Mile posts: Items on Amanda Vestri, Cailie Logue, David Too, Alexina Teubel, Payton Mauldin, Alli Bookin-Nosbisch, Myles Bach

Former Iowa State All-Big 12 Conference runner Amanda Vestri appears to be doing just fine with professional running team ZAP Endurance in Blowing Rock, N.C.

The 2021 ACC champion in the 5,000 meters for Syracuse picked up possibly the biggest victory of her professional career, topping 127 other women to claim the USATF National Club Cross Country Championships women's 6-kilometer title in Tallahassee, Fla., on Saturday. For her efforts Vestri leads off this edition of WEEKEND UPDATE of the best performances by Iowa-based collegiate and postcollegiate distance runners and triathletes.

The native of Webster, N.Y., on Saturday built up a solid lead from the first kilometer on, eventually expanding her edge to nearly 14 seconds over Claire Green at Apalachee Regional Park. Vestri was eighth in 15:21.11 in an indoor 5,000 meters at Boston the previous week.

Vestri wasn't the only former Iowa collegian faring well in the women's open 6K. Her former Iowa State teammate, 13-time Big 12 champion and six-time All-American Cailie Logue, picked up a fourth-place finish on the hilly course in 20:28.1. Logue, an Iowa State graduate student, was running unattached. Taking fifth place and leading the Hansons-Brooks Distance Project to a runner-up team finish was former Loras College seven-time NCAA Division III champion Kassie Parker. The former Clayton Ridge (Guttenberg) prep is now based in Rochester, Mich. Parker was in second place, behind Vestri, after 2K before falling back.

The top former Iowa collegian in the men's 10K also was a former Cyclone athlete. Titus Winders of the Minnesota Distance Elite squad placed 20th overall in 32:06.7. His MDE teammate, former Sioux City North great and University of South Dakota school record holder Merga Gemeda ended up 27th in 32:16.5. They helped MDE place second in the team race with 103 points and pick up $3,000.

Placing 80th and leading the Crown Running team, based in Dubuque, was former Loras College and Davenport Central standout Mason Tope. Tope, coming off a 33rd-place finish at the Manchester (Conn.) Road Race on Thanksgiving, ran 34:17.6. His teammate, former Dubuque Wahlert and Central College standout Kyle Pape, finished 90th in 34:29.5. Two other Crown athletes cracked the top 100. Former Loras and Cascade athlete Preston Kauder took 97th in 34:47.6. Next across the line was former Luther College runner Michael Eyres in 34:54.5. Placing 109th was former Center Point-Urbana, Drake and South Dakota State standout Josh Yeager. The MDE athlete ran 35:13.3. He was six spots ahead of Crown Running's Tyler Cernohous, a former University of Dubuque athlete who ran 35:34.7. Crown Running was 16th in the team race. The winner was Tai Dinger of the Wisconsin Runner Racing Team in 30:48.0. San Diego TC was the team champion with 73 points.

In the men's masters 10K, Running Wild Elite's Nathan Hopp of Cedar Rapids finished 14th overall. Hopp ran 35:07.1. The winner was West Valley TC's Malcolm Richards in 32:08.4.

Placing 15th in women's masters 6K race was former Dubuque Hempstead and Wartburg College standout Jessica Hruska. Hruska, normally a Crown Running athlete, was competing for the Garden State TC team. She ran 23:27.0. Hruska owns the state masters women's record for 7 miles of 43:08.

At the European Cross Country Championships on Sunday, former Drake University star Adam Fogg helped the Great Britain/Northern Ireland mixed relay team place third in that event. Fogg ran the best time for his leg, 4:32, to help Team Great Britain to a total elapsed time of 19:48, which was just four seconds behind champion France. There were 12 teams competing.

Shifting to the roads, where former Iowa State standout David Too claimed victory in the 47th Rocket City Marathon in Huntsville, Ala., on Sunday. The former All-Big 12 and All-American for the Cyclones battled occasional windy weather to complete the race in 2:27:40 and win by 4:38 over 2022 champion Josh Whitehead.

Too, a graduate student at Florida State, has enjoyed his trips to Huntsville this year. He placed sixth at the Cotton Row Run 10K on Memorial Day in 31:50 and won the second Boston or Bust marathon in the same city on Sept. 9. That day Too ran 2:29:28.

“I really enjoy running here because it’s such a great environment where people are supporting you, cheering you along,” Too said in an interview in the Tennessee Valley Outsider. "You really feel that energy all the way. I feel that every time I come up here. It’s exciting to run here, and it’s not far from Florida so I can drive up and back."

Shifting to indoor track and the ISU Holiday Invite in Ames, where Northern Iowa assistant track coach Alexina (Wilson) Teubel claimed victory in the 1,000 meters. Running unattached, the former Mount Vernon/Lisbon prep and Panther star clocked a time of 2:42.06 to top Iowa State sophomore Makayla Clark by 2.91 seconds. Clark set a new 1,000 school record, beating the 1991 time of 2:45.32 by Edith Nakiyingi. Northern Iowa freshman and former North Polk prep Liza Schaffer was third in 2:58.42.

In the men's 800, Dordt University senior Payton Mauldin set a school record for the second consecutive week while placing fourth in 1:50.29. Mauldin broke his own record, by just over half a second, while hitting the NAIA 'A' mark for nationals. His time is the fastest so far in NAIA. Mauldin is a former Central Lyon-GLR prep and 14-time Great Plains Athletic Conference champion who established a new program record for the 600 meters at the SDSU Holiday Invitational in Brookings, S.D., the week prior.

