Amy-Eloise Neal's 3000m title

Associated Press
Amy-Eloise Neale of the Snohomish Track Club successfully defended her national title in the 3,000-meter run Saturday at the USA Track and Field National Junior Olympics in Omaha, Neb.

Neale, competing in the Youth Girls division, finished in a personal-best time of 10 minutes, 17.19 seconds.

Frank Dauncey of the Snohomish Track Club said Neale won the race in “surgical fashion.”

She ran “even splits throughout the race, moving up through the pack and finally laying down a devastating kick with 110 meters to go that no one could match,” Dauncey said in an e-mail.

That late burst helped Neale edge runner-up Katherine Adams by less than half a second. Adams finished in 10:17.42.

On Sunday, Neale finished second in the 1,500 meters in a time of 4:41.04. Abbey Leonardi of Kennebunk, Maine, won the Youth Girls race in 4:40.30.

To see video of Neale's 3,000 victory, click here