Rocket City 10K — F15-19: Kassidy Young dominates with a standout performance

• Kassidy Young won the F15-19 age group in 45:01 (7:15/mi), finishing more than 9 minutes clear of the field.
• The gap from 1st to 2nd was 9:14 — nearly as large as the entire spread from 2nd through 9th (32:58).
• Sisters Ava and Abigail Silvernail, both from Boaz, AL, finished 4th and 6th respectively, separated by 3:37.
• Lydia Parkinson and Macie Light, both from Talladega, AL, were the closest battle of the day — just 7 seconds apart at 7th and 8th.

Kassidy Young, just 15 years old, turned in a performance that set her apart from the entire F15-19 field at the Rocket City 10K. Running 7:15 per mile through the mild December conditions in Huntsville, she crossed in 45:01 — a time that wasn't just a win, it was a statement. Nine finishers lined up; none came within nine minutes of her.

Behind her, Lillie Mock of Fort Wainwright, Alaska made the long trip count with a solid 54:15 (8:44/mi) to claim 2nd, while Scout Stewart of Madison rounded out the podium in 1:03:48. The gap from 2nd to 3rd — nearly ten minutes — reflected just how spread out this age group ran across the 6.2 miles.

The Silvernail sisters from Boaz gave the race a family subplot in the middle of the pack. Ava (17) ran 1:07:30 for 4th while Abigail (18) finished 6th in 1:11:50, with Bailey Hall of Huntsville slipping between them in 5th at 1:08:53. That trio was separated by just over four minutes total.

The race's tightest finish came at the back, where Lydia Parkinson and Macie Light — both 17, both from Talladega — ran virtually together all the way to the line. Parkinson edged Light 1:21:25 to 1:21:32, a margin of just seven seconds across 6.2 miles. Katie Simmons of Hazel Green closed out the nine-woman field in 1:27:13.