Centerport Woman Wins Race To Brewery

Photo provided by Mike Polansky

Heather Williams, of Centerport, hits the finish line tape at Port Jeff Brewery.

Centerport resident Heather Williams took first place among the women in the inaugural 15K Run to Port Jeff Brewery.

Williams, 41, owner of Northport Physical Therapy, crossed the finish line at the Port Jefferson Village-based brewery in 1:00:20. She outkicked 24-year-old runner-up Betsy Eickelberg of Leonia, New Jersey by 2 minutes and 35 seconds, with 26-year-old Stefanie Braun, of Dix Hills, taking third place, 1 minute and 44 seconds behind Eickelberg.

The 15-kilometer course started with a .75-mile trip up East Broadway, and continued with other difficult uphill stints before the final downhill path on Thompson Street and the last flat stretch to the finish.

Williams described it as “the toughest course I have ever run on in 28 years of competitive running.”

Race Director Ric DiVeglio, of the Greater Long Island Running Club, and Port Jeff Brewing Company owner Mike Philbrick orchestrated the event. They were assisted by Coordinator of Volunteers Heather Ackerly and many volunteers who braved the rain with smiling faces.