F30-34 Marathon: Gallardo Dominguez surges late to take the title

• Salena Gallardo Dominguez won F30-34 in 2:56:23 (6:44/mi), posting the 3rd-fastest women's split on the final 20M-to-finish stretch to seal the victory.
• Christian Espinoza ran the 4th-fastest women's split on the 5.5M–13.1M segment to climb from 9th to 6th among women mid-race, finishing 2nd in F30-34 in 3:06:03.
• The gap from 1st to 3rd spanned just 12 minutes and 20 seconds — Gallardo Dominguez (2:56:23), Espinoza (3:06:03), Melinda Philpot (3:08:43) — across a 310-woman field.
• Positions 6 and 7 were separated by just 8 seconds: Kayla Ritchey (3:22:06) and Sandra Valencia (3:22:14).

Salena Gallardo Dominguez of Redondo Beach was the class of the F30-34 field on a warm Long Beach morning — 72°F and 73% humidity making every mile a negotiation. She held 4th among women through most of the race, slipped briefly to 5th, then delivered the decisive move: a final stretch from mile 20 to the finish that ranked 3rd-fastest among all women on that segment. She crossed in 2:56:23 at a 6:44/mi clip, a full nine-and-a-half minutes clear of second place.

Christian Espinoza made her move in the middle miles. Running the 4th-fastest women's split between 5.5M and 13.1M, she climbed from 9th to 6th among women during that stretch, and ultimately held on for 2nd in F30-34 at 3:06:03 (7:06/mi). Melinda Philpot of Santa Clarita was right there at the midpoint — 5th among women through 13.1M — but faded to 12th among women by the finish, still securing 3rd in F30-34 with a 3:08:43.

Further back, Paige Caluza (4th, 3:18:13) and Erika Bouchard (5th, 3:20:40) rounded out the top five, with Bouchard posting the 17th-fastest women's split on the final stretch to close strong. Then came one of the tightest battles of the day: Kayla Ritchey from Mount Washington, KY held off Sandra Valencia of Anaheim by just 8 seconds — 3:22:06 to 3:22:14 — for 6th and 7th. In a field of 310 finishers, the racing was fierce all the way down the order.