11, while Maria Mahoney of Randolph, N.J., rounded out the top three in a time of 3:14:43.
In the half-marathon race, Phillip Duncan of Lincoln, Neb., captured the male title in a blistering time of 1:08:55, averaging 5:16 a mile. Schuyler Reed of Newark was second in 1:09:34, while Evan Fallor of Arlington, Va., grabbed the third position in a time of 1:13:20.
On the female side, Lydia Olivere of Wilmington, former four-time all-state honoree and Delaware Runner of the Year, won the overall title in a time of 1:17:54, while Rachel Cluett of Garrett Park, Md., was second in 1:20:12. Lindsay (Prettyman) Hayman of Newark, a former UD standout, finished third in 1:20:27.
Christopher Mitchell of Hockessin won the male masters title in 1:18:39, followed by Jay Hudson of Rockville, Md., in 1:18:46. Pete Lobianco of York, Pa., finished third in 1:19:31. Jenifer Martin of Morristown, N.J., won the female masters division in a time of 1:25:24, while Sara Girotto of Wynnewood, Pa., was second in 1:25:36. Monika Schneider of Silver Spring, Md., was third in 1:29:06.
Chris Graham of Rehoboth Beach was the first male runner from Delaware and the first local to complete the marathon, finishing 98th in a time of 3:23:47. Ariel Simbana of Millsboro ran 3:31:01, while Mason Morrone of Lewes was the third local and first in the 19U age group in a time of 3:36:43.
Kelly Lynch of Wilmington was the first female runner from Delaware to cross the line, finishing fourth in a time of 3:04:41. Lauren Treacy of Rehoboth Beach was the first local in a time of 3:40:46, while Keely Wells of Laurel was the second local in 3:52:00. Rachel Webster of Delmar rounded out the top local finishers in 3:59:38.
The top local in the half-marathon was Francisco Puac of Georgetown in a time of 1:24:54, while Coleman Woodard of Georgetown was second in 1:26:55. Martin Rodriguez of the Seashore Striders rounded out the top three locals in a time of 1:27:06. Alicia Lenoir of Rehoboth Beach was the top female local in a time of 1:38:10, while Trudy Dalton of Selbyville was second in 1:40:13. Kira Short rounded out the top three locals in a time of 1:41:17.
Local Mike Wardian ran the 50K in 3:21:24 and came up seven minutes short of breaking the American record.
A few Delaware records were set or nearly set on this cold Saturday in Rehoboth Beach. Half-marathon champion Lydia Olivere (1:17:54) just missed the Delaware 19-24 record of 1:17:34, which is also the fastest time ever run in Delaware. Lindsay Hayman set a new 30-34 record of 1:20:27, breaking the old record of 1:20:53, set in 1987 by the great Betsy Winter. Local Debbie Isser of Milton ran 1:49:45 to set a new 70-74 record, breaking the old record of 1:56:58, set in 2023 by local Mary Kessler.
Lastly, I thought I would take a look at locals who placed in the top three finishers in their age group. In the marathon, Mason Morrone won the 19U division in 3:36:43, while David Miller was second in the 70-74 age group in 4:38:20. In the half-marathon, Mike Sewell was second in the 55-59 age group in 1:28:45, while Graham Upton was second in the 70-74 age group in 2:03:03. Dennis Schwandtner was second in the 80+ age group in 3:24:06.
A total of 46 states and five countries were represented in the event. Of the 3,200 registered, 3,182 finished. A total of 1,266 people ran in the full marathon, while 1,916 tackled the half-marathon.
Finish chute
University of Delaware sophomore hurdler Alexa Dougherty, a former Cape Henlopen athlete, broke in the new Ott Center in Philadelphia, built right next to Franklin Field and the Penn Relays. Dougherty ran the 600-meter dash and turned in a personal-best time of 1:40.79. Junior Brian Sponaugle of Valpo track & field kicked off his indoor season by producing a score of 4,123 in the heptathlon, which is the fourth-best score in program history. Cape junior Jason Baker was named first-team all-state in Delaware cross country, while junior Andrew Radka was second team. Coach Matt Lindell was boys’ Coach of the Year, while George Pepper received the Jim Blades Award.
