Mississippi State football Coach Dan Mullen fulfilled one of his goals Monday afternoon.
Mullen, 43, finished the Boston Marathon with a time of 4 hours, 28 minutes and 35 seconds. A native of New Hampshire, Mullen told The Associated Press that running the Boston Marathon was one of his goals.
The Bulldogs coach did not qualify for the Boston Marathon, but instead gained entry thanks to a sponsor's exemption through Adidas. He raised money for his Mullen Family 36 Foundation, which is involved with helping children in Mississippi.
The Clarion-Ledger in Jackson, Miss., tracked Mullen's progress Monday on its website.
Mullen completed his first 5,000 meters in 29:56, at a 9:38 pace. He reached the 10,000-meters mark in 1:00.08, a 9:44 pace.
When he reached the 15K mark, he had his best 5K split of 9:31, which put him on pace to finish the marathon in 4:12:18. But Mullen slowed in the next 5K split, averaging a 9:47 mile. He reached the 20K mark in 2:00:03.
At the midpoint of the race, 13.1 miles, Mullen was on pace to finish in 4:13:09 with a 9.40 mile pace. At the 25K mark, Mullen was averaging a mile every 9:45, on pace to finish in 4:15:18. He was still averaging sub-10 minute miles over the next two 5K splits.
Mullen ran the 26.2 miles at a 10:15 mile pace and was the 21,655th runner to cross the finish line. He was 1,781st in his age group (40-44).
In honor of Mullen's accomplishment, look for Mississippi State to wear "26.2" decals on their helmets for the 2016 football season.
Sorry, Chris
Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Chris Colabello showed up at his locker the morning after getting beaned by Steven Wright to find a present the Boston Red Sox pitcher left for him.
"Steven decided that he was going to send over a gift," Colabello told The Associated Press, moving his clothes and uniform out of the way to show a large bottle of liquor underneath.
"He didn't have to," he said Monday as he was getting ready for the annual Patriots' Day game. "I'm sure that's not cheap, too."
On Sunday, Wright hit the infielder on the helmet with an 87 mph fastball, sending him to the ground. He sat on the ground for a while and was checked out by a trainer before getting up and trotting to first base.
"It's just more of a token of saying, 'I'm sorry,' " Wright said. "I didn't really want it to be a public thing because it was really between me and him.
"I know it's not a necessary thing. The gift was more for me than it was for him to kind of ease it for myself for what happened."
Wright was visibly upset on the mound, took off his hat and chatted with Colabello when he made his way to first.
Colabello said the last thing expected was a gift.
"He went above and beyond in my eyes," he said. "It was pretty obvious there was no intent. You could see by his reaction."
Colabello said the act of a pitcher sending a gift to a player after hitting him "happens more than people know. You build relationships with people."
Wright said he did it because it scared so many, including Colabello's parents, who were in the stands. Colabello graduated from high school in Milford, Mass., and played college ball at Assumption in Worcester, Mass.
"I felt like it was the least I could do for scaring myself and probably his parents because I know he's from around here and his parents were here," Wright said. "I know that's something I needed to do."
SPORTS QUIZ
What year did the Boston Red Sox begin playing at Fenway Park on Patriots' Day?
ANSWER
- Patriots' Day is an official state holiday in Massachusetts and falls on the third Monday in April. The Red Sox usually begin their games on Patriots' Day at 11:05 a.m. Eastern.
Sports on 04/19/2016