Orono’s Ruth White found herself in a familiar place at the end of the 27th annual Beach to Beacon.
At the top of the leaderboard.
Like she did in 2023, White finished as the first Maine woman in the 6.2-mile race in Cape Elizabeth with a time of 34:51.
The 10K has proven to be a good race for White this year. As only a freshman at the University of New Hampshire, she has established herself as one of the best runners at that distance in Division I athletics.
In June, White finished ninth in the country at the NCAA women’s 10K final in Eugene, Oregon. That performance earned her a spot on the All-America Second Team.
White’s time on Saturday was 5 seconds faster than when she finished as the top Maine woman in 2023.
White set multiple UNH 10K records this past season, smashing a nearly 15-year-old record in March and then breaking her own mark several more times.
Conner Mantz won the race in a record-setting time of 27:26. The top Maine man was Luke Marsankis of Cumberland, who finished in 29:27.
Izzy Bat Doyle was the first overall female finisher in 31:25.
The Cape Elizabeth-based Beach to Beacon starts near Crescent Beach State Park and ends by Portland Head Light in Fort Williams Park. The iconic race was founded by Joan Benoit Samuelson, the legendary runner and Maine native who won gold in the first-ever women’s Olympic marathon.