Three Mercer Island girls gave their running shoes a serious workout at a prestigious national event in July and returned home with superb results and a handful of All-American times.

Rising Islander Middle School seventh-graders Savannah Brondstetter, Maya Kirtman and Beau Berry all shone in their respective 11-12 age group races at the 2025 USATF National Junior Olympic Track & Field Championships, which occurred from July 21-27 at Savannah State University’s Wright Stadium in Georgia.

Brondstetter, 12, competes for the West Seattle Road Runners and notched first place in the 4×800 relay (9:53) with her teammates Everly Haase, Teagan Kemper and Beau Sitzmann; third in the 1,500-meter run (4:54); and fourth in the 800-meter run (2:21). Her personal record (PR) in the 1,500 is 4:48 and she was milliseconds off her PR in the 800.

Kirtman, 12, runs for Ford Sports Performance and took second in the 80-meter hurdles (a PR of 12.49), just behind 12.48 winner Raelynn Wilmore of the Arizona Cheetahs Track Club. In the 100-meter dash, Kirtman placed eighth (13.01); her PR is 12.6.

Berry, 11, competes for Mercer Island’s Bluebird Track Club and placed seventh in the 1,500-meter run (4:55); her PR is 4:51.

All the girls’ times at nationals are All-American marks.

The Reporter spoke with the athletes about their experiences at nationals, and here they discuss what pushed them to success on the national stage.

Kirtman said the competition was heated, she remained focused during her races and enjoyed running against the best athletes in the United States.

“It took a lot of training and a lot of sacrificing, like hanging out with friends and stuff. It was just a really exciting moment,” said Kirtman, adding that she was ranked No. 1 coming into the hurdles race.

When Kirtman gets into her four-point stance at the start of her events, “I’m just thinking about pushing out hard and trying to get a head start with all the other people. Throughout the race, I can’t hear anything around me because I’m focused on my form and getting to the finish line,” she said.

Berry said the keys to her success were training hard — even when she didn’t want to — and staying focused each step of the way. She kept her nerves in check and stayed cool before the race amid the hot weather.

“I just love running. I think it’s so fun. I like (that) all the girls around me are just so fast and good at their sport. So it’s just really fun interacting with people,” she said.

When Berry’s nerves melted away after the race began, the adrenaline kicked in and she was rolling.

Brondstetter gave kudos to her supportive coaches, teammates and parents for helping her garner success. She felt good come race time and knew that she worked hard in practices to get to nationals.

On having her encouraging crew watching the races, she noted: “They’re there to help me. So if I need it, I can just see them and it kind of just helps me automatically.”

It was a surreal moment when Brondstetter and her teammates triumphed in the 4×800 relay, she said.

“We were ranked No. 1, but seeing my teammates all push so hard, work so hard for this, it was really just an amazing experience,” she said.