WILDWOOD CREST – Wildwood Crest Beach Patrol lifeguard Kevin McDonnell was the overall winner of the annual Wildwood Crest 5K Beach Race held Saturday night, Aug. 6.
McDonnell, 21, also a distance runner at St. Joseph’s University, completed the hard-sand, all-beach, out-and-back course in 16 minutes, 32 seconds, which was nearly two full minutes ahead of his closest competitor. A graduate of Camden Catholic High School, McDonnell qualified for the NCAA cross country championships as a junior at St. Joe’s last fall.
A pair of North Wildwood Beach Patrol lifeguards finished in the next two places as Greg Thomas, 23, of Collingdale, was second in 18:28 and Mike Musso, 19, of Wildwood Crest, placed third in 19:08. John Sakalowsky, 39, of Newtown, Pa., finished fourth in 19:08 and James Bernstein, 17, of Grahamsville, N.Y., placed fifth in 19:32.
Susanne Vanzijl, 39, of Elton, Md., was the top female finisher. She posted a time of 22:22, which was good for 22nd overall. Wildwood Crest resident Kate Donnelly, 20, was second among female runners and 24th overall in 22:43 and Sarah Ryan, 28, of Baltimore, was the third female finisher and 25th overall in 22:50.
Age group winners from the event were as follows:
19 and under:
Male – James Bernstein, 17, Grahamsville, Pa., 19:32.
Female – Stephanie Misko, 12, Havertown, Pa., 24:54.
20-29:
Male – Shawn Lignore, 20, Jim Thorpe, Pa., 20:22.
Female – Kathleen Brewster, 24, Philadelphia, 22:55.
30-39:
Male – John Sakalowsky, 39, Newtown, Mass., 19:08.
Female – Emily Miller, 33, Conshohocken, Pa., 24:15.
40-49:
Male – Paul Koch, 45, Mullica Hill, 20:54.
Female – Donna Giaquinto, 47, Wildwood Crest, 28:43.
50 and over:
Male – Larry Shotter, 56, Uniontown, Pa., 24:14.
Female – Debra Brewster, 55, Philadelphia, 27:05.
A total of 134 runners, hailing from 10 different states, completed the 5K course, which began near the base of the Wildwood Crest Beach Pier at Heather Road. An additional handful of participants completed the event’s untimed one-mile fun run/walk.
The run was hosted by the Wildwood Crest Recreation Department, with support from the borough’s beach patrol and police department. The event was partially funded by the Greater Wildwood Tourism Improvement and Development Authority.
Complete race results are available online at www.lmsports.com.
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