F19 & Under: Frketich Dominates as Young Bay Area Field Delivers

• Amanda Frketich, 19, wins in 2:52:29 (6:35/mi) — posting the fastest women's split on the 24M→Finish stretch to close out a wire-to-wire podium hold.
• Kaylin Dunphy, 16, finishes 2nd in 3:26:00 — climbing from 106th among women at the opening checkpoint all the way to 42nd by the finish, with the 8th-fastest women's split on the 22M→24M leg.
• Grace Bardsley, 5th in 3:51:01, and Elizabeth Vestnys, 6th in 3:51:25 — separated by just 24 seconds after 26.2 miles of racing through 59°F San Francisco wind.
• 65 finishers completed the F19 & Under race, with 20 runners breaking the 4:35 mark.

Amanda Frketich made this one look controlled from the start. The 19-year-old from Burnaby, BC, held 3rd among all women through the opening half of the race, then steadily moved up — sitting 2nd among women by mile 20 and never relinquishing it. She sealed the win with the fastest women's split on the 24M→Finish stretch, a 2:52:29 total at a 6:35/mi clip that put a commanding 33-plus minutes between her and the rest of the F19 & Under field.

The most dramatic journey through the women's field belonged to Kaylin Dunphy. The 16-year-old from Danville started buried — 106th among women at the first checkpoint — and ran her way through the pack all afternoon, posting the 8th-fastest women's split on the 22M→24M segment and ultimately crossing in 3:26:00 for 2nd place. Finn Smit of San Francisco was similarly on the move, climbing from 278th among women at her earliest checkpoint to 72nd by the finish with a strong 24M→Finish split, landing 3rd in 3:34:45.

The battle for 5th and 6th was one of the tightest of the day. Grace Bardsley (Sacramento, 17) and Elizabeth Vestnys (Petaluma, 19) ran the back half in close company, finishing in 3:51:01 and 3:51:25 respectively — 24 seconds apart after more than three and a half hours of racing. Lindsey Ferrara of Hudson, WI took 4th in 3:48:29, briefly fading late (her gender place slipped from 153rd to 166th between mile 24 and the finish) but holding enough of a cushion to keep the podium gap comfortable.