Sisters by blood, competitors at heart, the Ostrander sisters opened the year with fireworks at the Houston Half Marathon.

Allie Ostrander covered the 13.1-mile course in a blistering 1 hour, 10 minutes and 8 seconds to finish 18th, lowering her own Alaska record in the process. Taylor Deal (née Ostrander) clocked 1:17:29 to become the fifth-fastest woman in Alaska history.

Ostrander, an Oiselle-sponsored athlete, registered consistent splits through much of the first 10 miles, running 16:42 through 5 kilometers and 33:34 by 10K.

The 29-year-old saved her best for last, logging some of her fastest miles of the race towards the latter half to finish with a 62-second personal best, winning the 25-29 age group. She averaged a scorching pace of 5:21 per mile.

“I wasn’t sure how this one would go, so (I’m) very happy with it!” shared Ostrander on social media. “I ran with an amazing group of guys for most of this race and drafted shamelessly. Huge thanks to all of them for breaking the wind for me and pulling me to a PR!”

Last winter, the former Kenai Central standout recorded 1:11:10 in her debut at the distance, taking down the long-standing 1:15:27 held by Olympian Chris Clark of Anchorage.

Now she stands just nine seconds shy of breaking the 70-minute barrier and cracking the top-50 all-time for the U.S.

Deal, 31, lowered her personal best by a staggering 84 seconds to become just the sixth known Alaskan to dip under 1:18:00. She joins the likes of Ostrander, Clark, Anchorage’s Sarah (Reese) Bishop, Anna Dalton and Kodiak’s Kristi Klinnert (Waythomas).

Alaska Women’s All-Time Half Marathon

1. Allie Ostrander, 1:10:08 (1/26)
2. Chris Clark, 1:15:27 (1/00)
3. Sarah Bishop, 1:16:40 (2018)
4. Anna Dalton, 1:17:04 (1/20)
5. Taylor Deal, 1:17:29 (1/26)
6. Kristi Klinnert, 1:17:59 (8/91)
7. Suzanne Ray, 1:18:00 (8/91)
8. Megan Youngren, 1:18:30 (10/20)
9. Morgan Lash, 1:18:47 (11/24)
10. Elizabeth Balsan, 1:19:03 (10/20)

Source: Alaska Sports Report

Like her younger sister, Deal’s race panned out similarly, increasing her speed as the race progressed. The physician assistant clocked 18:25 for the 5K and 37:01 through 10 kilometers. She averaged a blistering pace of 5:55 per mile to take fifth in the 30-34 age group.

“Wow, such a fun day, felt all the cheers from friends near and far!” shared Deal on social media. “I had a lot of doubt heading into this race after a last-minute decision to race and flu A two weeks ago. So glad I took the swing and trusted in the power of consistent training [over] a perfectly executed build.”

The duo of Ostrander and Deal were likely the fastest sisters in the race and now bookend the top-5 in Alaska history.

Deal is also the tenth-fastest Alaskan in the marathon, after running 2:48:42 at the Chicago Marathon just three months ago.

Over 14,000 runners completed the half marathon.

Ethiopia’s Fentaye Belayneh won the women’s race in 1:04:49. Eritrea’s Habtom Samuel — the reigning NCAA cross country champion for the University of New Mexico — took the overall victory in 59:01. North Carolina’s Taylor Roe finished just 11 seconds shy of the women’s American record in 1:06:20, while North Carolina’s Alex Maier missed the men’s American record by six seconds, clocking 59:23.

Kodiak’s Trevor Dunbar ran 2:28:08 in the Houston Marathon, shaving over seven minutes off his personal best in his third go at the 26.2-mile distance.

An associate head coach at the University of Virginia, Dunbar impressed with negative splits of 1:14:56 and 1:13:12 to finish 39th in the men’s race, averaging a strong pace of 5:39 per mile.

His time is also believed to be the fastest by a Kodiak High alum, bettering Curtis Mortenson’s 2:29:52 from the 2005 NAIA Marathon Championships.

“Don’t think it could have gone better,” shared Dunbar on social media. “Marathon #3 [equals] great success.”

The 34-year-old former professional runner and University of Oregon standout recently announced he and his wife Joelle Amaral Dunbar are expecting their first child, a baby boy, later this year.

Former Anchorage resident Michelle Baxter clocked 2:58:42 to finish 74th. The 42-year-old athlete, coach and mother-of-two based in Minnesota recorded similar halves of 1:28:12 and 1:30:30.

More than 8,800 runners finished the Houston Marathon.

Colorado’s Zouhair Talbi won in 2:05:45 — the fourth-fastest time ever by an American. Great Britain’s Calli Hauger-Thackery won the women’s race in 2:24:17, earning her second marathon win in four weeks.

Here’s the place by gender for those who listed Alaska as their home state:

Aramco Houston Half Marathon

Alaska Finishers

WOMEN

45) Taylor Deal, Anchorage, 1:17:29

Chevron Houston Marathon

WOMEN

1,713) Ad Ige, Anchorage, 4:32:45

2,262) Laurel Burst, Anchorage, 5:00:45

MEN

2,524) Robert Hanson, Anchorage, 3:54:17

3,132) Dean Denter, Eagle River, 4:08:28