SF Marathon 5K: Hallie Prete Runs Away from the F19 & Under Field

• Hallie Prete, 14, wins in 23:39 — a 7:37/mi pace that left the rest of the F19 & Under field more than three minutes behind.
• Isabel Lim, 12, takes 2nd in 26:41, with Jessica Johnson, 18, close behind in 3rd at 27:05 — a 24-second gap for the final podium spot.
• 4th and 5th separated by less than a second: Alivia Jiang and Camryn Bradshaw both finished in 27:47, with Jiang edging Bradshaw for the spot — both running 8:57/mi.
• Age range spans a full decade: from 10-year-olds Ailish Bradshaw (10th, 30:53), Saachi Poojary (17th, 33:53), and Emma Park (18th, 34:03) all the way up to 19-year-olds at the front and back of the top 15.

Hallie Prete of Evanston, WY made the F19 & Under race her own from the gun. The 14-year-old's 23:39 finish — at a crisp 7:37/mi through San Francisco's cool, overcast morning — wasn't just a win, it was a statement. No one in a 69-finisher field came within three minutes of her, and the gap only grew as the race went on.

Behind Prete, the real competition was for the podium. Isabel Lim, a 12-year-old local from San Francisco, claimed 2nd in 26:41, running a strong 8:35/mi to hold off Jessica Johnson of Laguna Hills. Johnson, 18, crossed in 27:05 — 24 seconds back — to secure 3rd. Then came one of the day's tightest finishes: Alivia Jiang, 18, and 12-year-old Camryn Bradshaw of Palo Alto both clocked 27:47, with Jiang taking 4th by the narrowest of margins. Indie Thomander rounded out the top six in 27:57.

One of the quiet storylines of the race was just how young this field ran. Camryn Bradshaw's younger sister Ailish, just 10 years old, finished 10th in 30:53 — and she wasn't the only fifth-grader racing. Saachi Poojary (10, 17th, 33:53) and Emma Park (10, 18th, 34:03) also made the top 20 in a field of 69, a reminder that the F19 & Under race is as much a showcase of young talent as it is a competition.