NB30-34 Half Marathon: Highland holds off a charging field to take the win

• Les Highland won the NB30-34 race in 2:04:21 (9:29/mi), posting the 2nd-fastest women's split on the 10.65M→Finish segment to seal the result.
• Kaitlin Torson finished 2nd in 2:10:54 — a 6:33 gap back — after running the 6th-fastest women's split on the 6.62M→7.12M segment.
• Sandra Hensel rounded out the podium in 2:14:38, holding a steady position throughout with the 7th-fastest women's split on the 2.13M→6.62M stretch.
• Will Ireland was the division's biggest mover, climbing from 18th to 9th among women en route to 4th in 2:15:20, powered by the 4th-fastest women's split on the 10.65M→Finish segment.

Les Highland came into the final stretch with something left in the tank. After dipping as far back as 7th among women in the early miles, she worked her way back into contention — recovering to 4th, then 3rd, by the finish. That closing surge, backed by the 2nd-fastest women's split on the 10.65M→Finish leg, was decisive. Her 2:04:21 at a 9:29/mi clip was the class of the NB30-34 field by a clear margin.

Kaitlin Torson had the early look of a winner — she ran as high as 1st among women before gradually settling back through the middle miles. Her 6th-fastest women's split on the 6.62M→7.12M stretch showed she still had pace to burn at that point, but Highland's late charge was the difference. Torson's 2:10:54 was a solid 2nd, with Sandra Hensel's 2:14:38 locking up 3rd after a consistent, if unspectacular, run that barely shifted in the women's standings from start to finish.

The most eye-catching move in the group, though, belonged to Will Ireland. Starting 18th among women, Ireland steadily picked off runners across every checkpoint — 14th, 13th, 12th — before a storming final leg powered by the 4th-fastest women's split on 10.65M→Finish brought her all the way to 9th among women and 4th in the NB30-34 race in 2:15:20. Steph Salazar (5th, 2:25:27), Ollie Phillips (6th, 2:43:17), and Jj Talampas (7th, 3:21:06) completed the seven-finisher field.