Devon Yanko Dominates F40-44 at Napa Valley Marathon

• Devon Yanko wins in 2:56:50 (6:45/mi), the only F40-44 finisher under three hours, posting the 5th-fastest women's split from 6.2M to 13.1M.
• Danielle Bisho runs a strong second in 3:00:13 (6:52/mi), finishing with the 11th-fastest women's split on the second half to secure the runner-up spot.
• Late surges define the podium battle: Becca Pizzi (3:08:17) and Sarah Evans (3:09:01) both posted top-20 women's splits in the final 10K — Evans climbing from 30th to 23rd among women in that stretch.
• The field of 67 spread from 2:56:50 to well past 4:00, with 20 finishers clocking sub-4:00.

Devon Yanko (Howard, CO) owned the F40-44 race from start to finish on Napa's point-to-point Silverado Trail course. Running at 6:45/mi, she crossed in 2:56:50 — a full 3:23 ahead of second place — and was the lone member of this field to break the three-hour barrier. Her gender place held steady at 4th through the first half before she settled back to 8th among all women by the finish, a testament to a controlled, confident effort over 26.2 miles in cool, humid morning air.

Behind her, Danielle Bisho (San Francisco, CA) made her move in the back half. Running 6:52/mi overall and posting the 11th-fastest women's split on the second half, Bisho climbed steadily — from 22nd among women at the opening checkpoint all the way to 16th by the finish — to claim second in 3:00:13. The gap to Yanko was real, but Bisho was clearly building momentum when it mattered most.

Third place went to Becca Pizzi (Belmont, MA) in 3:08:17 (7:11/mi), and the story of the final miles was the charge she and Sarah Evans (Corte Madera, CA) mounted together. Evans was the more dramatic mover — climbing from 39th among women at the 6.2-mile mark all the way to 23rd by the finish — and posted the 13th-fastest women's split from 20M to the line. Pizzi was right there with the 18th-fastest split over that same closing stretch, finishing just 44 seconds ahead of Evans (3:09:01) in a genuine late-race battle for the final podium spot.

Amanda Hicks (Flagstaff, AZ) rounded out the top five in 3:19:05 (7:36/mi), followed by Kayla Kielar (3:21:16) and Bonnie Niesen (3:27:42). Alexis Baird (3:28:18), Betsy Meacham (3:29:27), and Jean Brinker (3:33:23) completed a top ten that showed real depth across 67 finishers — a competitive, well-populated field on a course that clearly rewards those who run the second half with discipline.