Vassallo wins Maine Marathon in debut

PORTLAND – Running his first marathon, Dan Vassallo easily beat two former champs in setting a course record in the Maine Marathon.

Vassallo, 22, of Wilmington, Mass., beat the old record held by six-time winner Byrne Decker of Yarmouth, by more than 3 minutes. He finished Sunday’s event in 2 hours, 26 minutes and 54 seconds, followed more than 6 minutes later by 2003 winner Casey Carroll of Dover, N.H. Decker came in third.

Stephanie Crawford, 30, of Framingham, Mass., beat her closest competitor by 9 minutes in the women’s race with a time of 3:01:16. Suzanne La Burt, of Greenwood Lake, N.Y., placed second, and Nadine Palmer, of Derry, N.H., placed third. Both Vassallo and Crawford are graduates of Colby College in Waterville.

Also participating were soldiers from the Maine National Guard, who marched in combat boots and with 30-pound packs. They wore on their backs the number 33, representing the number of Maine soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan.