M20-29: Lynch Edges Mandel in a Razor-Close Battle, Kreuch Storms Home

• John Lynch wins in 2:36:36 (5:58/mi), holding off Jacob Mandel by just six seconds after a decisive second-half surge that moved him from 8th to 5th among men.
• Peter Kreuch posts the 3rd-fastest men's second-half split in the field, charging from 14th to 8th among men over the final 13.1 miles to claim 3rd in 2:37:23.
• Edgar Bolanos fades in the back half, slipping from 6th to 10th among men on the closing stretch — his 28th-fastest men's second-half split a stark contrast to the top-seven splits posted by the three men ahead of him.
• 250 finishers crossed the line in the M20-29 field, with the top 20 all breaking 2:54 on a cool, misty morning in Sonoma County.

The M20-29 race at the 2025 Santa Rosa Marathon came down to six seconds at the line. John Lynch of San Francisco crossed in 2:36:36 at a 5:58/mi clip, but the story of his win was written in the second half. Running in 8th among men at the midpoint, Lynch shifted gears over the final 13.1 miles — posting the 5th-fastest men's closing split in the field — to move up to 5th among men and take the M20-29 crown. Jacob Mandel of Madison, WI ran nearly stride for stride with him, finishing in 2:36:42 (5:59/mi) for 2nd, but his 7th-fastest men's closing split wasn't quite enough to match Lynch's surge.

The most dramatic second-half run belonged to Peter Kreuch of New York. Sitting 14th among men at halfway, Kreuch uncorked the 3rd-fastest men's closing split in the field and came home in 2:37:23 — a 6:00/mi average — to claim 3rd in M20-29 and move all the way to 8th among men by the finish. That closing split was measurably stronger than both Lynch's and Mandel's, making the podium order a genuine catch-up story: Kreuch ran the second half faster, but the time he had to make up was simply too large.

Joe Benton (4th, 2:40:12) and Edgar Bolanos (5th, 2:42:20) round out the top five, though Bolanos's second half told a different tale — he faded from 6th to 10th among men on the closing stretch, his 28th-fastest men's split in the field a clear contrast to the aggressive finishes ahead of him. Further back, a tight cluster formed between 9th and 11th: Aaron Smith and Ben Johnson both finished in 2:46:51, with Smith edging Johnson by the slimmest of margins, followed by Mark Jones just four seconds later in 2:46:55. On a flat, fast Boston Qualifier course under cool mist, the M20-29 field delivered one of the sharpest top-three battles of the morning.