From the Hanover Evening Sun (May 2), by Cory Mull

GETTYSBURG, Pa. - Dickson Mercer took a left on West Broadway, not unlike the dozens of times he did it before, and memory kicked in.

Only this time, seven years later, there was a finish line waiting.

The 2004 Gettysburg College graduate won the inaugural Gettysburg North-South Marathon on Sunday, finishing in a time of 2 hours, 38 minutes and 3 seconds.

"Honestly, this feels really good," said Mercer, a journalist by profession and elite runner by hobby. "To be able to come back to Gettysburg in this first race, I feel really good about that."

From the start, it seemed this was Mercer's race to win. He took the lead from the gun, heading straight just a few hundred meters on West Broadway before turning right onto Mummasburg Road, where in little time he took control of his ninth marathon.

"I always had a feeling the marathon would be my best distance," said Mercer, who picked up running in his senior year of high school at Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High (N.J.) and continued at Gettysburg College.

He had won in 2009 at the Fredrick (Md.) Marathon, where he ran 2:37.06, though none, especially this homecoming, likely felt this good.

He was working on motivation following disappointment, in the fall having to drop out of the Chicago Marathon because of injury.

So he logged grueling weeks over this marathon training cycle, topping as high as 100 miles one week, and came into Gettysburg strong, knowing the rolling hills and sweeping roads would be waiting.

He was ready on this Sunday, a warm and dry morning, where an estimated 1,000 other runners broke off toward the Gettysburg National Military Park as they ran past Civil War monuments, rural roads and scenic landscape.

"To be honest," said Mercer, 29, who averaged about a 6:02 mile pace, "I ran a pretty even race. The fact that I ran even splits suggests that, had it been a faster course, I would have run a pretty nice time."

Mercer was less than 10 minutes over his personal record, though remained pleased with his performance. The course, an up-and-back design, ate at runners on the return leg. Steady descents in the first 13 miles turned into slight inclines on the remaining run back.

"I knew it was a tough course," said Mercer, who runs for the Georgetown Running Company, based in the Washington, D.C., area. "I just tried to run a very steady pace so that I had some in the tank the entire time. I'm very pleased with the effort with the course and everything."

The Gettysburg North-South Marathon wore a Civil War theme. Approximately half of the entrants wore "blue" North bibs and the other half sported "red" South bibs.

The second-place finisher overall was Patrick Lestrange, a 21-year-old chemistry major who attends York College. It was his first marathon and he finished in 2:41:56. Karsten Brown was third overall in 2:44.56.

The female winner, Jaclyn Turncellito, 28, finished in 3:14:58, though wasn't as lucky when it came to rebounding off 26.2 miles.

The former Loyola (Md.) cross country runner wilted upon finishing and needed two sets of hands to help her stay on her feet as she walked off the pain attributed to the demanding grind.

"Mile 13, I started feeling the hills," said Turncellito, a Baltimore resident. "It became a battle to finish as opposed to running for time."

It was Turncellito's eighth marathon overall, but the combination of hills and an early fast start wore her down.

"I was definitely expecting to be stronger," Turncellito said, having won a marathon in Delaware, "But you have to think how beautiful it is to be here."

The second-place female, Lynn Kubeja, 25, finished in 3:21:54.