Placing fifth in the 800 was Northern Iowa junior and former Calamus-Wheatland prep Chase Knoche in 1:50.43. Successfully stepping up in class was Central College senior Noah Jorgenson. The former Sidney prep, who was a recent All-American in NCAA Division III country, took sixth in a new school record of 1:51.25. Jorgenson erased a 24-year record. The winner was Indian Hills sophomore Tyrice Taylor in 1:48.49.

Dordt's Cole Zevenbergen, who earned the NAIA indoor 'A' qualifying mark a week ago, qualified again after winning the 600-yard run in 1:11.91. The senior and former Western Christian (Hull) prep's time converts to 1:19 for 600 meters. Placing third was Iowa State freshman and former Bettendorf prep Calvin Curcija in 1:12.78. Northern Iowa sophomore and former Earlham prep Jayden Dickson was fourth in 1:13.66. Iowa State freshman and former Mount Vernon prep Jensen Meeker was fifth in 1:13.97.

Taking the win in the women's 600-yard run was Northern Iowa senior and former Cedar Falls prep Auriona Kimbrough. Kimbrough ran 1:26.01 to top Dordt's Shelby Buwalda by 1.52 seconds. Iowa State sophomore Kaia Holtkamp, a former Solon prep, was third in 1:28.31.

Former Mid-Prairie prep Mitzi Evans, running unattached, was the winner of the women's 800 meters. Evans ran 2:13.09 to win by 3.33 seconds over Northern Iowa freshman and former Don Bosco (Gilbertville) prep Kendra Nissen.

In the 3,000, Runablaze Iowa's Tyler Lance set a new personal-best time of 8:31.99 to place third. Lance is from Algona. Iowa State's Said Mechaal won in 8:07.54.

At Saturday's Jimmy Grand Alumni Invitational in Iowa City on Saturday, Iowa junior Alli Bookin-Nosbisch topped her sister, Grace, to win the women's mile. Alli ran 4:48.08, with Grace ending up in 4:54.59. Both are juniors and former Ottumwa greats. Taking third and stepping up in distance was former Davenport Assumption and All-Big Ten athlete Mallory (King) Lindaman. Lindaman, a Tracksmith athlete, ran 5:00.93.

In the men's 600, Iowa freshman and former Mason City High standout James Fingalsen took the victory by a mere .19 of a second over Wisconsin's Jalen Williams.

Iowa senior Nick O'Connor, a former Clear Creek Amana prep and Indian Hills transfer, took fourth in the men's 800 in 1:53.70 in a race won by Iowa junior Rivaldo Marshall in a new Hawkeye Indoor facility record of 1:47.83. Marshall also is a former Indian Hills athlete.

In the men's 3,000, a race with Wisconsin taking the top nine spots, former Pleasant Valley prep Luke Knepp was 10th in 8:30.39. The Iowa freshman was running unattached. Taking 13th and running unattached was Iowa sophomore and former Des Moines Christian prep Carson Houg in 8:32.67.

Former Center Point-Urbana prep Myles Bach earned a victory in the 3,000 meters at the UNK Pre-Holiday Classic in Kearney, Neb., on Friday. The Nebraska-Kearney senior ran the 3,000 in 8:30.20 to top the field by more than 11 seconds.

Nebraska freshman Gabe Nash was a winner for the red squad in Nebraska's intrasquad meet on Friday in Lincoln. The former Sioux City North prep standout won the 800 meters in 1:52.66.

At Central's Dutch Holiday Preview on Saturday, Central junior Addy Parrott was the winner in the 3,000 in 10:20.28. Parrott is a former Danville prep who was All-American in the recent NCAA Division III national cross country meet. Taking runner-up was sophomore teammate and former Marion athlete Peyton Steffen in 10:22.21.

At St. Ambrose's Finals Week Invite on Saturday, Mount Mercy junior J'Lyn Knutson earned the NAIA 'B' standard for indoor nationals with a victory in the 3,000. The former Melcher-Dallas prep ran 10:25.53 and won by over 28 seconds.

Finishing with triathlon, where former Cedar Rapids Washington and Luther College athlete Carson Christen shook off 1 1/2 years away from the sport to place 14th at Ironman 70.3 Florida in Haines City on Sunday. Shaking off a bout of COVID at the end of November, Christen finished with the second-best 1.2-mile swim (27:43) and the 15th-best 56-mile bike (2:16:02) among the men. Christen earns a spot at the Ironman 70.3 World Championships in Taupo, New Zealand, in December of 2024. The winner was Benjamin Tuttle in 4:01:23.

GOING BACK: Iowa City native Leslie Smith finished just one spot off the podium, in fourth place, among the professional women at Ironman 70.3 Indian Wells on Dec. 3. Smith covered the 1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike and 13.1-mile run in 4:18:23. The winner was Norway's Solveig Lovseth in 4:08:24.

NOTE: The WEEKEND UPDATE will return on Jan. 16, 2024.

MISSING A TOP DISTANCE RUNNER OR TRIATHLETE?: Let me know at bergeson@registermedia.com.

Want to hear more about distance running in Iowa. Listen to my podcast here: https://anchor.fm/lance-bergeson8

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Mile posts: Items on Amanda Vestri, Cailie Logue, David Too, Alexina Teubel, Payton Mauldin, Alli Bookin-Nosbisch, Myles Bach