M15-19: Paul Clark Leads a New York Sweep at the Boilermaker 15K

• Paul Clark (Baldwinsville, NY) wins in 51:45 — a 5:33/mi average — surging from 53rd to 43rd among men on the back half with the 37th-fastest 10K→Finish split among all women's-field runners.
• Top three separated by just 30 seconds: Killian Bauer 2nd in 52:05, Benjamin Habler 3rd in 52:15.
• Landon Fracasse made the biggest move of the top five, climbing from 98th to 66th among men in the second half on the strength of the 57th-fastest 10K→Finish split in the women's field.
• Ben Morford, age 15, finished 13th in a field of 341 — the youngest athlete in the listed top 20 and the only 15-year-old among them.

Paul Clark of Baldwinsville ran a measured, controlled 15K and then turned on the jets. Through 10K he sat 53rd among men — a solid position, but nothing that screamed title. Over the final stretch he moved to 43rd, posting the 37th-fastest 10K-to-Finish split measured against the entire women's field — a genuine closing kick that sealed the M15-19 win in 51:45 at a 5:33/mi clip.

Right behind him, Killian Bauer of Verona and Benjamin Habler of Glen Rock, NJ made it a tight podium. Bauer's 52:05 (5:35/mi) was good for 2nd, with Habler's 52:15 (5:36/mi) landing him 3rd — the two separated by just ten seconds and both running strong second halves, with Bauer posting the 42nd-fastest Second Half split in the women's field and Habler the 35th-fastest 10K→Finish. Habler, notably, came from 76th among men at the gun to 56th at the line — a steady, progressive effort.

Landon Fracasse of New Paltz was arguably the most aggressive runner in the top five. He entered the 10K checkpoint at 73rd among men but had already climbed 25 spots from his early position of 98th — and he kept coming, finishing 4th in 52:51 with the 57th-fastest 10K→Finish split in the women's field. Fifth-place Sam Faga of Schenectady (53:00, 5:41/mi) had actually been ahead of Fracasse through 10K but faded slightly over the closing miles.

Deeper in the field, the top 20 was almost entirely 18- and 19-year-olds — making Ben Morford of Clinton, NY a genuine standout. At just 15 years old, Morford finished 13th in 55:27 (5:57/mi) in a 341-runner field, running with athletes three and four years his senior. Rylan Lee-Powell and Ean Piaschyk ran nearly stride-for-stride through the finish — 7th in 53:27 and 8th in 53:28 — a one-second gap after 9.3 miles of racing.