Maryland man, 27, captures the Marine Corps Marathon
Cool temps, rain doesn’t faze Silver Spring’s Tropf
A heavy downpour soaked the 44th Marine Corps Marathon, conditions that Silver Spring, Maryland’s Jordan Tropf embraced to win the race for the first time in seven attempts.
“It’s always been a dream to win this race,” Tropf, 27, said. “I’ve had this race on my radar all fall. I love being out here and to get the chance to come in first is real special.”
Tropf finished the 26.2 miles in 2:27:38. Brittany Charboneau, 31, was the first women to break the tape, finishing in 2:44:42.
While some would see the cool temperatures and driving rain as a challenge, Tropf thrived in the conditions.
“I absolutely loved the rain and temperature,” Tropf said. “Most of my training has been in 100 degrees [weather] and it’s humid. Having the rain really worked to my advantage. The thing that really slowed me down was the wind at different points.”
Tropf, who grew up in Cleveland, went to the Naval Academy and John Hopkins University for medical school. He has had to juggle training for the race with his residency in orthopedic surgery at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland.
“Training is really hit or miss with my job,” Tropf said. “It’s hard to be consistent because you got to take calls. I don’t write anything down, so I don’t have to make goals in my schedule or feel bad about missing training. This is what I do for fun, and I love coming out here and being competitive.”
Tropf was feeling winded at the middle of the course, but noticing his distance between the other runners motivated him to keep pushing through.
“I was toasted around mile 15 and 20, and that’s the classic wall in the marathon,” Tropf said. [When] I realized no one was around me, I knew I could have a good finish so I focused in and went to work.”
Adam Stokes (2:28:53) of the United Kingdom took second, and Matt O’Neil finished third with a time of 2:31:24.
Charboneau, meanwhile, came in with aspirations of a course record. She fell short but remained upbeat.
“You can’t be upset about winning a marathon,” said Charboneau, of Golden, Colorado. “But it was definitely a tough day and I’m bummed.
“The weather was a little more of a challenge with the dead spots on the course where there wasn’t anyone cheering. I think that was a little more a mental challenge, but once I got to parts where the crowd was, that was definitely a boost.”
Margarita Quintero (2:48:22) was second, Selvi Rajagopal was third in 2:50:42.
Women’s college soccer: Baseley McClaskey scored the golden goal in the 106th minute to give Navy a 1-0 win over Boston University on Saturday. It was Navy’s sixth shutout in conference play and helped the team secure the Patriot League regular season title. Kristina Dzhandzhapanyan found space in the box and lofted a light cross toward the mouth of the goal to a waiting McClaskey, who headed home the ball for the sudden victory goal.
Men’s college soccer: Mount St. Mary’s was shut down by the top team in Northeast Conference this year, falling 3-0 to Merrimack in North Andover. Mount fells to 6-8 (2-4 NEC) this season while Merrimack improved to 8-3-2 (6-0-0 NEC).
The Warriors’ record does not factor into the conference standings while they are in transition to Division I.