Masters Women: Missy Rock Runs Away With It

• Missy Rock wins in 2:43:32 (6:14/mi), posting the 4th-fastest women's split from 25K–30K and holding 5th among all women from the halfway point to the finish.
• Courtney Dauwalter climbs to 2nd in 2:49:51, logging the 6th-fastest women's split from 20K–25K on her way to a 6:29/mi effort across 26.2 miles.
• Jenny Goswami rounds out the podium in 2:55:16, closing with the 8th-fastest women's split from 40K to the finish — the strongest late kick of the top three.
• Lori Russell fades from contention: she ran the 13th-fastest women's split from 5K–10K but slipped from 12th among women to 50th by the finish, crossing 5th in Masters Women in 3:15:26.

Missy Rock of Prior Lake, MN, delivered a masterclass in pacing and positioning across 26.2 miles through Minneapolis and Saint Paul. She entered the race sitting 6th among women, briefly dipped to 8th, then steadily climbed back — reaching 5th by the midpoint and holding it all the way to the finish in 2:43:32. Her 25K–30K stretch was one of the sharpest in the entire women's field, and on a warm, windy October day — 69°F with gusts at 17 mph — that kind of sustained output is no small thing.

Courtney Dauwalter of Leadville, CO, better known for her dominance in ultramarathon distances, made a statement on the roads. She ran patiently through the first half, sitting 14th among women at both 5K and 10K, before a strong 20K–25K segment — 6th-fastest among all women — helped propel her into the top ten. She finished 2nd in Masters Women in 2:49:51, a 6:29/mi average that reflects a disciplined, progressive effort. Jenny Goswami of Weston, MA, was similarly steady throughout, hovering around 15th–16th among women for most of the race before her 40K-to-finish split — 8th-fastest in the women's field — carried her to 3rd in 2:55:16.

The most dramatic arc belonged to Lori Russell of Rochester, MN. She was flying through the early miles, posting the 13th-fastest women's split from 5K–10K and sitting 12th among women at that stage. But the back half of the course told a different story: she faded steadily through every checkpoint, ultimately finishing 5th in Masters Women in 3:15:26 — 50th among all women by the line. Behind her, Jessica Stopera (3:17:06), Heather McCleery (3:17:20), and Laura Jorgensen (3:18:58) were separated by just 112 seconds across 6th, 7th, and 8th, making for one of the tighter battles in the 805-woman Masters field.