M45-49 Half Marathon: Carriglitto Holds Off a Furious Finish-Line Charge

• Mike Carriglitto, 49, wins M45-49 in 1:24:07 (6:25/mi), the fastest time in the group by 29 seconds.
• Andrew Jakubowitch and Randy Misencik finished 2nd and 3rd separated by just one second — 1:24:36 to 1:24:37 — after racing each other stride for stride across the back half.
• Matt Cross ran 4th in 1:25:44, leaving a 1:07 gap back to 5th — meaning the top four essentially formed their own race within the M45-49 field of 211.
• Chris Lombardi rounded out the top five in 1:27:51, finishing more than two minutes clear of 6th place.

Virginia Beach's conditions on race day — 71°F, 73% humidity, and a 17 mph wind — made sub-6:30 pace a genuine achievement, and Carriglitto delivered it from start to finish. He steadily worked his way through the men's field, moving from 66th to 54th among the men as the race progressed, and he held that position through the final stretch. His 6:25/mi average was the sharpest in M45-49 and earned him the win by a comfortable margin at the front — even if it didn't feel comfortable to run it.

The real drama unfolded behind him. Jakubowitch came to life in the middle miles, climbing from 82nd to 59th among the men by 20K before fading just slightly to 61st at the line — a sign he pushed hard and held most of it. Misencik mirrored him almost exactly through the first half, sitting 58th among the men at the 10K mark and never straying far from that position. When the dust settled, one second separated them. The places are different, so Jakubowitch takes 2nd, but it was as close as the M45-49 group got all day.

Cross was the steadiest mover of the top four, climbing from 88th to 69th among the men and never slipping — a controlled, disciplined effort that landed him 4th in 1:25:44. Lombardi in 5th ran 6:42/mi, a respectable clip in the heat and wind, but the 2:07 gap between him and Misencik tells the story: this was a race of two tiers at the top, and Carriglitto, Jakubowitch, and Misencik occupied a level of their own.