Young running stars Naomi MacGuinness and Spencer Haldeman broke the Middle School records in the 11 to 13 (middle school) in a pulsating night of racing in the Butterfield Mile on Friday.

MacGuinness, who saw off the challenge of Colette Durkin and Evelyn Fahy, broke Ashley Irby’s 2015 record of 5min 23.63sec by nearly eight seconds, crossing the line in 5:15.97. Haldeman’s 5:01.28 beat the 5:01.90 run by Dage Minors in 2009

The winner now of four consecutive titles on Front Street, MacGuinness thrilled the crowds lining Front Street.

“I’m very happy with the race,” MacGuinness told The Royal Gazette.

“My preparations went well and I stayed injury free. I knew some of the girls would go out fast, but I wanted to run my own pace and managed to get past them around the halfway point.

“Conditions were perfect and there was a really big crowd out, so it was a great atmosphere and it was also nice to get a record in the race.”

With his parents, twin sister and younger brother cheering him on, Haldeman held off the challenge of Nicolas Gomez-Caines and Dage Butterfield. The 13-year-old matched his time from the qualifiers and improved on his sixth-place finish last year.

“It feels great to break Dage Minors’s record from 2009 as I was chasing it my entire training,” Haldeman said.

“At the beginning of the race I went out strong. There was another guy in front of me and he went out really hard, so I was following him and the chase car up until the half-mile mark.

“I was side by side with him and then I passed him going into the turn around the Longtails. Coming back, I just powered through and went into the finish still feeling really strong.”

Speaking on behalf of the family, Haldeman’s mother Hillary, spoke of how she had encouraged her son to aim for the record.

“He’s been working so hard and we are absolutely so proud that he did his best, felt great and got a record at the same time,” she said.

“Of course we knew about the record and we encouraged him to go for it. We’ve been talking a lot about it and that was the plan.”

Freya Dunkle put in a dominant display to capture the 10 and under girls title in 6:11.67, a huge improvement from the 6:45.94 she achieved a year ago. Kamari Brooks-Gibbons (06:18.66) and Hazel Richards (6:20.22), secured the other spots on the podium.

“I felt pretty nervous at first, but then winning it felt really good,” Dunkle said.

“At first I just kept my pace going because everyone was sprinting. Then during the race when people started to slow down, that’s when I picked up my pace. It’s my first time to get on the podium as I finished eighth last year and it was really fun going up against some of my friends from Warwick Academy in the race.”

Nolan Horrobin achieved a personal best of 5:36.32 when storming to victory in the boys 10 and under contest.

“It was a really tough race as I had a cramp first and I just had to keep pushing through, so it felt really good,” Horrobin said.

“This is my first time winning as I came third last year. I still have one year left in this age group and I’m excited to run again next year.

“The support was amazing with everyone yelling and screaming. It felt so nice and I was feeling good support and I’d like to thank the crowd for pushing me through.”

Riana Robinson clinched a tightly-contested girls 17 and under race in 5:26.52. Close behind was Ziza Russell (5:29.65), while Brooklyn Myers (5:36.14) sealed third spot.

“It was very rewarding and I really liked it,” Robinson said.

“The competition was very hard and tough, but I just enjoyed the overall experience of the race. It was very fun and I hope to do it next year too.

“The pace was faster at the start, but since some of the girls my age were in the group below last year, it was kind of the same experience.

“Ziza Russell really pushed me because she was a new competitor. When we were coming back, I thought she was going to catch me, but I just really wanted to win, so I powered through the pain and just ran.

“I have been training a lot and I really wanted to win this race. It was on my bucket list, so I just really wanted it and I’m glad I did it in my first year in this age group.”

Gianluca Bortoli clocked 4:32.96 to win the boys 17 and under contest. Jackson Langley, in his final year, finished second in 4:42.46, with Sanchez Smith (4:46.40), completing the podium positions.

The 16-year-old Bortoli was delighted to win his first title against what he described as strong competitors.

“It feels amazing to win,” Bortoli said.

“I knew I had a chance, but I did not think that I could actually do it. I race against these guys a lot and I always do better if I go a bit slower and can build into it a bit.

“When I saw Jackson go out, I was just thinking in my head that I need to keep him close. I couldn’t let him get too far because he would definitely just run away with it.

“The race honestly went perfect for me. I was able to close that gap on that little uphill by the supermarket, from there I had to really dig in because he was not giving up and was close to me the entire way.

“It’s hard to say where I was better than the rest of the guys because I feel like we’re very different runners in the way we pace the race, but I’ve been in really good form lately.”

Bortoli had in his sights on the record set by Tyler Butterfield (4:27.30) in 1999 but fell short.

“I was obviously thinking about the record a bit,” he said.

“I knew it was probably still a bit far from where I was at, but I did not think I’d be that close. Maybe next year, I’ll go for it.”