Luke Marsanskis of Cumberland was the top Maine finisher by a wide margin Saturday at the TD Beach to Beacon 10K with a time of 29 minutes, 12 seconds – just two seconds off the division record. Gregory Rec/Staff Photographer

CAPE ELIZABETH — Even the defending winner of the Maine men’s division at the TD Beach to Beacon 10K knew that a repeat title would be an uphill battle because of the recent form of one of his competitors.

Matt Rand of Portland didn’t consider himself the favorite going into Saturday’s race, not with the emergence of University of Maine standout Luke Marsanskis of Cumberland.

“I won it last year, and you definitely want to repeat that, but I knew Luke was just too fit for me,” Rand said. “I knew that if he ran his race, I just had no chance at beating him, so second was probably my best-case scenario.”

Marsanskis, as it turned out, finished just two seconds short of the Beach to Beacon Maine men’s record with a time of 29 minutes, 12 seconds. His victory margin was more than two minutes over runner-up Ryan Jara of Gorham (31:24) and third-place Rand (31:26) as he won the division in just his second try.

The Maine record had been in Marsanskis’ sights entering the race. He broke UMaine’s 5,000-meter record last winter and the 10,000-meter record in the spring.

After finishing eighth in the Maine division last year when he raced following a serious concussion that led to post-concussion syndrome, he came back healthy this time.

“I came in here wanting to get the fastest time a Mainer’s ever gotten,” Marsanskis said. “I was really close; I believe Ben True was my age (23) when he set the record (in 2009). … I was confident when it was raining at the start. As a Mainer, I’m ready for the conditions, so I was like, ‘I’m going to beat these guys.”

Even in last year’s race when he posted a time of 32:30, Marsanskis could sense his confidence was growing. Crossing the finish line marked a major stepping stone in his recovery, one that spurred his strong season at UMaine.

“I’d battled that for two years to where there was a point I thought I might never run again,” Marsanskis said. “(Last year’s race) was kind of like my comeback race; it was the first race where I’ve felt good in years, and I’ve slowly been improving since then.”

Despite a drop in time from his 30:55 a year ago, Jara, 37, had to settle for a runner-up finish. He wasn’t surprised to see Marsanskis, Rand and two-time Maine division winner Jesse Orach of Auburn (31:50) fill out the top four. And he was particularly pleased with his perseverance at the end of the race, narrowly holding off his club running teammate, Rand.

“I definitely thought that group of the four of us would be in the top five,” Jara said. “Me and Matt kind of linked up the first couple miles. I usually separate myself for about 10 seconds before he catches me, and he almost caught me again today, but I had a little touch of speed.”

Rand, 32, got off to a slower start than he initially planned, but said the pace was still too fast given the conditions, which he called possibly the worst he’s experienced in his 20 years of racing Beach to Beacon. Even with an hour delay that ensured runners wouldn’t have to race in the pouring rain, the humidity took a toll on runners.

“We’re all drenched, and then it stops raining, and you immediately feel just how hot and muggy it is,” Rand said. “I knew I was going to be slower than last year, but I think I ran pretty well. … You just have to slow it down and grind your way there, because it’s extremely difficult the whole way.”

Spencer McElwain of Saco finished fifth with a time of 32:30. Aaron Willingham of Portland, the fourth-place finisher last year, suffered an injury midrace and failed to finish.

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