F15-19 Half Marathon: Katy Butler Dominates in Dayton Speed

• Katy Butler won the F15-19 age group in 1:25:08 (6:30/mi), finishing 2nd among all women in the race.
• Butler posted the 3rd-fastest women's split on the 10K-to-Finish stretch, confirming she ran the back half hard.
• Ava Lang (1:37:18) held 2nd in the age group comfortably, while Reagan Edwards (1:46:11) rounded out the podium — a gap of nearly 9 minutes separating 2nd from 3rd.
• Places 4 and 5 were razor-close: Emma Haynes (2:12:50) edged Sydney Huffman (2:12:56) by just six seconds.

Katy Butler, 19, from Dayton, Ohio, made the trip to Huntsville count. Running at 6:30 per mile across 13.1 miles, she finished 2nd among all women in the field — a result that speaks for itself. And she didn't just survive the second half; she attacked it, recording the 3rd-fastest women's split on the 10K-to-Finish segment. That kind of late-race strength on a mild but breezy December morning is what separates a good run from a statement one.

Behind Butler, Ava Lang (17, Collierville, TN) ran a composed 1:37:18 to claim 2nd in the F15-19 group, moving from 10th to 8th among women over the final stretch — her 8th-fastest women's split on that closing segment showing she, too, had legs late. Reagan Edwards (18, Pell City, AL) completed the podium in 1:46:11, moving up a spot among women in the back half to finish 15th in the women's field.

The battle for 4th came down to the wire. Emma Haynes and Sydney Huffman — both clocking 10:08/mi — crossed within six seconds of each other, Haynes in 2:12:50 and Huffman in 2:12:56. Hope Sawyer (2:17:52) and Addison Shelton (2:25:40) rounded out all seven finishers in the age group, every one of them crossing the line in Huntsville on a cool, overcast Saturday.