F19 & Under: Zielen-Ersing Takes the Win, Mallon Makes History

• Hazel Zielen-Ersing, 15, wins in 20:55 (6:44/mi), holding 3rd among women overall and posting the 8th-fastest women's split on the closing 2.5K.
• Top three finish within 13 seconds — Zielen-Ersing (20:55), Rachel Yim (21:03), Ashlin Mallon (21:08) — but the closing splits tell a catch-up story: Yim and Mallon each ran the second half faster than the women ahead of them, yet couldn't quite reel in Zielen-Ersing.
• Ashlin Mallon's remarkable San Francisco run: the 17-year-old from Santa Rosa finishes 3rd here in 21:08 — her third straight podium at this event, having won outright in 2025 (20:05) and placed 3rd in 2024 (20:52).
• 69 finishers in the F19 & Under field, with a sharp gap after the top three — Katherine Berger 4th in 23:22 (7:31/mi), more than two minutes back.

Hazel Zielen-Ersing, just 15 years old and traveling from Buffalo, NY, came to San Francisco and ran the race on her terms. She held 3rd among women from the midpoint to the finish and never let the pressure behind her crack the result — crossing in 20:55 at a 6:44/mi clip in breezy, 60°F conditions on the city's rolling streets. The 8th-fastest women's closing split in the field confirmed she wasn't coasting.

Behind her, Rachel Yim (21:03, 6:47/mi) and Ashlin Mallon (21:08, 6:48/mi) both ran stronger second halves — Yim with the 7th-fastest women's closing split, Mallon the 9th — climbing through the women's standings in the back half. Yim moved from 5th to 4th among women; Mallon from 4th to 6th. They ran the closing segment faster than Zielen-Ersing did, but the gap she'd built was enough. Eight seconds separated 2nd from 3rd.

Mallon's story deserves its own beat. The Santa Rosa 17-year-old has now stood on the podium at this race three years running — she owns the 2025 title (20:05), a 3rd in 2024 (20:52), and now another 3rd in 2026. That kind of consistency at a major city 5K, across multiple editions, is the kind of résumé that defines a young runner's early career.

Katherine Berger rounded out the top four in 23:22, while 14-year-old Penelope Pintor was a standout in the back half of the field, finishing 5th in 26:09 — the youngest runner in the top five.