M0-14: Baumgartner Leads a Two-Boy Battle to the Finish

• Max Baumgartner, 13, wins the M0-14 age group in 1:51:29 — an 8:30/mi average over 13.1 miles in thick, humid Alabama air.
• Stirling McNeese, 14, finishes 2nd in 2:12:32 — a 10:07/mi average — completing the two-man M0-14 field.
• A 21-minute gap separates the two finishers, with Baumgartner's strong closing leg the decisive factor.
• Both runners gained ground late: Baumgartner moved from 53rd to 47th in the men's field on the back half; McNeese climbed from 144th to 126th.

Just two runners lined up in the M0-14 age group at the Rocket City Marathon Back Half, but both of them earned their finisher's medal the hard way — 13.1 miles at 56°F with 98% humidity hanging over Huntsville like a wet blanket. Conditions that would test anyone, let alone a pair of teenagers.

Baumgartner, just 13 years old and making the trip down from Westerville, Ohio, was in command throughout. He crossed in 1:51:29 at an 8:30/mi clip — a composed, controlled performance that got stronger as the race wore on. His 10K-to-finish split ranked 45th-fastest in the men's field on that closing stretch, a genuine show of strength when many runners around him were fading into the humidity.

McNeese, 14 and racing on his home turf in Huntsville, finished in 2:12:32 — about 21 minutes back — but he, too, closed well. His 10K-to-finish split ranked 104th in the men's field, and he climbed 18 places in the men's standings over that same stretch. For a teenager running a half marathon in conditions like these, that kind of late-race resilience is worth noting.

Two kids, one finish line, and a combined age of 27. Not a bad Sunday morning in Huntsville.