Women's 10K: Mami Blazes to the Win in Bitter Cold

• Leahrose Mami won in 38:52 (6:15/mi), more than a minute clear of the field — and had already raced to 4th in the women's 5K earlier in the weekend.
• Hawley Cheney returned as the 2024 champion (43:17) and finished 2nd in 40:02, slashing more than three minutes off her winning time from a year ago — only to find a faster woman waiting at the top.
• Alison Ray (5th, 45:07) pulled double duty alongside Kristen Toppin (9th, 47:12), both having also raced the women's 5K (2nd and 5th there, respectively) earlier this weekend.
• Fourteen-year-old Erica Sandlin (18th, 51:30) and Khloe Mack (20th, 52:29) were among the youngest competitors in a 325-woman field braving 29°F temperatures and a 16 mph wind.

Twenty-nine degrees, a stiff wind, and 325 women on the start line — Leahrose Mami didn't flinch. The 25-year-old from Northport, AL, crossed in 38:52 at a 6:15/mi clip, a margin of 1:10 over the rest of the field that made the win look almost comfortable. What makes it even more remarkable: she'd already raced the 5K earlier in the weekend, finishing 4th among women there. Coming back to dominate the 10K in those conditions is a genuine double to celebrate.

Hawley Cheney's story is its own subplot. The Winchester, TN runner defended her 2024 crown with everything she had, finishing 2nd in 40:02 — a stunning 3:15 improvement over the 43:17 that won it last year. On almost any other day, that kind of leap would mean a title. Instead, it earned her the runner-up spot behind an even sharper performance. Marja Lopez Tello of Harvest, AL rounded out the podium in 42:46 (6:53/mi), finishing a solid 1:44 back of Cheney.

The mid-pack told its own story of weekend warriors. Alison Ray (5th, 45:07) and Kristen Toppin (9th, 47:12) both raced the 5K — placing 2nd and 5th there — before lining up here, and both delivered. Kimberly Mercier (4th, 44:31) made a quiet leap of her own: she finished 8th here in 2024 with a 48:00; this year she moved up four spots and cut 3:29 off her time. Kortney Kuhl (7th, 46:13) also improved on her 2024 showing of 7th in 47:07, trimming nearly a minute in the same placement.