M15-19: Roman Hanson Runs Away in the Cold

• Roman Hanson, 17, wins in 1:21:29 (6:13/mi), pulling away from fellow Madison, AL teen John Litavec, who crossed in 1:21:56 — a 27-second gap at the line.
• Cesar Rico and Jackson Obie staged the closest battle of the day, separated by just 19 seconds (1:24:51 vs. 1:25:10) for 3rd and 4th.
• The second half told the real story: Hanson moved from 14th to 10th among men on the 6.8M→Finish stretch — while Litavec faded from 9th to 12th — meaning Hanson's late push caught and extended the margin.
• Luke Bogardus, 16, returns to Huntsville having gone 6th among men here in 2024 (1:22:38); this year he finished 7th in M15-19 in 1:30:14 — a different race, a different day.

Twenty-nine-degree air and a 16 mph wind greeted 28 teenagers on the streets of Huntsville, and Roman Hanson looked most at home in it. The 17-year-old from Madison ran a composed 6:13/mi to win the M15-19 group in 1:21:29, and the second half of the race is where he made it stick. While Litavec — also from Madison — held the stronger men's position through 6.8 miles, Hanson flipped the script on the back end, running the 9th-fastest split in the men's field from 6.8 miles to the finish while Litavec slipped from 9th to 12th over that same stretch. The 27-second final margin was earned, not given.

Behind them, Cesar Rico (1:24:51, 6:28/mi) and Jackson Obie (1:25:10, 6:30/mi) ran nearly the entire race in lockstep, with Rico holding 3rd by 19 seconds. Dylan Maher rounded out the top five in 1:26:05, but faded on the closing stretch — dropping from 18th to 21st among men from 6.8 miles in — leaving a gap of nearly four minutes between him and 6th-place Alexander Johnson (1:30:06). Johnson, Luke Bogardus (1:30:14), and Thomas Ferster (1:30:26) then bunched tightly in a span of just 20 seconds for places 6 through 8.

Andrew Walker and Lucas Israel staged their own miniature duel for 9th and 10th, finishing 1:31:45 and 1:31:46 — one second apart at the line, the places separated by timing finer than a blink. Owen Bradley, the youngest finisher in the top 11 at just 15 years old, came home 11th in 1:37:10 — a strong showing from Franklin, TN's contingent, which placed multiple runners across the field.